How to capture light ray into picture

[nitehawk68]

Hi sifus,
I have seen many photographs here or in other forums whereby sunlight shine through trees or woods or clouds are being captured. I have tried many times but failed each time.

Do you need special filters or skills to capture those moments?

Thank you!

 

[S L Chai]

Wait for the right moment. It's not an everyday thing.

 

[nitehawk68]

When I see it with my naked eye but I can't capture it with my camera. I don't think it is camera make or mode or lens matter but rather the photographer's skill. Don't you agree?

 

[catchlights]

first, you need the background to be darker,
second, you need some mist or smoke,

so the light ray are more distinct to be recorded on sensor or film.

 

[sammy888]

When I see it with my naked eye but I can't capture it with my camera. I don't think it is camera make or mode or lens matter but rather the photographer's skill. Don't you agree?

If you can see it you should be able to photography it. BUt yes your pair of eyes is alot more sensitive at catching light far better then a camera but still....to what degree it would be clearly seen or just a subtle image of it depends alot on your how you setup your photo shot and choice of shutter speed.

A clear day that has a landscape view you can see as far as the eye can see..well..that kind of clear sky is not condusive for ray of light to be seen. The air or atmosphere has to be well..abit 'dirty' if you want to call it that. Meaning there are particles in the atmosphere or it could even be a distance light rain or a very light haze. Couple that with a background that is dark as in a rain cloub. Not a small one but one that really so wide it fills your line of sight in front of you. And out of this cloud are gaps or holes that lets the sun shine light thru it or at the edge of it dark cloub ( like a silver lining) now under the right condition the light particles in the air catches the light reflection thus from certain agnle you can see either a very faint or very contrast ray of light against a dark thick cloub, sun setting or rising. On your part yo uhave to be able to capture it with the right camera exposure setting. The idea is not to compensate for the dark portion of the cloub but to compensate for the rather bright lit gap or hole or edge that the sun light is shining out from. Understand? It is a bit hard to explained in finer details (at least by me lah) but as you will see most photos of rays of light in the sky examples, the overall look tend to be dark or even gloomy that is because you want to capture the faint light ray which if you try to compensate for the dark portions of the picture ...well doing so..the rays of light would gets too bright(over expose) and then blend into your cloubs as the overall scene gets brighter.

In other words you tend to take your take your exposure speed by metering the brightest portion of your picture or there about. ( I would rather use my spot meter mode to get a few reading over various bright portion of the sky and then pick an estimated average and set the on manual before I compose my shot and shoot. You don't take your reading from the darker portions of a cloub as this will then to get the camera to suggest a brighter result shot there by lose all sign of that faint ray of light. You need to just keep trying and shoot as much shots by varying the shutter speed. I would set my apeture to about F16 and just change the shutter speed. Don;t be surprise you could be shooting at shutter speed of 1,000, 2,000 or even 8,000 if your camera can handle it.

Here is link to yahoo photo where there are examples of ray of light. SO how say a camera can't do it...you mean you thought that is all photoshopped heheheh


http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images?_adv_prop=image&fr=yfp-t-471&va=ray+light+sky&sz=all

 

[Minus070]

Is there a program that can make lightray on your photo?

 

[sammy888]

Is there a program that can make lightray on your photo?

of course there are......graphic drawing programs like Photoshop and tons of illiustration skill practices you will need to log in...in order to fake one that you can't tell is not the real thing.

 

[megaweb]

See my light ray shot at http://gallery.clubsnap.com/showphoto.php/photo/475/cat/500/ppuser/26