Shadow Casting - Episode 76 of Understanding Photography with Kim Ayres

Given this blog is called "Painting with Shadows" it was surely only ever a matter of time before I would decide to introduce a Shadows Challenge into the Understanding Photography with Kim Ayres podcast.

However, shadows are such a HUGE subject, that I've decided for now to look at just one aspect – where the shadow is cast on another surface, rather than the subject being immersed in, or emerging from, the shadows.

How light and shadow fall on an egg, for example, gives you a sense of the 3 dimensional shape of it. However, the shadow an egg will cast if you shine a light on it, will be 2 dimensional. And it is this latter kind of shadow I'm interested in for this photography challenge.

From sundials, to shadow puppet theatres, to creating animals shapes with our hands, shadows have been fascinating and entertaining us from earliest childhood.

A few months ago I set a Silhouette Challenge, and in that I talked about the fact we cannot help but try and mentally fill in the gaps – to attempt to make sense of what we are seeing even though it is only an outline.

Cast shadows, however, are a step even further removed. We are not seeing the outline of the subject itself, instead that outline is cast onto another surface. And now that other surface can change and distort the shape of the shadow, making it even more difficult to interpret.

But herein also lies the potential for creativity – to deliberately manipulate the shadow to give the impression of it being something other than it is – whether to create a puzzle, to entertain, or to misdirect.

This can be done by choosing, or warping, the surface on which the shadow falls, or by adding extra elements and creating overlaps to fundamentally change its natural shape.

Another key aspect to understand before you embark on your photographic Shadow Challenge, is the size of the light source can dramatically effect the hardness or softness of the shadow.

Generally speaking, the larger the light source, the softer the edges of the shadow will be.

It is worth taking the time to experiment and notice the differences between, for example, window light on a dull day, and a small handheld torch. Also notice what happens if you move the subject closer to, or further from, your light source.

You can include in your photo the subject which is casting the shadow, or decide not to, but in this challenge, the cast shadow is the theme, and so needs to play a prominent part in the narrative.

And when you submit your image, please tell us a little bit about it – either what it is, or why you decided to take it, whether it has any particular significance for you, or any challenges you had to overcome.

See how you get on – I'm really looking forward to seeing what people are going to produce! But if you find you're struggling, then you can still submit a photo you're having difficulty with - just explain the problem and I can include suggestions and ideas in the podcast too.

Either place your submission (just the one please) into the Understanding Photography with Kim Ayres Facebook Group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/240842990388815/

or email it to me if you don't do Facebook

Try and get it in before the end of the weekend, or by Monday (20th September) at the latest. Anything that arrives on Tuesday runs the risk of not being included in the podcast.

You can use a phone, tablet, point-and-shoot or DSLR (or mirrorless).

And then, make sure you tune in to YouTube here -
https://youtu.be/ibN1dsiqRA8

on Tuesday 21st September at 7.30pm (UK time) where I'll go through the photos, and give comments and feedback, and hopefully we will all become inspired by some of the submissions to go and try out new things with our photography.

Meanwhile enjoy Episode 76, where I explore these ideas of casting shadows, and give feedback and critique to submitted images.

And if you decide to click through and watch it directly on YouTube (rather than here on the blog), then you can watch the Live Chat Replay and see the comments people are writing in real time as the podcast progresses.

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2:00 - Welcome, what's coming up, greetings and comments
08:55 - Introduction to shadows in photography
14:00 - Examples of photographing shadows
36:10 - The Photo Challenge for next week - the cast shadow
36:39 - How the size of the light source effects the hardness of the shadow
42:28 - Introduction to the idea of "Critique" in the podcasts
43:50 - Critique of images submitted to the Facebook Group, "Understanding Photography with Kim Ayres"
43:55 - Jim - replacing the sky
50:20 - Viji - beach shoes
54:40 - Rose-Marie - Correcting the white balance on owls in the trees
1:03:50 - Anne - Arizona Rocks - a sense of scale
1:10:35 - Jack - Cropping
1:15:48 - Nurije - Life is like a camera... colour or black and white?
1:20:39 - Vandana - sunrise - cropping
1:28:38 - Robert - shopping cart in the river
1:37:17 - No matter how good your excuse as to why the photograph failed, nobody cares
1:38:55 - Garry - silhouettes, and desaturating a distracting jacket
1:45:55 - Coming up next week - Shadow Casting Photo Challenge
1:49:48 - End

If you found this interesting/useful/entertaining, then please consider supporting these podcasts and blog posts via buymeacoffee.com/kimayres

Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel - https://www.youtube.com/kimayres – to be notified of new podcasts and behind-the-scenes videos.

And, or course, if you would like to submit a photo for feedback, or just ask a photography related question, then either email me or join my Understanding Photography with Kim Ayres Facebook group and I will put it into the following podcast:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/240842990388815/