When we first started in photography, (ancient times – film) we were taught to not shoot into or towards the sun. It would cause a massive bright spot in the photo, if not ruin it completely. Film did not always react the best to that situation. Well, digital doesn’t either, really. It will still give you a bright, bleached out spot in the image, it creates what is called ‘flare’ or ‘sun flare’ that is not always wanted in an image. But then again, it can be used to an advantage to get interesting and maybe artistic results if you watch what you are doing. I run across this every once in awhile, and will usually take the shot anyway. I want to see the results. Maybe I can improve on something I’ve done before. It can be more of a challenge when you have a point and shoot camera, but it still works. The sun will get “blown out” anyway, so don’t worry about that, expose for the rest of the image. If you have not tried it before, bracket your shots if you have that camera function, (one or two shots over and under exposed). I don’t usually, I take a couple of shots at different angles, and move on. I will check the screen to see if it anywhere close while I am there. Please remember not to look at the sun through your viewfinder any more than you would with any other device. It will damage your eyesight. I have also found that not all printers like to reproduce the area around the sun in these images. They turn out a bit odd on some printers, so if you get these results, well, your not the only one. Be careful and enjoy the fun.
