Expodisc question for nikon users.

[juicegoose]

I recently received the expodisc and it seems handy but i have a question. As i understand it you have to have perfect exposure before you take your test shot. Is this true and if so how are other users quickly setting that exposure? Auto mode for the test shot then back to manual or what? All the videos i see show the user simply walking up to the model and taking the shot for WB. Thanks for the help folks.

 

[tirediron]

For optimal results, use the Expodisc with the same exposure that you're going to be shooting in. Set up your lighting, meter it (ideally with an incident meter for studio work), then set your custom WB using the Expodisc.

 

[480sparky]

Turn off the AF as well. Otherwise the lens will hunt for a focus that cannot be found.

 

[Robin Usagani]

Waste of money.

IMO you need to put the expodisc next to the model's face facing the same light.
Even if you did nail the WB with expodisc, 9 out of 10 you want to change the WB anyway.

 

[ronlane]

Waste of money.

IMO you need to put the expodisc next to the model's face facing the same light.
Even if you did nail the WB with expodisc, 9 out of 10 you want to change the WB anyway.

I disagree Robin. The instructions tell you to aim the disc at the brightest light/light source to take the test picture. So you aim it at the strobe to take the photo for your wb.

Now where or not you change the wb after that is a personal thing.

I really like mine and find it very useful.

 

[bribrius]

i honestly haven't a clue what you are talking about, except for the metering part which i use the camera metering mode for. sorry

 

[Robin Usagani]

OK, so the instruction says what I was saying. You point it to the light source (putting the camera next to the models face). You have to do it from the same distance from where the strobe is shooting. You obviously cant just put the camera in front of the strobe. You have to aim it from the subject, not where you are shooting from.

Waste of money.

IMO you need to put the expodisc next to the model's face facing the same light.
Even if you did nail the WB with expodisc, 9 out of 10 you want to change the WB anyway.

I disagree Robin. The instructions tell you to aim the disc at the brightest light/light source to take the test picture. So you aim it at the strobe to take the photo for your wb.

Now where or not you change the wb after that is a personal thing.

I really like mine and find it very useful.

 

[ronlane]

Yes, that is what I've been doing when I use it with portraits.

OK, so the instruction says what I was saying. You point it to the light source (putting the camera next to the models face). You have to do it from the same distance from where the strobe is shooting. You obviously cant just put the camera in front of the strobe. You have to aim it from the subject, not where you are shooting from.

Waste of money.

IMO you need to put the expodisc next to the model's face facing the same light.
Even if you did nail the WB with expodisc, 9 out of 10 you want to change the WB anyway.

I disagree Robin. The instructions tell you to aim the disc at the brightest light/light source to take the test picture. So you aim it at the strobe to take the photo for your wb.

Now where or not you change the wb after that is a personal thing.

I really like mine and find it very useful.

 

[ronlane]

Robbin, from the expodisc website

"How Do I Set a Custom White Balance with the ExpoDisc?

To set a custom white balance with the ExpoDisc, simply place the disc in front of your lens and follow your camera's custom white balance procedure to capture an incident light reading through it. For most cameras, this procedure takes only about 15 seconds.

Meter for 18% Incident Exposure with the ExpoDisc

To meter for an 18% exposure, stand at the subject's position and aim the camera back towards the intended shooting position. Use the camera's meter as seen through the viewfinder to adjust the aperture, shutter speed, or ISO until a proper exposure is indicated. It's also possible to make exposure adjustments based upon the position of the histogram spike on an ExpoDisc test shot. Simply adjust the aperture, shutter speed, or ISO until the spike is centered."

 

[Robin Usagani]

The only time I feel expodisc is good is when for example you are a sport photographer shooting indoor sport from the side of the court and you are shooting JPEG. The lighting where you are shooting from is pretty similar to the center of the court.

If you are shooting RAW, I really dont understand anything better than use preset WB and mass edit the WB until it looks right and consistent.

 

[480sparky]

As advantageous as raw is, sometimes you just can't shoot raw.

Lots of people don't have top-end bodies that can fire off 16 billion frames of raw images before the buffer fills up. Some folks would have to stop shooting after just 3 frames to afford the luxury of being able to 'mass edit' thier raw files to change WB.

So their other option is to shoot JPEG with a preset WB created prior to the shoot so thier gear can keep up.

Not everyone is filthy rich.

 

[Robin Usagani]

.

Not everyone is filthy rich.

Not everyone is filthy rich to spend $59 on a little plastic plastic to set up your wb. Not everyone shoots in a burst mode like you do. I don't understand your point? My canon software comes free with the camera and it can do mass wb edit. If their cameras can't do this (not top bodies like you mentioned), I am pretty sure they wont spend $59 on expodisc.

 

[paigew]

I love my expodisc. I get almost perfect skin tones almost every time. I rarely adjust wb in post and I always shoot raw.

I meter for skin, then shoot a shot through my expodisc to set a custom wb. My camera never leaves manual mode.

 

[juicegoose]

Man all the anger over a simple question. Thanks for the responses.

 

[Derrel]

Yeah, good white balance and doing things right in-camera at the time of making the exposures seems to lose out quite often to the "We'll fix it all in software, later" mentality.