Tip: Better Outdoor Portraits
|
|
|
This is an easy technique I read about a long time ago, and it works really well. I use it a lot when shooting weddings and portraits.
Outdoor portraits can often end up with a washed-out and boring sky when you set your camera to correctly expose the person’s face. But if you set the exposure to capture the sky perfectly, you end up with a very dark or even silhouetted person. We all know you can use fill flash outdoors to correct this, but even then the exposure can be a bit unpredictable if left up to the camera.
The technique I like to use is:
- take a meter reading from the sky
- set your camera to Manual mode
- set the aperture according to the depth of field you want
- set your shutter speed to correctly expose the sky (based on the earlier
|
 |
Imagine being able to take your camera anywhere and get the shots to turn out exactly the way you want, every time. Find out how...
Click here for more info!
|
|
|
reading)
turn your flash on and set it to E-TTL (or whatever the equivalent is on non-Canon cameras)
You may need to tweak your aperture setting (or ISO, if shooting digital) if the required shutter speed is faster than your flash sync speed.
The manual exposure gives perfect exposure for the sky, whether it’s a deep blue with white fluffy clouds, a sunset, a looming storm, or whatever. The flash will light your subject perfectly, giving a nicely balanced overall picture. You might need to experiment a little to determine whether you need to use flash exposure compensation - I get good results from my EOS 20D/580ex combo without any compensation.
One problem that might occur is that your on-camera flash can make the subject look a bit flat, giving the photo a
|
|
|
TODAY'S NEWS:
NEW YORK, Feb. 8, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The International Center of Photography (ICP) will recognize Daido Moriyama for Lifetime Achievement and will honor Ai Weiwei with the Cornell Capa Award at the 28th ...
Two revelatory exhibitions in Italy trace the development of photography in Japan in the 19th century.
It’s not your ordinary photo shoot. Local women, wearing very little, are posing for a type of photography that is popular around Valentines Day. But Boudoir Photography is more than meets the eye.
|
|---|
|
‘fake’ overall look. A diffuser like the Lumiquest Big Bounce can soften the edges of shadows and make your lighting look a lot more natural, especially if you can combine it with an off-camera flash cord. Even better would be a mobile studio light with a softbox or umbrella. Just make sure you get the lighting direction from the flash right so that it doesn’t contradict the direction of the lighting in the background - that can look awful!
About The Author
Darren is the owner of One Stop Under, a web site for professional and serious amateur photographers. For photography news, links and more tips like this one, visit http://www.OneStopUnder.com.
darren@pool-room.com
|
|
Start Up a Nude Photography Business
Copyright 2005 Roy Barker There are major obstacles to overcome to...
Using Filters In Photography
Photographic filter is an attachment that will allow certain kinds...
Picture This: Helpful Photography Hints
Have you ever gotten back developed photos from the drugstore or film...
Using a Tripod with Your Digital Camera
The purpose of using a tripod for digital photos is to reduce the...
|
|
|
