Can someone help with exposure issue on my D7100

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Smithster

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Hi.

Been taking photos for a while now and I'm normally a snap and go lucky guy, turning buttons till I get what I want. Anyway, this morning I was getting a bit frustrated due to exposure issues.

I know there is a simple method to get the results I wanted and I am unsure on my new Nikon D7100 camera.

Can someone enlighten me.

You can clearly see the issue here and you will know what I was wanting to achieve.

The bottom half of the image is just blacked out. Any over exposing only washed out the top part. Amateur I know. What is the method to resolve this?

35miql3.jpg
 
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That's not a 'problem' with the camera other than it being impossible for any camera to record the full range you see with your eye in this sort of image

This is where taking several (at different exposures) and blending exposures or HDR comes into use :)

Personally, with a great morning sky I'd just find something that works strongly as a silhouette and not try to capture such an extreme range

Dave
 
Through the viewfinder, it looked pleasing.... the football pitch that has been blacked out was lit up and giving shades of green... there was more of an image...

Is there no exposing the shadows then shooting full image?
 
Yes just like Dave said. Take multiple photos at varying exposures. Typically you would do -3, -2, -1, 0, +1, +2, +3. Giving you a 6EV spread, then using something like photomatix combine them.

The other way would be a Neutral Density Graduated filter. So that the sky takes longer to expose.
 
Hi Rob, how do I take multiple photos at varying exposures? Does it need to be on a tripod for this?

Minnnt: not sure of metering pattern, I am a button presser who wants to get better... I will google some of these now.
 
The matrix metering will make the best job of it, but it will still be 'off' although you may be able to push it to where you want it with some PP.

You will only really need to take two shots, one exposure for the sky and one for the foreground then use a gradient in photoshop to put them together. There is a video on YT showing you how to do it by Stefan Shobanau (sp??) The photo extremist. It's good.
 
Smithster said:
Through the viewfinder, it looked pleasing.... the football pitch that has been blacked out was lit up and giving shades of green... there was more of an image...

Is there no exposing the shadows then shooting full image?
Click to expand...

Through the viewfinder you were using your eye !!! Your eye can record a much wider range of tones than ANY camera can

In such an image (assuming one shot) its EITHER the sky OR the shadows, not both - sadly - give camera manufacturers another 5 years or more and who knows :)

Dave
 
Smithster said:
Hi Rob, how do I take multiple photos at varying exposures? Does it need to be on a tripod for this?

Minnnt: not sure of metering pattern, I am a button presser who wants to get better... I will google some of these now.
Click to expand...

Yes tripod is a must. In M mode, set your aperture and ISO and leave them, then use the shutter speed to take multiple exposures. Start so the sky looks right then work your way up until the foreground looks right.
 
Great video thanks Minnt..

I'll be looking into spot metering...

Here's the same shot 2 mornings ago... A little more pleasing to the eye..

But yes I have some skills to be brushing up on.

10q9zkw.jpg
 
While a tripod helps and sometimes is the only way of making multiple exposure possible, Dave's comment is correct in very many situations.

I often take multiple shots and combine them with software and, apart from one or two occasions when I have set the camera on a solid surface, all have been taken hand held. On my camera I can choose the order of the shots and set it to take the one with the longest shutter speed first. The longer I hold the camera the greater the chance of me moving, so getting the longest shutter speed over first seems a good idea.

Dave
 
I'd have thought with cameras being so advanced these days they could take multiple images at the very same time? I was in manual mode... would another mode have been more convenient? I tried aperture priority mode but that had no luck?
 
Smithster said:
I'd have thought with cameras being so advanced these days they could take multiple images at the very same time?
Click to expand...

They can, D7100 in camera HDR, but if it's anything like the D5100's I wouldnt use it. :)

http://thecameraguides.com/nikon/d7100/how-to-turn-on-hdr-mode-on-the-nikon-d7100/

Smithster said:
I was in manual mode... would another mode have been more convenient? I tried aperture priority mode but that had no luck?
Click to expand...

Mode makes no differnence. In M you are setting the ISO, and then presumably the aperture, and then the shutter according to the meter indication.

In A you would have set the ISO, chosen your aperture and then the camera would have set the shutter according to the meter. (Taking into account any Exposure Correction).


I would say that you could have increased the exposure on the above shot a bit, on the above jpg I had to go over 2 stops before I started to see any blown parts. (which would have helped the blacks no end).


Are you shooting RAW? As you can pull an awful lot of detail from black areas if you are, (especially at low ISO).

example unedited jpg, linky
edited shot, linky

now there are blown highlights in the first link (see here for highlight warning enabled in ViewNX2)
But only a tiny bit of blocked shadows. shadow warning enabled in ViewNX2

but on the edit, there is a bit of clipping of the red channel only (edited linky highlight warning)
and for completeness the clipped blacks, (more than the original jpg (but by choice :)) shadow warning linky
 
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I use aperture priority when bracketing exposure because I don't want any change in the DoF. The camera just adjusts the shutter speed.

If you bracket in manual mode the results will vary depending, I think, on the electronics of the camera.

I have just tried taking five bracketed shots in manual mode and yes, the camera altered the exposure but all it did was to reduced the aperture. The initial exposure was f4.5 at 1/320. The subsequent exposures were f5.6 at 1/320, f8 at 1/320, f11 at 1/320 and f16 at 1/320. So therefore in manual mode my camera does not properly bracket exposures.

Dave
 
Tringa said:
I use aperture priority when bracketing exposure because I don't want any change in the DoF. The camera just adjusts the shutter speed.
Click to expand...

I would do it the same way, in A mode.

Tringa said:
I have just tried taking five bracketed shots in manual mode and yes, the camera altered the exposure but all it did was to reduced the aperture. The initial exposure was f4.5 at 1/320. The subsequent exposures were f5.6 at 1/320, f8 at 1/320, f11 at 1/320 and f16 at 1/320. So therefore in manual mode my camera does not properly bracket exposures.

Dave
Click to expand...

D5100 does do it "correctly" when in M though. 1/640 f5, 1/2500 f5, and 1/160 f5.
 
A useful vid I found to merge/combine and make some "not overdone" hdr images:
 
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