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March's Challenge:
- Shoot a new photograph of any outdoor subject during twilight.
Twilight, if you don't already know, is the period of time just before sunrise and after sunset, when the sun is below the horizon within six degrees (civil) or six to twelve degrees, if you're planning to navigate a boat via horizon (nautical).*
While planning to shoot a specific subject, I came across an article on the correct lighting to photograph 'outdoor lights'. Twilight provides the conditions when ambient light and, in this case, Christmas lights balance. You can use this technique when shooting a lighted cityscape or "nighttime" long exposures, providing a dramatic background and can be exceptional when wispy clouds are involved. This applies to landscapes.
It also recommends setting the cameras' white balance to tungsten.
Here are some nice examples of twilight:
Twilight is a short period of time so it's essential to plan ahead.
| Astronomical Applications Department |
| It's easy to find civil twilight, sunrise/set, and moonrise/set information up from the Astronomical Applications Department of the U.S. Naval Observatory's website. |
Aside knowing when twilight will occur, you'll want the times of sunrise and/or set to plan your time accordingly. Allow yourself enough time setup your gear and take a few test shots from different locations/angles beforehand to determine which composition best suits your vision. Knowing this ahead of time will keep you from having to repeat the photo shoot.
