Hello, this is Emi.

It's February already. It's supposed to be spring on the calendar, but winter-like weather is likely to continue. I can't wait for spring.

However, winter has its goodness. The air is clear and the contrast between the sky and the trees or structures looks lovely. Partly because I used to draw silhouettes of trees at dusk in winter, they are very fascinating subjects at this time of the year.

At the time of shooting, I mostly use the normal settings except for enabling the touch AF. Other than that, I change the focus mode, exposure, and occasionally Image Control depending on the subject. Since I shoot in RAW+, I can make fine adjustments later anyway.

I went to the park to shoot the silhouettes. It was backlit, but it was cloudy, so I searched for a mode in which the branches of the trees would be silhouetted.

1. No Image Control

Even though it is a color image, it looks like black and white. I also tried a couple of Monotones of Image Control.

2. Image Control: Hard Monotone

The silhouette of the branches is emphasized.

3. Image Control: Soft Monotone

The contrast is consistent overall and looks as if it was a line art on paper.

Of all the variations I tried this time, I like the contrast between light and shadow in Hard Monotone .

Let's try a different subject. An example of High Contrast B&W. I was able to capture the texture of clouds and the steel tower against the dim sunlight the way I wanted.

I also like long cast shadows of winter when it is sunny. The image is from the observation deck of Shibuya Sky, a new tourist spot in Shibuya. It is a very open space and there is nothing to block your view.

In addition, the silhouettes of the people behind are reflected in the glass, making them look like a mirage, which I thought was interesting.

One of the good things about GR is that you can capture the image the way you want without having to do so much. Try various settings based on the normal settings. I'm sure you will have more fun. Let's begin by shooting casually!

(Emi)