Hurrah for RAW!

[Dreamglade]

As Doug has said, the red are 'blinkies' equivalent to what you'd see on your camera's screen if you set the display mode to histogram with highlight warnings.

Ansel used to say expose for the shadows and develop the highlights. But in digital photography, you can get detail out of underexposed shadows (albeit often with a bit of noise) but you can never regain blown highlights. So in a situation like that I'd always meter for the brighter areas, and process the darker areas. If possible though, I'd meter for highlights and use a fill-flash, especially in the example photo you showed.

If the sky is not completely blown and you can get some clouds out of it using the exposure slider, and playing with the curves (highlights, darks, shadows, lights etc) in ACR. You could always save two DNG's with varying exposure and combine them in PS or Photomatix for HDR (but not an over-the-top one)

I personally hate the recovery option, it completely flattens the image. Sometimes you just have to cut your losses if the exposure isn't correct.

[Doug Sundseth]

In digital, you normally have more space for recovery/fill in the highlights than in the shadows. This is the opposite of film.

In fact you can often get data back that you wouldn't think possible. For example, in this picture, the sky was originally almost completely blown out and the shadows almost completely blocked up (an obvious candidate for HDR, but I pulled over while driving and didn't have either time or tripod). The original is attached here.

By pushing Fill to 100, Recovery to 100, and Exposure to -1.6 (and a few other things, but all in Lightroom), I was able to get something interesting. Don't get me wrong; it still has some fairly major problems, but before I started I didn't think I'd be able to pull anything back.

[PDP]

Have you considered using Adobe Lightroom?

I find it much easier to use than PS. Having previously used traditional film and worked in a darkroom it is much more intuitive to me.

[FlyingKiwiGirl]

Originally Posted by FlyingKiwiGirl

The help says-
Hold down Alt while moving the Exposure slider to preview where the highlights are clipped. .

I'm still curious(make that confused)-when I was playing and holding down the Alt key most of the picture was black and as I moved the exposure slider the whole picture turned black. What is this telling me, I don't understand the clipped terminology. I can see I don't need to worry about it as I can just slide any and get results but I'd like to try and understand a little.

Originally Posted by Doug Sundseth

Since you have highlight warnings on (hence the red bits), you can just slide the exposure slider to the left or the recovery slider to the right (or both), until the red goes away as much as you care about. If it's truly blown out, though, you will never get detail in the blown out parts.

FWIW, sometimes it's not worth the trouble to try to recover blown highlights or blocked shadows. If there's nothing important there and you don't hate the look of pure white or black, ignore them.

Thanks very much Doug, I hear what you're saying re trying to recover blown highlights. I can see you could waste an awful lot of time trying to recover them and still not get a decent picture.

Originally Posted by Dreamglade

As Doug has said, the red are 'blinkies' equivalent to what you'd see on your camera's screen if you set the display mode to histogram with highlight warnings.

Ansel used to say expose for the shadows and develop the highlights. But in digital photography, you can get detail out of underexposed shadows (albeit often with a bit of noise) but you can never regain blown highlights. So in a situation like that I'd always meter for the brighter areas, and process the darker areas. If possible though, I'd meter for highlights and use a fill-flash, especially in the example photo you showed.

If the sky is not completely blown and you can get some clouds out of it using the exposure slider, and playing with the curves (highlights, darks, shadows, lights etc) in ACR. You could always save two DNG's with varying exposure and combine them in PS or Photomatix for HDR (but not an over-the-top one)

I personally hate the recovery option, it completely flattens the image. Sometimes you just have to cut your losses if the exposure isn't correct.

Great information Dreamglade, thanks so much! Trouble is I got distracted and started playing with the HDR- I forgot I had that facility on PSE9. What fun!! And I can see what good results(and bad) you can get from it.

Can you tell me does ACR have a curves chart (not that I can see) I think I would see how that works on the photo better than just sliding the rulers back & forward and watching the histogram.

Originally Posted by PDP

Have you considered using Adobe Lightroom?

I find it much easier to use than PS. Having previously used traditional film and worked in a darkroom it is much more intuitive to me.

Interesting PDP, but I'm afraid it will be PS for me for while now. It's taken me so long to pick up a few basics I'm reluctant to go down another track and have another learning curve but I will keep it in mind if I ever get past go and a bit

[Dreamglade]

Originally Posted by FlyingKiwiGirl

I'm still curious(make that confused)-when I was playing and holding down the Alt key most of the picture was black and as I moved the exposure slider the whole picture turned black. What is this telling me, I don't understand the clipped terminology. I can see I don't need to worry about it as I can just slide any and get results but I'd like to try and understand a little.

I'm sorry to say I don't use this feature so I can't really talk about it. I did take a quick look at it but without looking into it in a bit more detail (I don't really have time or need for it right now) I can't figure it out.

Great information Dreamglade, thanks so much! Trouble is I got distracted and started playing with the HDR- I forgot I had that facility on PSE9. What fun!! And I can see what good results(and bad) you can get from it.

I too got hooked into HDR for a little while and got some quite nice effects from it

"Warta flow" by Jay Scott | RedBubble this was the last HDR I made quite a long time ago (I don't use this gallery anymore). Interestingly, I made this with the kit lens

"Setting front" by Jay Scott | RedBubble This one is quite a natural looking HDR I think, and one of my favorite shots.

"Golden Tide" by Jay Scott | RedBubble and finally this one... I don't really like it anymore, but of all of my shots that I've ever taken it's got the most attention and appraisal (unfortunately). It's quite overdone

Can you tell me does ACR have a curves chart (not that I can see) I think I would see how that works on the photo better than just sliding the rulers back & forward and watching the histogram.

Absolutely, it would be silly not to from such expensive software right? As you can see here, it's the second button. It has Tone curve and Point curve (never used that) but I regularly use tone curve. You can see it in this picture I took of a troll face posted at a window I saw on one of my walks around town

[FlyingKiwiGirl]

Thanks Dreamglade! You can add me to the list of people who think the 3rd one is great too! I can see what you mean about overdone but I suppose that's why I like it, it's surreal. Very nice indeed. And out of the other two I like the first one best.

And you must think me a bit thick asking asking about the curves, I can hear you saying "why hasn't she checked out the other buttons?" Well as you can see you have more buttons than me! Both along the top and under the histogram. I'm suspecting it's to do with me only having PSE9 and not all the bells & whistles of the full programme. So no curves

[John Hendry]

Originally Posted by Doug Sundseth

Since you have highlight warnings on (hence the red bits), you can just slide the exposure slider to the left or the recovery slider to the right (or both), until the red goes away as much as you care about. If it's truly blown out, though, you will never get detail in the blown out parts.

FWIW, sometimes it's not worth the trouble to try to recover blown highlights or blocked shadows. If there's nothing important there and you don't hate the look of pure white or black, ignore them.

Very true its all right to have pyre whites and blacks.

All the best