Luminous Landscape Forum

Equipment & Techniques => Landscape & Nature Photography => Topic started by: thierrylegros396 on September 28, 2013, 03:08:39 am

Title: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: thierrylegros396 on September 28, 2013, 03:08:39 am
Post here your backlit flowers.

That one was taken yesterday morning.

Chance that I've seen it  ;) ;)

Don't hesitate to give me advices for better crop and/or light balance between flower and background.


Have a Nice W-E.

Thierry
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: stamper on September 28, 2013, 04:24:00 am
Correct me if I am wrong but I thought backlit was that the background was lighter than the subject? Your rendering is fine to my eyes but the subject isn't original enough to be interesting.
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: luxborealis on September 28, 2013, 06:10:15 pm
Backlit means the light is coming from behind the subject. The background could be light or dark - a dark background tends to make the backlit subject "glow".
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: luxborealis on September 28, 2013, 06:12:51 pm
Here's one.
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: davidh202 on September 28, 2013, 08:00:23 pm
From  our sunroom collection a few years ago.
I usually shoot our Orchids  in stacks with my Twin Macro flash but the light on this one caught my eye one evening
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: mattpallante on October 01, 2013, 03:21:33 pm
Big Leaf Magnolia
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: luxborealis on October 01, 2013, 08:32:04 pm
Note that effective backlit photos rely on the subject being isolated from the background or at least enhanced by the backlighting. If the subject is "lost" in a sea of confusing out-of-focus background blurs then the effect is greatly diminished.
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: KirbyKrieger on October 01, 2013, 10:18:25 pm
A few more:
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: stamper on October 02, 2013, 05:25:55 am
Note that effective backlit photos rely on the subject being isolated from the background or at least enhanced by the backlighting. If the subject is "lost" in a sea of confusing out-of-focus background blurs then the effect is greatly diminished.

That was what I was alluding to in reply #1. How can you get backlight when the background is dark or black?

http://digital-photography-school.com/rediscovering-backlit-subjects
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: Bart_van_der_Wolf on October 02, 2013, 05:58:34 am
Tulips galore.

Cheers,
Bart
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: Isaac on October 02, 2013, 11:55:57 am
How can you get backlight when the background is dark or black?

The backlit figure in the 3rd photo (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seraphimc/138100836/) on the page you linked-to has head against a dark background and body against a lighter background.
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: thierrylegros396 on October 02, 2013, 12:47:12 pm
Like the third very much Kirby.

Very Nice Bart !

Thanks for sharing.
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: stamper on October 03, 2013, 04:15:43 am
The backlit figure in the 3rd photo (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seraphimc/138100836/) on the page you linked-to has head against a dark background and body against a lighter background.

The background has a partial light source from behind, thus showing what I consider to be backlit subject. Other images in the threads have mostly, or all of a dark back ground. I am not looking for a quarrel or being pedantic but I am wondering why they are considered to be backlit? Possibly cut and pasted into a dark background?
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: KirbyKrieger on October 03, 2013, 08:28:49 am
The background has a partial light source from behind, thus showing what I consider to be backlit subject. Other images in the threads have mostly, or all of a dark back ground. I am not looking for a quarrel or being pedantic but I am wondering why they are considered to be backlit? Possibly cut and pasted into a dark background?
Nothing wrong with being particular.  It seems we need to agree to our terms.  Are you suggesting that "backlit" implies that the light source is within the frame?  I understand that to be "Contre-jour (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contre-jour)", which is a subset of "Backlit".
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: framah on October 03, 2013, 09:26:14 am
Backlit means the light is coming from behind.

That can still happen with the background being dark and is in fact preferable that way as it enhances the effect. The light is coming from SOMEWHERE behind the flower. it doesn't need to be in the image only that it is lighting the subject from BEHIND.

The first posted image and the magnolia shot are examples of too much of the light being in the image and not enough of it backlighting the subject.

I know you saw the light coming thru a tiny portion of the flower, but it wasn't enough to be considered backlight as the term is used.
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: KirbyKrieger on October 03, 2013, 09:46:08 pm
Backlit means the light is coming from behind.

That can still happen with the background being dark and is in fact preferable that way as it enhances the effect. The light is coming from SOMEWHERE behind the flower. it doesn't need to be in the image only that it is lighting the subject from BEHIND.

The first posted image and the magnolia shot are examples of too much of the light being in the image and not enough of it backlighting the subject.

I know you saw the light coming thru a tiny portion of the flower, but it wasn't enough to be considered backlight as the term is used.
 (Emphasis added.)


1. To whom are you referring?

2. How is it that the definition is "lighting the subject from behind", but then you qualify it by stating "it wasn't enough to be considered backlight".  Does "backlit" describe a condition (subject lit from behind) or an effect (subject lit from behind in such a way that it satisfies a pictorial norm)?
Title: Re: Flowers, backlight !
Post by: thierrylegros396 on October 04, 2013, 11:32:05 am
Yes, my first image was really backlit.

Ok, the sun was not exactly 0° in front of me  ;) ;) ;)

But it doesn't come from my back when shooting.

The sun came from tiny space between foliage, that means only a few minute later the Flower was not lighted anymore !

And the day after (same hour and minute), no more illumination of that flower, simply because the sun was lower in elevation.

Have a Nice Day.

Thierry