How to take ski pictures in flat light

"God bless anyone that tries ski photography," Jack Affleck, director of photography at Vail Resorts says. With the elements to battle, skiers' egos to stroke and harsh lighting - Affleck may be right. Ski photography is hard.

But it doesn't have to be. In this series on taking great ski pictures, Affleck shows the amateur photographer how to avoid the typical pitfalls of capturing your vacation: overexposure, dull action shots, and consistently boring subjects.  Follow these easy tips and you'll go home with a Facebook profile-worthy shot or something that will fit perfectly into the Christmas card.

"What kind of camera is best to use in flat light? A flat camera!" Affleck jokes. He says he avoids shooting in flat light when possible, but knows what to do when it's absolutely necessary.

These tips are designed to be used with a point and shoot camera and not to be considered advanced photo tips.

1. Fill in flash
   "People tend to underexpose their images when they are shooting in flat light," Affleck says."Shooting on snow, especially with bright sun, is difficult because the camera is seeing three times more light than is really there because you are getting that reflection. Taking control of the camera and putting a little flash in flat light will really enhance everything." 
   
   Affleck recommends overriding your camera's manual settings to always use a flash. "Never ask, always flash," Affleck says. For action shots in flat light, the situation changes slightly. Use flash when you want to help your friends update their Facebook profiles, Affleck says.

1. Switch the mode
   Shooting pictures of your friends? Put the camera into portrait mode. Action shot? Use the "Kids & Pets" setting. Manually overriding the camera's program mode will allow more light to filter in through the flash and will capture the smaller details more easily.
   
   "Turn these obstacles into opportunities," Affleck says.

1. Adjust later
   "If you want to take better images, take control of the camera first then take control of the photograph afterward," Affleck says. Adjusting the exposure, contrast and saturation of any photograph, but especially those taken in flat light, will amp up the shot and bring out what you were trying to capture in the first place.
   
   "These three things are what's missing in flat light [photos]," Affleck says. Any photo editing program from Photoshop to iPhoto can adjust exposure,contrast, and saturation. Microsoft Office Picture Manager, which comes standard on most PCs, can adjust contrast. 

1. Forget the photo, enjoy the day
   Getting frustrated with flat light? "Don't worry about missing the shot and go and enjoy the day," Affleck says. He says he personally tries to avoid shooting in flat light where possible, but appreciates any photos he can get. "Any photo is a good photo, but a great photo is one that's usually planned."
   
   Knowing when the best light hits and getting out there to get that shot then is inconvenient, Affleck says, but worth it to avoid taking bad pictures in flat light. Plus, going out early to get pictures gives you the rest of the day to enjoy the mountains.

Next week, Affleck explains how to nail the action shot. Got a request for photography tips from Jack? Let us know on Facebook.

-- Morgan Bast