Help me understand exposure...

Tennessee Landscape · Jan 20, 2008

Of these two picture, which is the better exposure? I used the exposure compensation to get the different results....I like the way the sky and water appears in the first, but like the way the ground appears in the second photo.......which is correct if either?

Saint-Brown · Jan 20, 2008

This is where a Polarizing Filter would work. I don't have one my self but so I've read. If I have it right it will keep the exsposure for the foreground (the rocks in pic 2) and darken the sky to give that great blue color of the sky (in pic1).

Someone please correct me if i'm wrong....

Tennessee Landscape · Jan 20, 2008

Saint-Brown said:
This is where a Polarizing Filter would work. I don't have one my self but so I've read. If I have it right it will keep the exsposure for the foreground (the rocks in pic 2) and darken the sky to give that great blue color of the sky (in pic1).

Someone please correct me if i'm wrong....

Yes, I think your correct now that you say that, I seem to remember reading that. I'll have to get some because there is so much landscape photography to be taken here where I live.

Tennessee Landscape · Jan 20, 2008

Along the lines of exposure...I over exposed this photo of my cat, he was in the window with some whit blinds behind him.....Is this breaking the rules too much or is this a cool effect or just artist interpretation?

julie32 · Jan 20, 2008

hey there.

Cute cat. Its your call if you like it, you know? Anyway, check out the book Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. I'm in the middle of it now and its probably the best photography book I've ever read on exposure.

adolan20 · Jan 20, 2008

Personally, I'm not a fan of overexposed pictures as I prefer a sharp picture that has good colors, but it is up to you what you like. PS your avatar makes me have seizures lol j/k.

trapspeed · Jan 20, 2008

Nice cat. Almost everyone would consider that a bad picture, though. In my opinion a picture is best when the images are sharp and the colors are distinctive.

SBlanca · Jan 20, 2008

im still learning all the stuff but im gona take a shot at this, its obviously, as you said, over exposed, which to some people might be breaking the rules, at the end of the day its up to you, and if the photo is for personal use and you like it fair enough, but if it was for the public it would break the rules i guess.

i think it's a bit harsh on the eyes, i deleted loads of similar ones of my cats that i didn't over expose on purpose

Happy Hour · Jan 20, 2008

well if you meant to over expose this picture and you like the way it turned out that is all that matters! I have plenty of pics that arent exposed properly but that is how i wanted them! plus you can CC that pic and tone the brightness down a little and it would look real cool IMO

Tennessee Landscape · Jan 20, 2008

Thanks for all the feedback....actually, the more I look at the pic, I think it's way too over exposed, but I may try to get the same effect but not in such dramatic fashion, I'd like to see his fur a bit more saturated.....I'll keep you posted with the results...Just gotta wait on the cat

EOS_JD · Jan 20, 2008

'll second the Bryan Petersen book. Great for learning all about exposure

fatsheep · Jan 20, 2008

Understanding exposure is a good book to have. However, I think he could have covered exposure in a much more concise manner:

Three settings work together to correctly (or incorrectly) expose a scene: ISO, Aperture, and Shutter Speed.

ISO ("film speed") - Sensor or film sensitivity. ISO is sometimes referred to as "film speed" since you can use a faster shutter speed with a higher ISO. ISO is not a measurement of shutter speed. Higher ISOs usually have more "noise" or graininess too them. If you double the ISO number, you double the brightness of the picture. If you halve the ISO number, you make the picture half as bright.

High ISO - Brighter, more noise or graininess.
Low ISO - Darker, less noise or graininess

See film speed for more information.

Aperture - Opening through which light passes into the lens. Measured in "f-stops" or "f-numbers" (f/#). An f-stop is just the number that you would have to divide the focal length of the lens by to get the aperture. For example, a 50 mm lens with an aperture of f/2.0 would have an aperture with a diameter of 25 mm.

Large Aperture (small F-number) - Brighter, shallow depth of field.
Small Aperture (large F-number) - Darker, large depth of field.

See F-number and aperture for more information.

Shutter Speed - the amount of time the shutter is left open and the film or sensor is exposed. A shutter speed that is twice as long will make the picture twice as bright. A shutter speed that is half as long will make the picture twice half as bright.

Slow Shutter Speed - Brighter, objects in motion will be blurred.
Fast Shutter Speed - Darker, objects in motion will not be blurred.

See shutter speed for more information.

Of course, there are some generalizations here and all three of these subjects could use a bit more discussion but above is basically what you need to know. I value Understanding Exposure for his explanations of how he took each picture but not so much the actual explanation of the technical aspects of exposure.

Tennessee Landscape · Jan 20, 2008

fatsheep said:
Understanding exposure is a good book to have. However, I think he could have covered exposure in a much more concise manner:...............

......................Of course, there are some generalizations here and all three of these subjects could use a bit more discussion but above is basically what you need to know. I value Understanding Exposure for his explanations of how he took each picture but not so much the actual explanation of the technical aspects of exposure.

Thanks for the explanation, very helpful. Hopefully I get a grasp on this an I can move onto underdstanding color saturation....

Happy Hour · Jan 20, 2008

fatsheep said:
Understanding exposure is a good book to have. However, I think he could have covered exposure in a much more concise manner:

Three settings work together to correctly (or incorrectly) expose a scene: ISO, Aperture, and Shutter Speed.

ISO ("film speed") - Sensor or film sensitivity. ISO is sometimes referred to as "film speed" since you can use a faster shutter speed with a higher ISO. ISO is not a measurement of shutter speed. Higher ISOs usually have more "noise" or graininess too them. If you double the ISO number, you double the brightness of the picture. If you halve the ISO number, you make the picture half as bright.

High ISO - Brighter, more noise or graininess.
Low ISO - Darker, less noise or graininess

See film speed for more information.

Aperture - Opening through which light passes into the lens. Measured in "f-stops" or "f-numbers" (f/#). An f-stop is just the number that you would have to divide the focal length of the lens by to get the aperture. For example, a 50 mm lens with an aperture of f/2.0 would have an aperture with a diameter of 25 mm.

Large Aperture (small F-number) - Brighter, shallow depth of field.
Small Aperture (large F-number) - Darker, large depth of field.

See F-number and aperture for more information.

Shutter Speed - the amount of time the shutter is left open and the film or sensor is exposed. A shutter speed that is twice as long will make the picture twice as bright. A shutter speed that is half as long will make the picture twice half as bright.

Slow Shutter Speed - Brighter, objects in motion will be blurred.
Fast Shutter Speed - Darker, objects in motion will not be blurred.

See shutter speed for more information.

Of course, there are some generalizations here and all three of these subjects could use a bit more discussion but above is basically what you need to know. I value Understanding Exposure for his explanations of how he took each picture but not so much the actual explanation of the technical aspects of exposure.

Bryan also has 3 other books that goes into greater detail about these subjects. if you look on my other post every noob should read this I list them. I think the book is a great start for anyone who needs a better understanding of what does what in exposure. nobody can cover every single detail or aspect of multiple subjects in one sitting or book!He also has a great website with multiple classes you can sign up for. if you think his book isn't good enough Write your own or even better name a book that is better for someone just learning about photography.

fatsheep · Jan 20, 2008

Happy Hour said:
Bryan also has 3 other books that goes into greater detail about these subjects. if you look on my other post every noob should read this I list them. I think the book is a great start for anyone who needs a better understanding of what does what in exposure. nobody can cover every single detail or aspect of multiple subjects in one sitting or book!He also has a great website with multiple classes you can sign up for. if you think his book isn't good enough Write your own or even better name a book that is better for someone just learning about photography.

Did you even read my post? I said it was a "good book to have". I never said it "isn't good enough". I also never faulted him for not covering "every single detail or aspect of multiple subjects". I just said he "could have covered exposure in a much more concise manner". Yes he explains what the beginner needs to know but he takes most of the book to do it. The pictures are nice but you don't need them to get started.

I would prefer a rundown of the camera settings first. That's all you need to know to get a correct exposure. After that is covered, then the pictures and explanations are great for real life usage of the camera settings. That was all I was trying to say. I was not trying to discredit Bryan Peterson or his book in anyway. I would, however, prefer a more concise and to the point explanation of exposure as opposed to spreading bits and pieces of that explanation throughout a 150+ page book.