![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
Light Meter Readings for Film and Digital
Reflected Light Readings for Film and Digital Images In order to correctly expose your film or digital CCD there are two variables that must be identified: average reflectance and average light. Unless you have some good reason to meter for other than these two averages, stick meticulously to the method outlined below. This article deals with reflected light readings. This is the type of light reading taken with an in camera light meter or a hand held meter which is pointed toward the subject. This article does not deal with incident light readings which are a measure of the light falling on the subject. Average Reflectance A white painted wall, snow or the ocean reflect most of the light falling on them. A burnt tree, a black fireplace or a coal mine reflect little of the light falling on them.A mid tone falls halfway between these extremes and reflects 18% of the light falling on it. The ISO rating of film or a digital CCD is set so this mid tone is exposed as a mid tone. Identify a Mid Tone Identify a mid tone for average reflectance and meter off that. Look for some green grass or foliage, mid tone rocks or bare dirt, weathered timber or whatever you can find that is somewhere in the middle between dull black and shiny white. If you are unable to escape a predominance of one extreme or the other in your framed image, then find an area to meter else where. If need be, point the meter toward yourself and meter your clothes or else take your coat off, throw it on the ground and meter that. Sand at the beach, or the palm of your hand are about one stop too bright. These can be used to meter off but you must compensate and the liklihood of a mistake is introduced. Average Light Average light is half way between light and shadow. If it's overcast there isn't so much difference between the two extremities as when it's sunny but you still should take a reading of the average light. Identify Average Light If you are metering off some trees and scrub in full sun you'll probably find that the scene makes it's own shadows within the foliage. Be careful because the amount of sun and shadow can be confusing. If metering a tree, aim your meter such that you read off half sun and half shadow on the tree trunk, then if need be, move around the tree to your chosen photo spot to capture the image. On a rough barked tree such as a pine tree, make sure that the texture of the bark on the sunny part has not created half shadow. If metering a building, meter off a corner so you get one wall in the sun and the adjacent wall in the building's own shadow. Alternatively, meter half the sunlit building and half the shadow on the ground. When photographing the landscape I always take my own shadow with me. Yes, as long as the sun is shining my shadow will be there with me. I crouch down and meter off the ground and point the meter so half of it reads my shadow and the other half reads the sunny area. That's my reading till the light changes. If I have any doubts about the average reading, I take a reading from the shadow area and another from the sunny area, then see if my average light reading is in the middle. Metering Indoors When photographing indoors by window light, be sure to meter for the average of the subtle difference between light and shadow. This difused, directional light, according to my view of the world, is the most attractive and useful light for photography. Although the level is low, the quality is high. Strive to meter it acurately. Laurie McArthur is a wilderness landscape photographer, based on the New South Wales Far South Coast, Australia.
MORE RESOURCES: Amid a wave of political hostility, the Getty Center uses photography to tell stories queer resistance and love The Art Newspaper 5 Telephoto Lenses Perfect For Bird Photography The Phoblographer Like today’s selfie-takers, Walt Whitman used photography to curate his image – but ended up more lost than found The Conversation Courier Journal great Bill Luster, ‘the most beloved person in all of photography,’ dies The Courier-Journal Sebastião Salgado’s View of Humanity The New Yorker Inside the Weddings We Love Seeing on Instagram and TikTok The New York Times Mo Costello at Atlanta Center for Photography review artforum.com The Momentary showcases new exhibits exploring music, photography and the inside of a camera The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette The Gifts Photography Has Given Me Fstoppers Winners revealed: National Geographic Traveller (UK) Photography Competition 2025 National Geographic Photographer Luiz Braga on “Visual Fables” and the Amazon Newcity Brazil Tom Hanks Told A Photographer To "STFU" At His Movie Premiere, And I'm Having Serious Déjà Vu BuzzFeed Review: Xiaomi 15 Ultra – impressive photography capabilities The Jerusalem Post In Concert: The Momentary opens two music-focused photography exhibits Fayetteville Flyer MONARCH: LEGACY OF MONSTERS Season 2 Additional Photography in Vancouver This June Hollywood North Buzz The 5 Best Micro Four Thirds Lenses For Night Photography The Phoblographer Highlight your photography talents with the Indiana Agriculture Photo Contest; submissions open now giant.fm Meet the photographer: Sandi Larson WDIO.com Summer Photography Fellow: Meet Brodie Curtsinger Evansville Living Magazine Summer Reading Photography Grundy County Herald How American Photography Came Into Its Own The New Yorker How to Practice Photography at Home With ANY Gear DIYPhotography How a Local Photographer Shot this Seasonal Door County Photo Milwaukee Magazine John Enman Photography - Wandering the yard on a rainy day Clearwater Times Photo gallery: LCCC graduation ceremony Wilkes-Barre Citizens' Voice A moment in time: Rotary magazine’s 2025 Photo Awards Rotary International Yevonde Middleton: The photographer who transformed English aristocrats into Greek goddesses in 1935 EL PAÍS English Photographer Bill Luster career through the years in photos The Courier-Journal National Geographic unveils winners of its photography competition Wyoming News Now Photography In The National Parks: Food Photography And A Cookbook Review National Parks Traveler John Chillingworth obituary The Guardian Derek and Quentin, twins from Indiana who live in the woods: Robin de Puy’s best photograph The Guardian A New Photography Show at CENTER Brings our Atomic History into Focus Santa Fe New Mexican Manhattanhenge Through a Lens: Tips for Getting the Perfect Shot The New York Times Is Your Personality Secretly Influencing Your Photography? DIYPhotography British photographer's portrait of Vietnamese great grandmother wins top National Geographic prize VnExpress International The 2021 Audubon Photography Awards: Winners and Honorable Mentions National Audubon Society Business briefs: Photography business to open in Milton; plant nursery reopens - herald-dispatch.com Business briefs: Photography business to open in Milton; plant nursery reopens herald-dispatch.com How We Photographed Coyotes in San Francisco The New York Times How to take your pet photos to the next level The Straits Times The sun-drenched summers of photographer Akila Berjaoui a-rabbitsfoot.com Sebastião Salgado: a photographer of great humanity The Conversation 5 Lenses That Are Ideal For Street Photography The Phoblographer A senator in his Speedos: The photo op that almost didn't happen (and what we photographers can learn) Digital Camera World The 2019 Audubon Photography Awards: Winners National Audubon Society Pink Man pushing his pink trolley through a field in Thailand: Manit Sriwanichpoom’s best photograph The Guardian Sebastião Salgado, Acclaimed Brazilian Photographer, Is Dead at 81 The New York Times Column | Miss Manners: On the proprieties of public photography The Washington Post The Best 5 Lenses for Creative Photography The Phoblographer The 2022 Audubon Photography Awards: Winners and Honorable Mentions National Audubon Society The 2020 Audubon Photography Awards: Winners and Honorable Mentions National Audubon Society Christian Wedding Photographer Wins Big in Free Speech Case: 'A Freedom That Protects All Americans' cbn.com Still time get Festival of Outdoor Photography tickets – but hurry! Amateur Photographer Lushfoil Photography Sim review Rock Paper Shotgun National Geographic unveils winners of its photography competition Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal Featured artist showcasing his photography evolution spanning decades Sterling Journal-Advocate Photography month on our public lands Bureau of Land Management (.gov) Faith Nguyen, award-winning concert photographer and Northeastern student, lives for the ‘little moments’ Northeastern Global News Framing legacies: The Center for Creative Photography turns 50 University of Arizona News The 2018 Audubon Photography Awards Winners National Audubon Society The 2023 Audubon Photography Awards: Winners and Honorable Mentions National Audubon Society |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
RELATED ARTICLES
Underwater Photography: The Wonders Under the Sea The world of photography is an amazing one. It's been with us for quite a while now but it is constantly changing. Photography Workshops and Master Classes Several years ago, I met a fellow photographer - albeit, he was an amateur, a very good one (the difference is not the quality of the work . the difference is that one does it for love, the other does it for money). Applications of Underwater Video Cameras There's so much you can do with an underwater video camera. If you enjoy snorkeling or diving, you can use the camera to show your friends and family the beautiful tropical fish, colorful coral reefs, and other underwater treasures you encountered on your vacation. How to take Great Photos of Your Pet We all love our animals. They do such funny, adorable, and cute things. Terms Used The In The Stock Photography Business So you are a small business person or web designer and you want to purchase some stock photography for your website. Great. How to Make Your Production Look a Lot Slicker for �40 More Tight BudgetsTight budgets are common these days. But the demand for high production values hasn't fallen with a drop in funds. The Arizona Desert Museum The vast beauty and richness of the desert can be easily seen in one place in Tucson, Arizona. Known as the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum ["Desert Museum"], this gorgeous and convenient site is host to a cornucopia of plants, birds and animals native to the desert. Transfer The Digital Camera Images To Your Computer There are a few very important tasks associated with using the digital camera. The most important is of course capturing a beautiful photograph. Four Unique Ways for the Pet Portrait Artist to Stand Out The warm feelings are flowing all around when the pet lover sees her commissioned portrait of her beloved dog or cat for the first time. Would you like the love to last even longer and reward you above the standard commission fee? If so, consider these ideas:When contracting with the pet lover for the commission, offer extras for a set additional fee. Taking Panoramic Landscapes - The Easy Solution I love panoramas. There's something very appealing about their shape. Where Do Great Ideas Come From? At a Photo Club meeting I attended recently, the President made a comment on another meeting he had attended, where someone in the audience asked the presenter where to find good subjects to photograph. The presenter in question started giving specifics instead of identifying the core issues in question, Attitude and Perspective. Canadas Digital Cameras, Digital Camcorders and Cheap Memory Cards Canada Digital SLR Camera or Digital single-lens reflex (SLR) camera is an ideal camera for professionals and amateur photographers. They usually having interchangeable lenses and are known for capturing superior quality images. Top 10 Digital Cameras - What You Need To Know About Them There are a large number of top 10 digital camera lists available on the Internet today. Each one of them is different and they all have different sets of criteria, on the basis of which these lists are compiled. Selecting Good Stock Photography in the Age of Digital The business of stock photography has drastically changed over the last few years. Ten years ago, selecting photographs for your brochure or newsletter meant spending hours pouring over stock photography catalogs and ordering photo research to find the exact image. Have You Read Your Digital Camera Manual? Have you read the manual that came with your digital camera? If not you are in good company, the majority of digital camera owners never get past the *Basic Operations* section.If you didn*t read the manual why not? Was it the obscure photographic terms? The numerous cross references ? The complicated diagrams? The myriad uses for each dial and button? The convoluted English? Maybe all of the above. The Truth About Pixels, Part 2-1: Printing 4x3 Inch Photos Why is a 3 megapixel camera better than a 1 megapixel camera? It really depends on how you intend to reproduce the picture. The reason cameras produce pictures at 72 pixels per inch is that this format is standard in video uses such as television and DVD. Top of the Line Digital Cameras If you think that digital cameras are for snapshots only, then you obviously haven't heard about SLR (Single Lens Reflex) digital cameras. SLR is a type of camera which has one lens for composing the frame and capturing the image. Photography 101 Part 3 ContentEven if you feel that you already know what kind of photography you like to do, it's always a good idea to try your talent at different aspects of photography.Pictorial, this is a general term but it applies to any photographer who's goal is simply to create beautiful photos. Home Run Baseball Photography Tips Strike one! Strike two! Strike three!Baseball! America's Pastime, and a sport growing in popularity throughout the world, where the Boys of Summer slug it out. A baseball game is the perfect way to spend a lazy summer afternoon, plus it provides opportunities to take photos that last a lifetime. Digital Camera Macro Mode The digital camera is a wonderful device that allows a diverse variety of applications with its even diverse spectral collection of utilities. As technology progresses it brings along with it those intense pleasures that human beings have only thought of. ![]() |
home | site map |
© 2006 KeralaClick.com |