White balancing and metering questions

[dearlybeloved]

I am pretty quick to understand things, but these two topics are just baffling me and I'm calling on you guys to help. I have looked things up online and asked some questions but understanding white balance and how meter correctly are just not coming to me. Can you guys help me out by explaining to me in basic language how to implement these into my photos and if you have some really awesome tutorials, projects, links or anything that will help me better understand how to use these techniques to work with me so i know how to use them properly.

Thanks in advance guys!

 

[jwbryson1]

Cambridge in Colour - Photography Tutorials & Learning Community

 

[KmH]

Yep! All those tutorialsh but start with these 2 and refer to your camera's User's manual for specifics related to that camera:

Understanding Camera Metering and Exposure
Understanding White Balance

 

[dearlybeloved]

AWESOME!!!! Thanks, Ill post back with any question I have if I dont understand something.

kmh, Thanks for always chiming in and helping me out. I always see you in my threads with incredibly useful info.

 

[panblue]

Daylight and flash - use "cloudy" wb.

Meter? You know what a histogram is?

I am pretty quick to understand things, but these two topics are just baffling me and I'm calling on you guys to help. I have looked things up online and asked some questions but understanding white balance and how meter correctly are just not coming to me. Can you guys help me out by explaining to me in basic language how to implement these into my photos and if you have some really awesome tutorials, projects, links or anything that will help me better understand how to use these techniques to work with me so i know how to use them properly.

Thanks in advance guys!

 

[dearlybeloved]

histograms are still troubling me too

 

[KmH]

The Cambridge in Color web site has a 2 part tutorial on how to use a histogram.

 

[480sparky]

Histograms are basically charts that display pixel counts.

Go through an photo, and look at each pixel one by one. How bright is it, on a scale of 0-255? If it's brightness is, say 128, then add 1 in the middle of a chart that's 0 on the left, 255 on the right.

Go to the next pixel. How bright is it, on a scale of 0-255? Let's say it's 130. Add 1 to the chart at the 130 point.

Then you get done with all this, you will have a chart showing you how many pixels you have at each of the 256 points of an 8-bit image. Anything totally black will be 0, and anything totally white will be 255. Medium gray will be at 128. The chart, called a histogram, shows you how bright or dark the image is.

If there's a big 'pile' at the left, and goes down right away, the image has a lot of dark areas and may be underexposed. Conversely, if the chart rises sharply at the right and 'climbs' the right side, there's a good chance a lot of the highlights are blown out and unrecoverable.

Ideally, the histogram should have few pixel counts at either end. There is no 'ideal' shape to the histogram in between... it's the two ends that really count.

 

[dearlybeloved]

Thanks sparky, that was an awesome explanation that i understood.

 

[russellsnr]

Have a look at Measuring and Evaluating Light in Landscape Photography
There are also other very good tuts on there pages.
Russ