HOW TO Photograph SUNRISES and SUNSETS

In this video, I’ll teach you my tips for capturing all the data you need out in the field and how to edit that to get a great final image!

With modern cameras capturing a high dynamic range is easier than ever. But, I still see many people struggling once they get the RAW files back in the computer.

Hopefully, this video will give you some tips you can use to make sure you don't end up with unusable images or images that didn't capture the range of light you were hoping for!

Enjoy!

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00:00:48 - What is HDR?
00:02:28 - Shooting towards the sun?@#%!
00:03:00 - Understanding your camera’s sensor
00:05:03 - Finding the shot
00:08:42 - Composing the frame
00:10:26 - Checking the RAW files
00:13:38 - The histogram is your friend
00:15:00 - Photoshop editing for high dynamic range
00:15:49 - The shadow slider
00:16:09 - Boosting the exposure
00:16:30 - Recovering details in the highlights
00:17:10 - Using linear gradients
00:18:30 - Improving light using a brush

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Say hello!

[yolandawiersma]

“You are just going out there and getting the data”. Brilliant little gem there, Will! I think with that little phrase you may have unlocked a bit of my mental block around digital photography! When I transitioned from film to digital I hated all the futzing-at-the-computer time, so much so that I dropped photography as a hobby for about 20 years. Just getting back into it. Your Landscape Masterclass and these videos have helped immensely. Now I just need to upgrade my camera (1st gen DSLR.). Nonetheless, keeping with another of your mantras (“the best camera is the one on your hand”) I’ve managed to get some shots in recent months that are vast improvements and to use your tips to get images I am starting to feel proud of. Thanks for your fabulous instruction!

[johnchambers]

Great balance between in the field shooting and editing the image. Plenty of useful tips. Thank you for sharing Will.

[emorysumi]

That tip of using brush with haze is cool, thanks!

[johnniewelbornjr.]

Excellent points all around, from the actual composition and shooting to the post work. Yes, forcing an image that one sees in their mind is rarely successful and often obvious in the end result. It's all about being aware of one's surroundings and being flexible (even when getting bitten lol). I have always loved shooting into the light, something we all once had drilled into our brains that was a no-no. I always enjoy seeing other's approaches to such light conditions, especially when working in Photoshop (I just never embraced LR since I feel I've better control in PS). Excellent video, for this covered a lot of things I learned the hard way with experimentation over the years. Thanks for sharing!

[Nickospan]

That's am awesome video, one of the best I've seen making choosing the scene, being patient, getting the shot and for a newbie like me...see what you do with the Raw files👌😎

[johnthomasdoyle]

Thanks Will, I love that you take your time, you don’t take your camera out until you know exactly what you want. I’m like a kid in a candy store, with the camera, just snapping away. I need to be more like you, but most of the time I don’t know what I want or sometimes how to achieve what I want. I will take my time from now on and I will look at options before snapping at everything. Cheers Will.

[alanweston]

Love your explanations, simple no bullshit information, like the fact that you explained about only capturing data not trying to get great photo straight out of camera, that you showed the raw file and histogram, clarified a lot for me. Thanks heaps.

[bergis]

Just saw this one today. Very useful - I also like very much to shoot into the sun. Autumn and winter is my favourite seasons for photography, often excellent light but from a low sun. I have often tried exposure bracketing, but often find that all I need is the (slightly) underexposed one because I can lift the shadows enough to get a good picture. I also mostly shoot handheld whenever I can get away with it.

[arjundhannyify]

yours and mads pete iverson style of landscape imaging are the best in my opinion! your landscape masterclass has also given me a big boost in the quality of my images. thanks a lot for your invaluable lessons.

[iphoneskidad]

very helpful showing the process from beginning to end. I like the haze as well

[RisingPhoenix]

Thank you so much for this! I recently got my hands on an old DSLR camera and have more seriously been learning how to use it and about photography in general. This video helped me understand the general process a lot better than I previously did. Thank you for that!

[bernym]

Excellently produced practical demonstration of handling high dynamic range image making. Re: using the gradient on the sky, I use darktable to edit my raw files. It too has a gradient mask but with an added feature. You can add a curve to the mask to a greater or lesser degree which helps to deal with scenes like valleys. mountains, cliffs etc. It can also be combined with a parametric mask to handle differing luminosity and or hue to create a more targeted mask. I used to use Adobe Photoshop but now I find I can get better results with darktable. BTW, darktable is free and available on all three major platforms, i.e. Windows, Mac and Linux.
Thank you for the video, I have subscribed.

[cityboy]

Brilliant and clearly explained. Thanks.

My wife enjoyed this video too, and she's not particularly interested in photography. I suspect some other element caught her eye! 🤣

[tomhansen]

Awesome video Will. Great work flow in camera Raw. Definitely enjoying the DR of my new R5. Amazing what you can capture and recover. Thanks for this video.

[MegaDwilkinson]

Beautiful image, beautiful location and great instruction as always Will

[cidfidchris]

Amazing video bro.. really like your explanations and your style.. thank you

[watchlover]

Nice shot and video Will. Seen your name but never watched, great stuff thanks.

[glennricks]

Brilliant Will, I think I have been doing more than a few things wrong. Thanks.

[Tajhad]

Extremely helpful. You have the eye of a painter.

[MrBillkaz]

Aqua socks are a must for me when doing stuff like this.. they help keep the flow of movement when I want a good composition near water .. one less thing I have to concern myself with lol , . Love this photo