General shooting instruction: low angle into overcast sky

[PaulVI]

Hello, DPS friends,

This is my first post of its kind anywhere (call for critique with submitted picture). Someone else here said that s/he was scared of posting a pic... I share(d) his/her feeling. But this shooting session, one of my first with my new Canon XSi, was *killing* me.

This is my son (3 y/o) with his first kite. I think I let out too much string, for shooting purposes, because composing something with both boy and kite was difficult. The sky was overcast but bright (brightest to the left of the pic, an afternoon hour).

Lying on the ground, I metered on my son. I think I used the center spot then recomposed. (I hadn't learned to use the spot selector at this point.)

This is the best shot of the bunch. In most, my son looks underexposed. (Not posted.)

What would be your camera settings approaching this situation? What would be your thought process for adjusting? (Camera settings? Shooting position?) Would improvements to this shot require post-production work? If so, what? (30 words. )

Thanks!



18mm, ISO 200
f/3.5, 1/4000 sec
(Aperture priority)

[CaptainNH]

You've achieved a very good shot in some very testing lighting conditions - you've managed to get a good balance between exposing your son and not blowing out the sky.

In this situation, I'd probably spot meter on your sons (18% grey ) jumper, then dial the exposure down by 2/3 or even a full stop to ensure that the sky wasn't completely blown.

Use the histogram to check your exposure - adjust and repeat until you have the shot you were looking for.

[wamplers]

You might try exposing for the sky, then using flash to light your son.

[PaulVI]

Thanks for the input! Good ideas here.