Tips and ideas for creative silhouette photography

A silhouette photoshoot should be next on your agenda if you’re looking for a way to create beautiful images that tell a story or exude drama. 

This style of photography plays around with hard and soft light, ultimately creating images that are shrouded in mystery and intrigue.

Keen to give it a try? Read on for our full guide to silhouette photography—from what it is to how to achieve it on your next photoshoot.

What is silhouette photography?

Put simply, silhouette photography typically features a silhouette (usually a solid/dark shape or object) against a much lighter background.

This style of photography has been around for decades and originally stems from painted or paper silhouette portraits that were commonly created during the 19th century as a cheaper option to a more detailed portrait.

Types of silhouettes

Silhouette photography may seem quite simple, but there are many ways to incorporate it into your upcoming photoshoots. 

First things first, it’s worth thinking about the type of silhouette you’d like to shoot. There are two main options for this:

Full or perfect silhouettes—this is the classic option for silhouette photography and features a solid, typically black silhouette. To achieve this successfully, you’ll need to use a distinctive, easily recognisable subject and have a brightly lit background.

Partial silhouettes—alternatively, you could snap your subject half in darkness and half in the light. This can be trickier to achieve than a full silhouette photo and will involve a bit more post-production to make it stand out.

Setting up a silhouette photoshoot

First, consider your light to create successful silhouette images that are both beautiful and dramatic.

Nailing this photography technique is all about getting those light levels correct and adjusting the exposure to capture a dark shape on a light background.

Most cameras will resist this as they’re designed to brighten everything in the frame, not just the background.

A simple trick for achieving this is to first focus your camera on the brightest point in the frame and then adjust your settings so that it is underexposed.

You can focus on your silhouette subject with your newly adjusted settings in place.

Increasing your shutter speed will also help with this, as it reduces the amount of light being let in—especially if you have your lens focused on a subject in the foreground.

Other things you’ll want to consider when prepping for a silhouette photography session include:

1. Your camera lens–while you can capture brilliant silhouette photos with pretty much any lens, it can be worth experimenting during your shoot to find which one works best for what you’re trying to achieve. This includes switching different focal lengths too.

2. Your filter–as you’ll probably be shooting directly at the sky, you might want to use a UV lens to protect your camera and to help capture extra details and colours.

3. Your flash–the number one rule of silhouette photography is to turn your camera flash off. Why? Because keeping it on will have the opposite effect of illuminating your subject rather than your background.

4. Using a tripod–if you don’t want any motion blur in your photos, using a tripod is a must for stabilising your camera.

5. The time of day–many professionals like to snap silhouette photographs around sunset or sunrise when the natural light levels are low. This can also be a great time to add extra details to your finished photos–whether that’s wispy clouds or a smattering of stars.  

Related: A beginner's guide to composition in photography 

Ideas for a silhouette photoshoot

The sky is the limit when it comes to silhouette photographs.

While people or animals are more often than not the subject of silhouette photography—whether that’s someone standing on a hill, a side profile of a face or an action shot of a child being tossed into the air—it is possible to experiment with other objects too.

Natural objects such as flowers and trees can look incredible in silhouette. Just make sure you choose something easily recognisable—otherwise, it could look like a solid mass.

Try experimenting with different light sources to illuminate your background, too.

The natural light of the sun is an obvious choice, but you could also use a car's headlights, a large lamp, or even a flash from another camera.

How to edit silhouette photography

Another way to achieve striking silhouette photographs is to edit your images in post-production.

You could either try layering two images together to emphasise that contrast between light and dark or black out your subject using an editing tool.

There may also be a little blurring around your silhouette. This can easily be sharpened by retouching it in post-production.

Another tip is to increase the contrast or add a little warmth to help enhance the light difference. Black-and-white filters can also look incredibly evocative on silhouette images.

Don’t be afraid to get creative when editing your silhouette photographs. There’s no right or wrong—just remember to have fun!

Specialist photography insurance through Ripe

Planning a silhouette photography shoot? You may want to protect your camera and accessories with specialist photography insurance.

At Ripe, we arrange cover that can be tailored to fit your exact requirements, so you only ever pay for what you need. You can cover up to £60k of equipment for theft and accidental damage so that you can enjoy your shoots with peace of mind.

Learn how we can help here, or use the button below to get an online quote today.