Evening star., 1955-07-10
By A. J. WEDDERBURN
Curator of Photography
The Smithsonian Institution

By A. j. WEDDERBURN
Curator. of Photography
The Smithsonian Institution
Harsh black shadows are al
ways a problem in summer
time photograph.
Most snapshots and movies
are taken between 10 am. and
4 pm. when the sun is high.
This means eyes will be OBJ
Scured by shadows. Other
shadows cast by noses, hats
or other objects will cause un-
pleasant contrasts unless some-
thing is done about it. A re-
dector is the answer to this
problem.
When taking pictures in
brilliant sunlight, whether still
or movies, a reflector should be
employed in the same way a.,
flll-in light is used to balance
a lighting created artiflcially.
Indoors we are accustomed to
using q main light source to
illuminate the subject and a
smaller light to fill in and
tighten the shadows cast be
the more powerful lamp.
On the outside simply con-
slider the sun as your main
light and use q reflector to
balance it. Reflectors can be
purchased or you can make
your own with inexpensive
materials. Later we will de-
scribe how you can make one
but first let's see how it should
oe used.
Examine Past Efforts
Take a look at some of last
summers snapshots. Examine
the faces Of your subjects in
particular. In many you will
find that the eyes are virtual
ly obscured by shadows that
fill the eye sockets. Then the
nose has cast an unsightly
black shadow across the face,
often actually distorting the
shape Of the nose. A broad
brimmed hat such as is fire.
quently worn at the beach
often casts a shadow that
hides most of the face. At
tempts to compensate for
facial shadows by basing the
exposure on the shadow area
result in tremendous overex-
posure of the highlights, wash
ing them out. One extreme is
as bad as the other.
The solution. then, is to
soften the dark shadow area
so that it will record in full
detail on the Aim. Too much
fill-in light should be avoided
because this will have the ef-
feet of flattening the image
on film.
AS we have said, q reflector
is used in much the same way
a f1ll-in lamp is used indoors.
But a word of caution here.
We are so accustomed to light
coming from odd places and
directions inside a house we
take any kind of artificial
lighting for granted. But all
pictures or films taken out of
doors must seem to have the
sun as the light source or they
will not appear normal.
Light From High Angle
Accordingly, a reflector
should be held at a high angle
so all the light will seem to be
coming from the same general
direction. This can be accom-
plished by having the reflector
held in position by a tripod
or light stand or you can have
an assistant hold 1t.
Face the reflector toward
the sun. Then it can be tilted
one way or another until the
desired lighting effect is
achieved. Don't necessarily
accept the first lighting effect.
Tilt the reflector one way and
then another, or move in it
and away from the subject,
until a well-balanced lighting
is obtained.
If placed too close, you will
notice that the shadow almost
disappears. If too far away,
the shadow will remain too
dense. Seek a well-rounded
lighting that will still provide
full detail In the shadow areas.
If the sun is too strong for
the eyes Of the subject, simply
move into a shaded spot and
again the reflector can be used
to throw enough light to give
an adequate exposure.
How to Make One .
Here's how to make a very
inexpensive reflector. Take a
sheet of plywood of a size
suitable to your needs and cut
1t lengthwise down the center,
rejoining 1t with a pair OF
hinges. The hinging operation
will allow you to carry q good
sized reflector in a small space
such as the trunk Of your car
For hand carrying 1t may be
latched at the top with hook
and eye and a carrying handle
attached.
Ona side nf the ref1actor