Portrait photography tip: Avoid direct sunlight through a window

Sunday 17 April 2022, 20:10 by Elja Trum | 4,253 views | 0 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

When you're taking photos indoors, a window is an excellent light source. It can give you lovely soft light that can be just as good as a softbox in a studio. You just need to avoid direct sunlight.

Danien - f/2.8, 1/400s, 200 ISO
Direct sunlight through the window
Direct sunlight creates ugly patches of light on your model. The difference between light and shadow becomes so great that your camera can't handle it properly. It doesn't look good.

There are several solutions you can use. The simplest is to find a window that doesn't get direct sunlight. North-facing windows are very practical for this, as they almost never get direct sunlight.

You can of course also take the time of day into account. In the morning, light comes through the windows on the east side, while in the afternoon it's better to stay away from windows on the west side.

Another option is to diffuse the sunlight. For example, with existing net curtains or a light-transmitting curtain or roller blind. A translucent screen, if you have one to hand, is of course another solution.

Danien - f/2.8, 1/200s, 200 ISO
Sunlight diffused by roller blind
Without the harsh patches of direct sunlight, your portrait photo becomes much more pleasant to look at.

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About the author

Elja Trum is the founder of Photofacts and online photography course website Photofacts Academy. He has been writing about photography since 2006. Elja is also the author of (Dutch) books on composition, black-and-white photography, flash photography and portrait photography.

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Would you like to take better photos and keep up with what is happening in photography? Photofacts publishes articles that teach you something about photography — from a product announcement to a practical shooting tip or a look at a website. Photofacts covers photography every day and is a hobby project of Elja Trum's that got out of hand. The articles are written by a team of volunteer authors. If you would enjoy writing one or more articles for Photofacts, do get in touch.More about Photofacts

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