Dial M for better exposures…..

Today’s digital cameras have a lot of bells and whistles, a lot more features than I’m used to in a camera. But with all those micro chips and processing doodads, nothing compares to a photographers eye when it comes to seeing light. In fact the best compliment you can give a photographer is to say they see light well.

A camera is a tool, that’s all, it doesn’t think and photographers shouldn’t rely on those tools to pick their exposures for them. If you want the best image out of your thousands of dollars worth of digital gear you need to learn how to use your in camera light meter. You need to be able to see the light and adjust both the shutter speed and the f-stop manually to get the exposure you want, not the exposure the camera “thinks” you should have. Too many shooters are relying on aperture priority (AV) or shutter priority (TV) mode to make their exposures. In situations where the subject is backlit, relying on the camera to know what you want to accomplish will inevitably result in an image that is flat and badly exposed. I can almost tell without looking at the image’s exif data which gallery was shot in manual mode and who’s shooting in an auto mode, there is that much of a difference in image quality. If you don’t believe me start looking at some really good pro sports shots (or any good photography for that matter), just look at the light, not the action or the emotion, but how that photographer used light to help make the image. If you have often wondered how some photographers get great shots even when the subject is backlit, then the answer is they’re shooting in manual mode. Want to make processing faster and easier? Shoot in manual mode. Get it right in camera and you’ll spend less time in front of your computer.

The main excuse I hear from auto mode shooters is that the light changes too fast for them to adjust. Granted it does take practice, but in time it will become second nature to check the meter and adjust on the fly. Having a good eye and framing the action well is not enough, you need to know your tools and be able to use them to their full capabilities. Stop pointing and shooting and start making images.

A gray card is a common metering tool, but since I never remember to bring my gray card, if I’m shooting outside, I use grass. Green grass has around the same tonal qualities as a photo gray card. I use the grass as a starting point and then tweak the exposure up or down depending on the subject and my own personal experience using my camera. I use the histogram in my camera and not the image on the LCD to judge exposure.

To learn more about your metering system, find that little book that came with your camera, it’s full of all kinds of useful information. I also found a few articles on the web that may be useful; metering is an essential skill for any photographer.

Metering:

http://www.acecam.com/magazine/gray-card.html

http://www.dpreview.com/learn/?/key=metering

http://www.dpreview.com/learn/?/key=exposure

http://spotmetering.com/

http://www.fredmiranda.com/A16/

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/understanding-series/understandexposure.shtml

Histograms:

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/understanding-series/understanding-histograms.shtml