 Ben F |
Exposure metering tips Hi peoples, Ive just got a heap of slides back I shot with my xpan (havent had it long), and ive found that alot of the slides shot late afternoon, near sunset or at sunset, and pretty underexposed. For the record I was shooting with fuji velvia 50, xpan with 45mm lens. The XPAN uses center-weighted TTL exposure metering so can anyone give me some tips to get better all round exposure?... THanks for any advice :P
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Bob Cammarata |
Your camera's center-weighted metering system is reading the sky and exposing it properly. There are several things you can do: -Meter the foreground and do not include the sky in the composition. -Meter the sky and use flash to bring out detail in the foreground elements within range of the flash. (Not always reliable.) -Turn around, and shoot what's behind you. If the sun is out, everything...including the distant sky will be illuminated more evenly.
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doug Nelson |
For landscapes, you're using the right film and asking the right questions. I had this same problem recently, with a center-weighted meter, overemphasizing the sky and causing the system to overreact causing underexposure. I was using a 24mm, so should have known better. You might meter the foreground and hold that exposure and recompose. You might also set a stop or stop and a half more exposure using your shutter or exposure compensation to allow for this.
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- Craig m. Zacarelli Contact Craig m. Zacarelli Craig m. Zacarelli's Gallery |
just what do the three metering modes on my XT do? I just keep it on center weighted and go! I know I should be using the other two but dont know when to..anyone?? Craig-
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Ben F |
Thank you both for your replies most helpful... Metering off the foreground completely like you both have said, would somewhat over-expose the sky correct?.. Also doug I notice you mentioned exposure compensation... for the daker areas I would be setting a minus number is exp. compensation correct?.. ie -1,-2 etc.. ??? Thanks for your help!!!
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Bob Cammarata |
The difference in meter readings between the sky and foreground can be as little as 1/2 stop or as much as 4 stops, depending upon how blue the sky is and at which direction to the sun you are facing. Get a reading manually off both extremes and set your exposure somewhere in the middle, then bracket in 1/2 stops from there. Keep in mind though that a light blue or gray sky can turn white when over-exposed by as little as 1/2 stop. If you don't want this to happen, follow the advice above and compose your shot with little or no sky in the frame. A deep-blue sky with the sun behind you can be metered directly with great results. (See attached example.)
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BetterPhoto Member |
Slide Film is your culprit wthout EXACTING metering. With negative film you can get by with shutter metering because of a thing we like to call film latitude, the films ability to properly expose a range of light measured in exposure stops. B&W negative film like tri-x or ilfopan has a color latitude of range of about seven stops. Meaning that from the shadows to the highlights in your image, if the center values are properly placed, will have a range of useable detail of about seven stops of exposure from near black with some texture to near white with some texture. Color negative film, from five to six stops of EL. The human eye, over twenty stops of Exposure Latitude (film can expose and print no more than 11 or 12). Color slide film, ONLY 3. It is a very limited film, good for low contrast scenes, scenes where you can sacrifice the shadows or the highlights, indoor portraiture. But if you want some detail in the foreground with a blazing sun on or near the viewfinder, you need at least six stops of latitude and reversal film is not the way to go in this instance. For more info on this read Ansel Adams' book series 'The Camera', 'The Negative' and 'The Print'. Thank you. Walrath Photographic Imaging
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Bob Cammarata |
"Slide Film is your culprit wthout EXACTING metering." Not necessarily true. Center-weight metering can work with slide films as long as you understand the parameters of exposure latitude and compose (and meter) accordingly. "...The human eye, over twenty stops of Exposure Latitude (film can expose and print no more than 11 or 12). Color slide film, ONLY 3." "But if you want some detail in the foreground with a blazing sun on or near the viewfinder, you need at least six stops of latitude and reversal film is not the way to go in this instance."
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Ben F |
Guys, Thanks for your responses and ive certainly taken notes.. However, the thing is, the sun wasnt "blazing",. and it was certainly nowhere near being in the viewfinder. It was very late afternoon, nearing sundown. Im guessing it was the high contrast, from blue sky to white sand and VERY RED rocks (North West Australia), that has seen this problem occur. But surely as I stated above, there must be a certain point to compromise? Bob I ask you this question, Thanks once again
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Angie M. Nemanic |
I just had this same problem when I was shooting provia 100. And I should have braketed my shots more, but I didn't. My skies looked great, but my forgrounds are in silouette. Can I fix my foregrounds in photoshop by adjusting the foreground? I'm a extreme novice when it comes to photoshop. I was hoping that I could scan some of my slides then adjust them in photoshop. I don't want to spend the money to have them scanned unless I know it's possible. Thanks...
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doug Nelson |
To answer your earlier question about exposure compensation- use more exposure, a + setting. Shoot one as metered, one a stop over and maybe one 1 1/2 over. I am accustomed to the old Canon SLR partial meterering, a 12% rectangle in the middle. With those, I use a "split-the-difference" method, covering shadow AND highlight with the rectangle and metering, then recomposing. I don't feel comfortable with center-weighted or any other full screen averaging. I sometimes use an SLR with spot metering just to get a reading of something in the image that seems a middle tone, a Zone 5.
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Justin G. |
But Doug when you over expose for the sky in order to bring out the foreground, won't this wash out colors? From what I've been reading lately I though that this was just a crappy situation, unless you don't mind your sunset/rise being washed out. The small tonal range on slides is just tough for contrast scenes. Am I wrong in thinking this? (I'm just trying to get my slide problem solving skills rolling. It helps me learn.) justin
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Bob Cammarata |
The thing to remember when working within the narrow parameters of slide film's exposure latitude is to recognize this characteristic and compose accordingly. When the sun is out, always try to position yourself with the sun behind you or at an angle rather than in front of you. This holds true unless the sun is rising or setting through some thick haze,...as it sometimes does in the summer months. The enclosed example was taken under the exact same conditions as the one I posted earlier,...(clear and bright, early morning sun).
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Steve Warren |
How about a split ND filter?
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