Sun Vs Shade in Photography

This past Saturday at Venice Beach there was a Paddle Tennis Tournament and Event.  I photographed some of the event (as the official unofficial photographer).  The event was to recognize the achievements of past players as well as to award someone with the Mr. Paddle Tennis Award for a given year.  Unfortunately, the ceremony took place under the noon day sun, yielding very harsh lighting and shadows.  Shooting the photos in RAW and using Lightroom, the effects of this light can be minimized somewhat; however, there are other things that can be done to improve the quality of the finished images.

Use of a reflector can help if you have a large enough reflector to cover everyone, which in group shots can be difficult.  But even then, you would have trouble with people squinting from the brightness of the reflector.  Opposite the courts are the buildings along Ocean Front Walk - which starting around three or four hours before sunset would act like a large reflector and could be used that way.  More options - use flash/strobe lights to even out the lighting and fill in the shadows.  Another possibility would be to have the event ceremony start around one or two hours before sunset.  Or shoot the photos in the shade or have shade on the courts (by using those fold-up tents).  Below are some photos shot in the direct sun and some in the shade.  Notice how much better the people look in the shade in the first two photos, with some light reflecting off nearby surfaces, compared to the last three in direct sun (and the direct sun photos were improved with Lightroom!).

Hope this gives a little information about the importance of appropriate (correct) lighting.