Pray for Cloudy Days

Just because you planned a photo trip and woke up to a cloudy day doesn’t mean you can go back to bed. Overcast days are fabulous for photographing. Colours are much more vibrant, light is softer and uniform. This is the best time to get out there and get some great shots. Here are some things to look for when the sun is hiding.

• Waterfalls, rivers, creeks, streams photograph much better on cloudy days. If the sun is shining, there will be bright spots that will be overexposed and be distracting in an otherwise award winning shot. Rocks in streams will be too bright when the sun is hitting them again drawing the eye to the wrong place. Overcast or even rainy days are perfect for heading to your nearest waterfall.
  
• Gardens and flowers are also better photographed on overcast days. Colours are beautifully saturated, not washed out as they are on sunny days.
  
• Take a walk in a lush forest, the greens will overwhelm you, and your photos will be dynamic. People will ask if you “photo shopped” it. On sunny days, forests are a mess of bright lights and dark shadows, a photographer’s worst nightmare. Pray for clouds.
  
• Colourful buildings, like flowers, will light up when clouds cover the skies.
  
• Fall is in the air and guess what? Fall colours are at their best on cloudy days. The Okanagan has some excellent bright and bold yellows as the leaves change. Don’t miss out, grab your camera and have fun.
  
• Despite the fact that every bride prays for brilliant sunshine on her wedding day, every wedding photographer prays for a high overcast day. Why? Brilliant sunshine leads to dark harsh shadows on faces and everyone squinting into the sun. That means using flash or searching for a shady place to work or both. In shady treed areas, sunlight coming through the branches becomes splotches on people’s faces. This results in unflattering portraits. Any people photography is best done on cloudy days.
  
  Overcast Day                                                   Sunny Day
• Photographing wild animals or pets is best done on overcast days, for the same reasons as photographing people.
  
• Don’t forget colorful markets, especially if you’re travelling. Markets are a photographer’s feast on cloudy, rainy days. There are fruits, vegetables, flowers, clothing, and people. It’s easy to spend a morning or afternoon just wandering around taking brilliant shots.
  

Planning a photo day? Pray for clouds, you’ll get some wonderful, colourful photographs.