Pictures too dark in the park with a Mark II 5d on automatic,, why?? I took a bunch of pictures at the park the other day,, some came out too dark, it was broad day light, my lens is...

cony25

I took a bunch of pictures at the park the other day,, some came out too dark, it was broad day light, my lens is an esL 24-105,, what am I doing wrong,, please help!!

MWAC Loc: Somewhere East Of Crazy

cony25 wrote:

I took a bunch of pictures at the park the other day,, some came out too dark, it was broad day light, my lens is an esL 24-105,, what am I doing wrong,, please help!!

you're using Auto that's what's wrong. The camera is metering off the white dress and exposing for such. As a result the rest of your image is too dark.

cony25

Should I use a light meter by the tree? and go for av?

MWAC wrote:

cony25 wrote:

I took a bunch of pictures at the park the other day,, some came out too dark, it was broad day light, my lens is an esL 24-105,, what am I doing wrong,, please help!!

you're using Auto that's what's wrong. The camera is metering off the white dress and exposing for such. As a result the rest of your image is too dark.

MWAC Loc: Somewhere East Of Crazy

cony25 wrote:

Should I use a light meter by the tree? and go for av?

what is the most important part of the image? The young ladies face. so meter off that. Now she is wearing a white dress, so you are going to risk blowing it out and this is where it get's tricky. I meter off the face, then under expose by a 1/2 stop so the dress looks good, then in post I bring my exposure back up where it needs to be for the face using levels and mask back the dress.

Now the way I do it, could be totally wrong, but it works for me.

Harvey Loc: Pioneer, CA

Yes - a spot meter on the ladies face would have produce a much better photo.

CaptainC Loc: Colorado, south of Denver

Harvey wrote:

Yes - a spot meter on the ladies face would have produce a much better photo.

Yes, but using spot metering should - this case - be done in manual. Meter the face- set the camera to that setting, then recompose to shoot. Otherwise we have the face in the middle of the frame.

OR - shoot in Av or Tv, but after metering and focusing on the face, make sure that the exposure and focus lock are active so you can recompose.

In any case, AUTO is the worst possible mode.

In my opinion, the best approach would be to use an incident meter and then bracket half a stop or so either side.

dhelix33 Loc: Live in Raleigh, NC - Grew up in Teaneck, NJ

Recommend using fill flash with a softbox.

Samples below...

CaptainC wrote:

quote=Harvey Yes - a spot meter on the ladies fac... (show quote)

Xantoz Loc: Delaware

I had the same situation 2 weeks ago with a mixed race wedding. I used a fill flash with a soft box under the trees and it turned out perfect. I bracketed the flash to the side of he bride so I did not blow out the complexion of a very pale red faced groom in 100 deg weather with a white sky.

rpavich Loc: West Virginia

CaptainC wrote:

In my opinion, the best approach would be to use an incident meter and then bracket half a stop or so either side.

I'd agree.

Now I'm waiting for the usual suspects to come and tell the captn that he's wrong and that an incident meter won't do any more than a camera's meter and that it's a waste of money...

**getting the popcorn**

Xantoz Loc: Delaware

[quote=rpavich]

CaptainC wrote:

In my opinion, the best approach would be to use an incident meter and then bracket half a stop or so either side.

I'd agree.

Now I'm waiting for the usual suspects to come and tell the captn that he's wrong and that an incident meter won't do any more than a camera's meter and that it's a waste of money...

**getting the popcorn**[/quote

I have to agree. Could be interesting.

skidooman Loc: Minnesota

rpavich wrote:

CaptainC wrote:

In my opinion, the best approach would be to use an incident meter and then bracket half a stop or so either side.

I'd agree.

Now I'm waiting for the usual suspects to come and tell the captn that he's wrong and that an incident meter won't do any more than a camera's meter and that it's a waste of money...

**getting the popcorn**

Aawwww,,,you had to ruin it for us :)

rpavich Loc: West Virginia

skidooman wrote:

rpavich wrote:

CaptainC wrote:

In my opinion, the best approach would be to use an incident meter and then bracket half a stop or so either side.

I'd agree.

Now I'm waiting for the usual suspects to come and tell the captn that he's wrong and that an incident meter won't do any more than a camera's meter and that it's a waste of money...

**getting the popcorn**

Aawwww,,,you had to ruin it for us :)

But you brought a much-needed smile to my face :)

greymule Loc: Colorado

cony25 wrote:

I took a bunch of pictures at the park the other day,, some came out too dark, it was broad day light, my lens is an esL 24-105,, what am I doing wrong,, please help!!

My call is to use metered light from the face, then fill flash dialed down. So, I agree with the others. What a big help, huh?

CAM1017 Loc: Chiloquin, Oregon

cony25 wrote:

I took a bunch of pictures at the park the other day,, some came out too dark, it was broad day light, my lens is an esL 24-105,, what am I doing wrong,, please help!!

With a lot of white in a photo like a snow scene or a wedding dress the metering systen tend to underexpose. The fast way that most people take is to test shoot by overexposing in small increments until they get what they want. With a little experience you will be able to do this quickly. Check your owners manual on how to do this by overriding your meter.

wilsondl2 Loc: Lincoln, Nebraska

No matter how you meter you need to look at the first shot and see if it is too light or too dark and then adjust - look again and if not right adust some more. With my Nikon I just pusth the +/-button and spin the wheel to expose more or less. You also may want to use a reflector to put more light on her face. Most of the time I shoot in Apeture to control depth of field and let camera pick first sutter speed and after the test shot adjust from there. Lots of ways to skin a cat or take a picture. - Dave