Understanding Histograms

[JmPhotos]

What should a properly exposed photos histogram look like?

Jodie

 

[Mike_E]

Here you are... http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/understanding-series/understanding-histograms.shtml

read this. Its a great site in general.

 

[harkain]

The short answer is this: it depends.

The left end is shadows/dark and the right end is highlights/light. If it trails off either end, then you are clipping some shadows or highlights, depending. But that isn't always a bad thing. Generally, if all the data is at the left, the picture will be dark and if at the other end, then it will be lighter. But again, it depends what you are photographing. If any part of the picture contains some dark hole or deep shadow, even a tiny one, then you will see clipping in the shadow end or if there is glare you will probably see some apparent clipping in the highlights.

I believe as a general rule, you want your histogram data to be more to the right, but not clipping. But, again, it depends on the subject matter.

 

[JmPhotos]

Great website! Thanks. Now I'm beginning to understand. I will be checking out the histogram more often now.

Jodie

 

[pandinus]

Here you are... http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/understanding-series/understanding-histograms.shtml

read this. Its a great site in general.

Great site, it answered all my questions.
(I was thinking of asking the same question, but luckily this thread was here. )

 

[hammerhead_05]

yeah......just as HARKAIN said.....it depends on the subject. Never think of a histogram as a 'right' or 'wrong'....but you must read it and interprut it based on what you are shooting and what you want to show. For example - if you are shooting a portrait of someone, generally you dont want anything overexposed - and the histogram will show that before, during, and after you expose the picture. This alows you to see what you have done before you leave your client and notice it after it is too late.

Again - think of a histogram as a piece of information about your pic. It helps you see whats really going on with your pixels. Hopefully i didn't throw you for a loop. lol

|Brock|