metering your shot

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albedo_0_39

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garry
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Hello folks. I have a question regarding the metering of a shot. Assuming I have my camera set in manual mode andI am looking at a bright sky view etc. I firstly meter the ground and record the exposure then I repeat this for the sky.
Now, assuming the exposure setting difference between the ground and the sky is calculated as 3 stops and I only have an ND4 (cokin) ND filter (2 stops). How would I approach this shot to get the closest to an excellent/correct exposure? Do I use +EV/-EV etc?

thanks in advance
Gaz
 
According to the landscape experts you should have a one stop difference between the sky and the ground.
So using your 2 stop filter should be fine.
I would Meter for the ground.
 
Well in that situation, it's decision time. You've got a stop difference to deal with so do you overexpose the sky by one stop, or underexpose the land by one stop.

Personally, I'd fire off a shot and then use the histogram and highlight alert to nudge the exposure to the point where there is no (or very very little) burn out in the sky.

If you're shooting film, then I'd get a good exposure for the sky and let the land take care of itself. I fear burn out far more than blacked out shadows. :)
 
how come 'the powers' only suggest 1 stop between the sky and ground?. surely there arealways going to be occasions for greater differences naturally from very bright skies, landscapes etc
 
Because nature depicts that the sky is always brighter than the ground.
 
really if you're going to start talking about how much difference there should be between sky and ground, you need to look at the brightness values in far more detail than "the sky" and "the land". Within each of these areas there could be a huge difference in exposure requirements.

For example, a very dark brooding sky with a shaft of light comming through onto a section of your landscape. There are two ways I suppose of dealing with a case like this. You can get your spot meter out and take a whole load of readings, make some snappy mental calculations about what you're prepared to sacrafice at one end of your dynamic range in order to hold the other........

..... or you can hold up your available ND grads to your eye one at a time and decide which you like the look of.

I wont say which I do most of. ;)
 
If the difference between the sky and the ground is 3 stops. Then you can either

Meter for the ground (noting the settings), THEN fit the filter
or fit the filter, then meter for the sky.

You will then only be 1 stop out, so you could use your bracketing feature with an EV of -1 and +1 stop to ensure that you get the correct exposure.

Hope this helps.
 
Just a little extra bit....

Always remember where your latitude lies. If you are shooting digital, you will have much more success recovering detail in underexposed areas. If you overexpose so the highlight detail is not in the file, there's not much you can do about it.

If you're shooting film, however the opposite is true. Your latitude lies on the side of overexposure, because if you don't get the shadow detail on your neg, there's not much you can do to get it back. You generally have at least twice as much lattitude in overexposure with film as you do with underexposure.

- CJ
 
Hi, how do you meter the ground then the sky with your digital camera.
 
On my 300D I would focus for the sky, then press the *, only because it keeps it in the viewfinder, then do the same with the ground, and go from there.
 
dekeyboy said:
Hi, how do you meter the ground then the sky with your digital camera.
Click to expand...

Good point! Your only option really is to meter for the ground - make a note of the exposure.

Meter for the sky - make a note of the exposure.

This can be a real pain in the butt when you've carefully lined up and composed your shot with the camera on a tripod and you see the light visibly change, which often happens. A hand held exposure meter can be a real convenience in this situation.
 
CT said:
Good point! Your only option really is to meter for the ground - make a note of the exposure.

Meter for the sky - make a note of the exposure.

This can be a real pain in the butt when you've carefully lined up and composed your shot with the camera on a tripod and you see the light visibly change, which often happens. A hand held exposure meter can be a real convenience in this situation.
Click to expand...


This is digital yes?

Just fire of a few at different exposures and chuck away the crap later. In time, you'll get better at assessing the exposure anyway and will have less waste
 
DiddyDave said:
This is digital yes?

Just fire of a few at different exposures and chuck away the crap later. In time, you'll get better at assessing the exposure anyway and will have less waste
Click to expand...

Well that's another approach, and it will work if you take enough shots at different exposures. I prefer to use (and advocate) a more logical approach. The "This is digital" approach - (take loads of shots anyway) is the biggest bar to people progressing in photography, particularly when they've come straight to digital without experience of film.
 
Matt said:
Because nature depicts that the sky is always brighter than the ground.
Click to expand...

I'd agree with that.

I've used enough ND grad to get the exposure even and the resulting shot just looks wrong. I now use a grad that in theory is not strong enough and much prefer the results.
 
Just to check, when you meter the different areas, are you using the spot meter? As it will give a more selective and accurate reading if you do.

I'd also point out that some extra detail can be recovered if you shoot in your cameras Raw format. If you are shooting digitally of course. ;)

If you are shooting with film, then it does pay to be logical, and not just fire away. ;) :LOL:
 
CT said:
Well that's another approach, and it will work if you take enough shots at different exposures. I prefer to use (and advocate) a more logical approach. The "This is digital" approach - (take loads of shots anyway) is the biggest bar to people progressing in photography, particularly when they've come straight to digital without experience of film.
Click to expand...

Id agree with that, it also sends your shutter actuations rocketing and will give you a pricey shutter replacement in 1/3 of the time if you decide to bracket both ways instead of working out the exposure correctly.
 
Hey guys.. I'm not suggesting we all go out blind and fire off 10 for every shot we're after, of course it's best to learn about exposure/your camera first, but in certain circumstances or when you're very new and faced with a tricky situation bracketing can be a learning tool in itself

It's not really any different to chimping for blown highlights is it; and it's also the basis for using a 'HDR' approach which is often the only way to record a sky/land/sea landscape without using filters which degrade the image and are often not exactly where you want them (as far as I know, there is no v-shaped ND Grad for valleys for instance)

And as for not taking photos cos your shutter will need replacing???
 
The only way you are going to learn is by experience, which I think is what DiddyDave is saying. Take a few shots with various exposure and evaluate in which the ground looks good and which the sky does. On a cloudy day the difference in exposure may not be a great as on a sunny day, and the direction of the light on the ground will make a difference as well . From this you will be able call on your experience when a similar situation arises and understand what value of grad is needed.

Also experiment with HDR which is another way of compensating for extremes in lighting.especially with sunrises and sunsets

If you are shooting with grads it's important to get the exposure relationship right, so you may find yourself shooting a particular shot with a couple of different grades, just to make sure.

Hope this has helped a little
 
DiddyDave said:
And as for not taking photos cos your shutter will need replacing???
Click to expand...

Im not suggesting not taking pictures because your shutter needs replacing I simply stated if your taking a lot of pictures it will cost you less in the long run if you arnt taking 3+ shots for every single scene because you get into the habbit of doing this instead of exposing correctly.
 
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