Open Shade and Overcast Light for Flattering Portraits

Open shade is outdoor daylight where your subject is out of direct sun but still lit by the open sky, such as under a porch roof or beside a tall building. The light is soft, even and free of harsh shadows, which makes it one of the easiest and most flattering ways to photograph people.

Why It Matters

Direct sun at midday creates squinting eyes, hard shadows under the nose and chin, and highlights that are easy to burn. Open shade removes all of that without any equipment. You get a large, soft source overhead and nothing to set up.

It is also reliable. Overcast skies give a similar effect on any day, so once you understand the principle you can make good portraits in nearly any weather.

Beginner How To Find And Use Open Shade

The key phrase is open. Deep shade under a dense tree can be dark, green and dull because the only light is filtered through leaves. In open shade, a large patch of clear sky or bright cloud lights your subject from the open side, so it feels clean and bright.

Placing Your Subject

1. Find a spot where a roof edge, wall, or tree canopy blocks the sun above and behind the subject.
2. Have the subject stand near the edge of the shade, facing the open sky, rather than deep in the shadow.
3. Look at the eyes. You should see a soft bright reflection of the sky in them, called a catchlight. If the eyes look dark, step closer to the opening.
4. Check the background. Make sure it is also in shade, or else it will look much brighter than your subject.

Camera Settings

Use Aperture Priority at f/2.8 to f/5.6 for portraits, and ISO 100 to 400. Light in shade is a few stops dimmer than sun, so shutter speed may drop to 1/125 or 1/250 second, which is still fine for a still subject. Add about plus one-third stop of exposure compensation if the meter makes skin too dark. Use face detection or single-point autofocus on the nearest eye.

Overcast Days

A fully cloudy sky acts like a giant softbox. Shadows are weak and color is even, but light comes more from above, so eye sockets can look dim. Tilt the chin up slightly, or use a reflector held low to bounce a little light up into the face. Avoid including a pale white sky in the frame, because it will be much brighter than the subject and looks washed out.

Color In Shade

Shade is lit by blue sky, so skin can look cool. Use a Shade or Cloudy white balance setting, which adds warmth, or correct it later in your raw editor. Check skin tones on the camera screen after a few shots.

Common Mistakes

• Standing deep under a tree where the light is green and dim.
• Having half the face lit by a patch of sun leaking through the leaves.
• Choosing a bright background that fools the meter and darkens the subject.
• Forgetting to adjust white balance, leaving cold, bluish skin.

A Quick Posing Checklist

• Turn the subject so the nose points slightly toward the brightest part of the sky.
• Keep the chin level or slightly raised to avoid shadow under the brow.
• Ask the subject to look toward the lens, then glance away and back, so you can catch relaxed expressions.
• Shoot a few frames at each position, because a half step often changes the light on the eyes more than you expect.

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Advanced Why Open Shade Works And How To Control It

Source Size And Softness

Shadow edge softness depends on the apparent size of the light source compared to the subject. In open shade, the source is a large patch of sky, so it wraps around the face from many directions. Shadows blend smoothly and contrast between lit and shaded areas stays low. This is the idea behind hard versus soft light physics. In direct sun, the source is a small disk, which gives crisp shadow edges.

Directional Quality Inside Shade

Open shade is not completely uniform. The side of the face turned toward the opening is brighter than the side turned away, and the difference gives mild form. You can control the ratio by rotating the subject or by adding a reflector on the dark side. A white card gives a gentle fill, silver gives more punch, and a gold surface adds warmth. See reflectors and diffusers for how to use them.

Color Temperature And Spectral Cast

Skylight is much bluer than direct sun, often 7000 to 10000 kelvin in clear shade. Cameras compensate with a shade white balance, commonly around 7500 kelvin in many bodies. If a colored surface is nearby, such as green grass or a red wall, it can bounce a color cast onto the skin. Move the subject, change the background, or fix it with a local adjustment later. For the principles, see color temperature in kelvin.

Exposure Differences From Sun

The difference between full sun and open shade is commonly around 2 to 3 stops, though it depends on the sky and surroundings. This is why a subject half in sun and half in shade is almost impossible to expose well, and why you should move fully into one condition. If you must keep a bright background, expose for the face and let the background run lighter, or use fill flash with a diffuser. The sunny 16 rule gives a quick reference for bright sun settings, from which you can subtract shade stops.

Handling Mixed Sun And Shade Scenes

Sometimes the subject is in shade while the background is in bright sun. The camera cannot hold both, so choose the subject. Expose for the face and accept a bright background, or step back and use a longer lens so less background shows. A reflector can add light to the face, and a small fill flash set to low power can narrow the difference. If you want to keep the background in the picture, shoot raw so you can pull down highlights during editing.

Try It

1. Choose a sunny day and find a doorway, porch or building wall that makes open shade.
2. Photograph a friend three times: in full sun, deep inside the shade and at the shade edge facing the open sky.
3. Compare the eyes, skin tones and shadow detail, and note which position gave a catchlight.
4. Repeat at the shade edge using Daylight and Shade white balance, and note which gives better skin tones.

Common Questions

What is open shade in photography?

It is outdoor light where the subject is shaded from direct sun but still lit by open sky, such as near the edge of a porch roof. It gives soft light with gentle shadows.

Why do my shade photos look blue?

Shade is lit by blue skylight, which is cooler than direct sun. Set your white balance to Shade or Cloudy, or correct the raw file later. Check skin tones on the screen after a test shot.

Is overcast light the same as open shade?

They are similar. Both use a large soft source, but overcast light comes from above, so you may see darker eye sockets. A reflector or a slight chin lift can help fix this.

Do I need a reflector in open shade?

Not required. A reflector or white card is helpful if the shadow side looks too dark or the eyes lack sparkle. A simple piece of white foam board works well.

Related Lessons

• Window Light Photography for another large, soft source indoors.
• Reflectors And Diffusers to shape and fill soft daylight.
• Hard Versus Soft Light Physics to understand why big sources look soft.
• Harsh Midday Sun for what to do when no shade is available.
• Catchlights to see why bright eyes matter in portraits.