I enjoy backlit photography immensely. The sunlight creates a rim of light around the subject, catching the hair and wrapping around the shoulders and limbs. I prefer to work with natural light, but getting the exposure right can be difficult. The subject may end up too dark, while skin tones can look muddy or washed out.
This article looks at a few adjustments in Adobe Camera Raw and Photoshop that can help bring the photograph closer to the result I had in mind. In the examples below, I have deliberately pushed the yellow tones a little to make the changes easier to see.
Start with the RAW file
I prefer to do as much of the initial work as possible during RAW processing. Start with white balance and overall exposure, then use the tone controls to balance highlights, shadows and contrast. A Curves adjustment can add a little punch while allowing you to control the midtones separately from the highlights and shadows.
In a Curves adjustment, you can add control points to the shadow, midtone and highlight areas. Lift the midtones if the subject needs more brightness, while keeping an eye on the brightest parts of the image. The aim is not to force every part of the photograph into the same tonal range, but to preserve the atmosphere of the backlight.
Next, adjust white balance, contrast and colour to suit the image. Vibrance and saturation do different things: saturation increases the intensity of colours more uniformly, while vibrance tends to protect already saturated colours and can be gentler on skin tones. Use both carefully.
Local adjustments in Photoshop
To brighten selected areas, add a Curves adjustment layer and lift the midtones. Invert the layer mask with Ctrl+I so that the adjustment is hidden by a black mask. Select a soft white brush with low opacity and paint over the areas you want to brighten. Build the effect gradually rather than applying it all at once.
If you brighten an area by mistake, switch to a black brush and paint the adjustment away. You can inspect the mask by holding Alt while clicking the mask thumbnail. Reduce the Curves layer opacity if the result becomes too strong.
Fine-tuning contrast
Add another Curves adjustment layer if you want to control contrast separately. A gentle S-curve can increase contrast by deepening shadows and lifting highlights. Be careful not to clip detail in the subject’s face or the brightest areas around the sun.
And that is it
The key is to make local adjustments with restraint. Backlighting is part of the character of the photograph, and removing every shadow or highlight can take away the very quality that made the image interesting.
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