Photo Question

Re: Photo Question

John K Jordan

>Depends the amout of light, subject, ect. I meter then bracket both up and down. A very white background will probably blow out so underexposing may help a bit. I prefer an offwhite or neutral grey background if possible. (Colored backgrounds are tricker since they can detract from the subject) If your subject is very dark, you may have trouble getting a good overall exposure with a white background.

I assume you are using digital, but in general I find it better err on the side of underexposure. (Film is far more forgiving than digital.)

If digital, try using the white balance controls (if provided on your camera) with a white card instead of the presets. If unavailable, I'd guess I'd try the tungston preset. If shooting with digital, once the camera is on the tripod it is extrememely easy to just try different settings! Unlike working with video, for stills I don't worry too much about getting the color balance perfect since it can be adjusted afterwards in Photoshop. Much depends on how important the photo is.

JKJ in East TN

Re: Photo Question

John Lucas

>Sean

You will probably need to use the + setting but it depends on how much your piece fills the frame so I can't give you a definite +1 or +2 setting. Basically your camera only knows gray and it will adjust the camera so the white appears gray or at least darker than normal. To override this you set the camera to one of it's overexposure settings to make the background whiter.

The simple solution. Shoot it, look at it. If it's too dark use the + setting.

The correct way to do this is to place a kodak 18 percent gray card in the scene and take your meter reading off of this. Then set the camera to manual mode and use this setting. That is usually closer. With todays digital cameras most people just shoot it, look at, and change something till it looks right.

If you camera is sophisticated enough to have a histogram then adjust the camera until the histogram looks right. You'll probably have to read the manual to understand this and even then it might not explain what to look for in the histogram

Re: Photo Question

JamieDonaldson

>I find that most digicams give a more accurate white background exposure at about +1 setting. Old students of Ansel Adam's Zone System would understand the reasons why, but the average auto camera meter is fooled by the excess light reflected from the light surface and trys to underexpose(turn it 18% gray) This results in underexposure of the intended subject, and must be corrected for accurate color/contrast rendering, and it's always better to start with accurate exposure rather than rely on correcting it with software manipulations.

Re: Photo Question *LINK*

Sean Troy

>Thanks for the help. I bought one of the EZ-Cubes thats white so I can take a booth with me at any time instead of the solid frame one I made. Sean


http://www.desertwoodturningroundup.com

Re: Photo Question

Bruce McElhaney Spring Lake, MI

>In general you need to use the plus, + setting when shooting a white background, (same as when shooting a snow scene) that is, if you want the background to go white. The opposite, or - is usually needed for a black background. Although, bracketing is really the best way to go here.

A white background will usually fool the camera's meter into making it more med gray, as that's what the meter is calibrated for. Of course the subject's color and tone will also contribute alot to the overall exposure. Spot meters work best in these kinds of situations.

Re: Photo Question

JamieDonaldson

>Hey Bruce- does it still look like Zone IX when you look out the window way up there in snow country???