4 Ways to Make Beautiful Photos on Cloudy Days

Imagine with me here...you’re in France for vacation, Provence to be exact. And you’re all ready, with camera in hand, to capture the fields of lavender with the bright sparking sun lighting up the rows and rows of delicate, fragrant flowers. And then? No sun. Nothing but overcast, miserable dreary skies. Now what?

Well you do have some options. Sure it’s not the image you had imagined. The one you’d planned out. But there’s only so much you can do about the weather. Nothing. And if you’re there on vacation, you might not have the ability to come back the next day or in a few days, when the sun finally makes an appearance.

Let’s talk through what to do about those overcast days when you’re traveling. I have a few tips to share with you, to help you out.

1ST TIP:

Expose for the foreground, like that lavender field, and let the overcast, cloudy sky just get good and bright. Maybe even “too bright”. Why? Because then it just becomes a white background to your main subject, the lavender field.

I went to Kufstein, Austria to visit a friend, and most of the time it was overcast. Pretty disappointing since the castles and landscapes were so stunning, and would have loved some sunny lighting for their photos!

But instead, I had to figure out the best possible photo without the sun. And sometimes that meant exposing for the subject and letting the sky disappear into a white background. It definitely highlights your subject, with no competing sky or colors. So it’s not always a bad thing. Trust me.

A cloudy day in Kufstein, Austria.

2ND TIP:

It’s a good time to focus on the details. Cloudy means none of that contrasty light that we struggle with, and instead, it means even soft light. So clouds can be a nice filter, to let you really make some lovely photos of those gorgeous details. And let’s face it, sometimes those details get forgotten anyway. We get so caught up in the beautiful scene that we forget about the little things. Now is a good time to give them a little more attention. 

So get up in there close, and enjoy the even light. Enjoy the fact that you don’t have to contort your body to get just the right angle in order to avoid that streak of sunlight that’s blowing out part of your photo.

Some lovely details on a cloudy day.

3RD TIP:

Use the opportunity to create some moody photos. That can mean playing off the clouds and darkness to give an ominous feel. Neal and I were visiting Château de Chenonceau in the Loire Valley, and the sun was nowhere to be seen. 

But if you’re going to just go with it, then an old chateau with some vivid history certainly can make a good “haunted house” kind of scene. Am I right?

And use your imagination. Capturing some blurred motion in front of your scene, either birds or humans can add to the mood. If it’s raining and you have some protection for your camera, some blurred raindrops can also create a cool image and mood.

I guess what I'm saying here is don’t let your preconceived notions of what the scene or subject SHOULD look like, ruin your efforts in capturing the moment. I mean you could end up with some really cool photos if you just accept the hand you’ve been dealt and work with it.

Château de Chenonceau in the Loire Valley on a cloudy day.

4TH TIP:

Another option is to wait until sunset. As the sun sets, even if it wasn’t a particularly sunny day, you can end up with some pretty freaking brilliant skies. 

For me, the perfect example of that was when we were in London, and I wanted to get the sun setting behind the Palace of Westminster. The trouble was that it had been dreary all day, and at the time of sunset, when I was all set up with my tripod and camera, it was cold and breezy. Now if you don’t know me very well, I’ll fill you in on a little detail about me. I hate to be cold. Hate it. It makes me fussy, irritable, and not much fun to be around. So we were just about to call the whole thing a wash when the sun hit the horizon and lit up the clouds like nobody’s business.

So I pushed through the chill and created one of my favorite images.

Now if you can make it into the blue hour, which is about 30-60 minutes after sunset, then you’ll be blessed with a gorgeous deep blue sky no matter what kind of cloudy day you endured up to this point. 

I know, I know...that’s cutting into wine time. I guess the question to ask is “how important IS that photo?”. For me sometimes it is, and sometimes I just want that glass of wine. You’ll just have to decide.

Sunset on a cloudy day in London. Well worth the wait.

Now I know that sometimes you plan to go somewhere spectacular and the sun just doesn't cooperate. But you only have so much (none) control over the sun. But you do have control over some things. IF you can change your schedule and try for a brighter day for that particular scene or subject? That’s one option. But if it’s not, then try one or more of the suggestions I’ve provided. It’s like making lemonade when given lemons..or whatever that saying is.

I mean the whole purpose of making photos when you travel is to tell your story, right? And sometimes your story involves clouds, rain, cold, and maybe even snow (well not where I travel). 

So the way to make the best of that overcast situation, and still come back with some pretty amazing photos is to: 1) brighten the sky until it’s a nice white background, 2) focus on the evenly lit details, 3) go for mood, and 4) wait until sunset or even the blue hour and see what you can get then.

A moody shot of New York City.

If you’re into editing, there are a few tricks I have up my sleeve to help boost some of your images that end up a bit dull because of the whole overcast thing. That is a whole other blog post though, so stay tuned...

If you’ve made some amazing photos on a cloudy day, I’d love to see them! And if you use these tips on a cloudy day, I’d love to see what you come up with. Pop on over into the Be PhotoFluent Facebook group and share away - good, bad, confusing, or surprising. We’ll take it all.