NATURAL DIFFUSERS
Welcome to earth, folks. That place where the sun sometimes burns down to the earth so hard that we can't even step outside without sunglasses. Let's be honest here, sure it's a great light source and it keeps us warm but that sucker is powerful. That can mean awful and wonderful things for us as photographers (I'm sure you've all experienced the whole spectrum from love to hate for it). Luckily there is a way to cut down it's power a bit when we need to. The reason the sun has less power later in the day is because it has more air to cut through before it hits you. More air with dust, and water particles in it that diffuse it a bit. If you need it softened even more, why not look for some more diffusion to help you out? It might be easier than you think. Putting the sun behind tree branches is a ridiculously easy way to bring it down a notch while still keeping that gorgeous warm haze that it gives off.
5D III + 35L
When I need to cut down the harsh light on the background of an image I either wait for the sun to drop lower or shoot in front of a set that has a bit more shade. In some cases when the sun is a bit higher, I can use trees to cut the harsh light a bit. When the sun comes through the leaves, it spreads it out and dims it down. Hello, gorgeous, soft backgrounds.