I'm trying to get pictures so that it can show an object with the sky without making the object in front of the sky completely black. Any ideas?
2007-09-21 16:12:08 · 8 answers · asked by kperk_56 2 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Visual Arts ➔ Photography
The only way really to do that is to be close enough to the object to use a flash.
2007-09-21 16:23:08 · answer #1 · answered by willow oak 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
You may have difficulty getting the subject and sky both exposed correctly. Here's an extreme example. http://www.flickr.com/photos/samfeinstein/1384865092/
Use the spot meter, if you have one, or the center weighted meter if you don't. Read from the subject that you want to expose correctly. If the subject is too small to be contained within your metering zone, try to get closer and take a reading, if possible. If that's not possible, zoom in and take the reading, use "Exposure Value Lock" or "AE-L," whatever your camera calls it, zoom out to recompose the picture and then shoot it. This is one time when digital zoom might be helpful. Even though it is almost ALWAYS a bad idea to actually use digital zoom to take the picture, you can narrow down the field so you get a reading from the important part of the picture.
You could also use "fill flash" if the subject is close enough to your camera. Just put the flash on "AUTO" and still try to take a spot meter reading. This shot has fill flash. It's not a bright sky in the background, but the lighting was very uneven. Without fill flash, the people wearing hats would have dark shadows over their faces and everyone would have a shadow on their neck. http://www.flickr.com/photo_zoom.gne?id=1243546130&size=o
2007-09-21 23:23:48 · answer #2 · answered by Picture Taker 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
You will have a problem getting correct exposure on the foreground subject while keeping the sky from blowing out. You can take two pictures, one exposed for sky and the other for the subject, then combine later in Photoshop, or you have to light the subject to about the same value as the sky. This can be done by either composing your picture so the subject is in the same light as the sky, or by using fill flash, reflectors or both. If your subject is small and relatively close to you, you can light it with a flash. If the subject is something big, say a building or a train etc etc, then your flash unit won't put out enough light to illuminate the whole thing. Either re-compose if possible, or plan on some post production using two exposures. Or use bigger, multiple strobes.
Hope this helps.
2007-09-22 08:40:19 · answer #3 · answered by Ara57 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If your subject is no more than a few feet away, it would be easiest to go ahead and use the flash feature. If the camera has such a setting, set it to "force flash." This means that the camera will disregard the bright background that might automatically disable the flash. The setting will make the flash go off, no matter how bright the scene.
2007-09-22 14:18:20 · answer #4 · answered by Vince M 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you can spot meter on your subject and hold that exposure, that's one way.
If you have full manual controls, overexpose by 3 stops, bracketing each one, that is, take on shot overexposed by 1 stop, a second shot overexposed by 2 stops, and a third shot overexposed by 3 stops. If you shooting at 1/1000th, shoot at 1/500th, 1/250th, and 1/125th.
If you don't have full manual controls, try adjusting your EV and again bracket. EV+1, EV+2, EV+3.
You can try fill flash, set your flash unit to go off to fill in the underexposed areas.
You can even try using flood lamps pointed at your subject.
If you have a light meter, take a reading directly off your subject. If you don't have a light meter and don't have spot metering as an option on your camera, put the camera right next to the subject and take a light reading that way.
Just some random thoughts.
2007-09-22 00:10:02 · answer #5 · answered by Nihl_of_Brae 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You need to overexpose like crazy. Set a slow shutter speed. If you are using a digital camera, some of them have a special setting for backlit pictures, and some of them allow you to change the sampling point in the picture used for setting shutter speed.
You might also try experimenting with polarizing filters.
2007-09-21 23:16:33 · answer #6 · answered by GCB-TO 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
put light on the object: lamp, mirror, whatever.
Hope this helps. =)
2007-09-21 23:29:06 · answer #7 · answered by Adam S 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
mirrors reflect light on the objectsherever u go.
2007-09-21 23:27:20 · answer #8 · answered by jimmybond 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋