probl;ems with contrast in sunny conditions :(

[akshay.narayan]

Hello friends,

I have a EOS400d (XTi) and am still using the kit lens (18-55mm II).
I thought let me get my basics right before i upgrade the lens

Now coming to my problem....

When i take pictures of people (Not exactly portraits) in open space(quote fields)-sunny conditions-against light, i have the contrast settings skewed.
[I tried the programmed AE mode ("P") and Tv and Av modes.]

The people in the photo appear tooo dark
How do i get my composition right?

My expectations :
Get the background and the people in the foreground with nice contrast, and colors as natural as possible.

any specific settings to follow?

Thanks in advance for the help.

Regards,
Akshay

[Elmo]

The issue is understanding how the exposure meter works. It tries to reproduce the image with an overall luminance of 18%. From what you suggest the background (sky) is very bright. To maintain overall balance the meter exposes the other subjects dark.

This is easily overcome using exposure compensation to say I want to over expose the picture (Change the overall luminance value to a higher value). This forces the sky even lighter but lightens the other subjects. How much to over expose is the question. For the answer to this I suggest you research the use of histograms.

[rodrigo]

Can you post one of those pictures? It would be easier to see what exactly is the problem then.

What is the metering mode you're using? If you're using spot, the camera will not balance the exposure of different elements very well.

[wulf]

Another solution is to make the people lighter - you could experiment with using flash if you have just a few people in the frame, all at roughly the same distance.

Do you have an example of one of your "failed" shots for us to look at?

Wulf

[ditch_azeroth]

one of the first misconceptions that you come to conquer in the blissful journey of photography is not using your flash on bright conditions - just because it's bright, it doesn't mean that you don't need your flash on. pop-up your flash and use that as fill-in. that way, you can still retain the detail on the background, and have well-lit subjects.

[dmvp]

Yep, Ditch hit the nail on the head. In situations like that, "fill flash" does wonders. In most of my outdoor shots with people in them I'll use flash.

[kdsmith]

Originally Posted by ditch_azeroth

one of the first misconceptions that you come to conquer in the blissful journey of photography is not using your flash on bright conditions - just because it's bright, it doesn't mean that you don't need your flash on. pop-up your flash and use that as fill-in. that way, you can still retain the detail on the background, and have well-lit subjects.

On this note, I have had occasion to wonder just what kind of flash I would need to use for fill lighting a fairly distant object. One particular case I had was a cave opening in rock. I could not approach closer than about 40 feet. The cave opening looked like black paint splotched on a rock wall. I would have liked to get at least a few feet of the interior in the shot.

I don't know enough about the various flashes to ask for the right one intelligently.

I am usually shooting this type of shot with an XTI with a 18-250mm F/3.5-6.3 AF

KDS

[wulf]

Originally Posted by kdsmith

On this note, I have had occasion to wonder just what kind of flash I would need to use for fill lighting a fairly distant object. One particular case I had was a cave opening in rock. I could not approach closer than about 40 feet. The cave opening looked like black paint splotched on a rock wall. I would have liked to get at least a few feet of the interior in the shot.

That's a tricky situation. The problem is that a flash strong enough to reach inside the cave at that distance is going to blow out the details on everything nearer.

One solution might be to take a very slow exposure. Forget the fact that everything else goes white and see if you can get some detail inside the cave. You can then combine that with another shot in post processing (easiest if you use a tripod so the camera doesn't move between the two).

Wulf

[krypticide]

Another option is to purchase a reflector (usually people like gold for outdoor portraits) and use that to reflect sunlight onto your subject. It makes a huge difference and warms up the subject quite a bit.

[akshay.narayan]

rodrigo/wulf,

here is the sample :

http://www.flickr.com/photos/akshayflicked/2419891637/

taken @ partial metering.

let me try with flash on! i have noticed that from a close range if flash is on, the subject looks "light washed!" i wanted to avoid it, hence looking for a proper setting