Back light is popular for creating drama and makes for good silhouettes. Indirect backlight can add depth and dimension to an image. Drama lives here, but we need to be careful with exposure to avoid overexposing the light source, a blown out sun never looks good, meter carefully to expose for the highlights.

Like any other light source, backlight can be direct, indirect, or diffuse.

Evening in Bagan, Myanmar, 2016. Diffuse backlight.

Sunset sailing in Tamarindo, Costa Rica, 2017. Strong direct backlight overwhelms foreground objects throwing them into black. Good silhouette potential in these conditions.

Silhouette tree at Kin Beach Park near Comox, 2017. Indirect backlight illuminating distant clouds and airborne smoke from forest fires.

Monk contemplating many things, Myanmar 2016. Direct backlight illuminates the monk without causing silhouetting.