jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

ND filters come in very handy. Below are links to lots of articles about them.

https://www.lightstalking.com/quick-guide-to-understanding-nd-filters/
http://friedmanarchives.blogspot.com/2018/02/neutral-density-filters-vs.html
https://www.howtogeek.com/325803/how-neutral-density-filters-work-and-how-to-use-them-for-better-photography/
https://improvephotography.com/40253/nd-filters-30-filters-reviewed-compared/
http://www.alexwisephotography.net/blog/2009/07/23/neutral-density-reference-chart/
http://digital-photography-school.com/beginners-guide-buying-filters/
http://digital-photography-school.com/step-by-step-guide-to-long-exposure-photography/
http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/10-Stop-Neutral-Density-Filter.aspx
http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tutorials/neutral-density-filters.htm
http://www.alexwisephotography.net/blog/2009/07/23/neutral-density-reference-chart/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpNtAXbaNr0
https://www.ephotozine.com/article/how-an-nd-filter-can-remove-crowds-from-busy-shots--27054

Dossile

I would consider a polarizing filter before an ND, especially if shooting up towards a blue sky. I’m sure you already set your ISO is at its lowest and the shutter speed is fast. Shoot RAW of course.

Robertl594 Loc: Bloomfield Hills, Michigan and Nantucket

I have shot a lot of equestrian events. I understand your dilemma. I try to position myself so that the light is behind me, illunating the riders face while trying to mke sure that my background is not distracting, ie ugly buildings. Better to have trees and greenery than buildings, trailers and tents. I also use 2.8 or faster to get a narrow depth of field to blur out background. As for your exposure, do concern yourself with blown out backgrounds but you can correct a lot in post processing, if you shoot raw and don’t go too far to the right. There are split neutral density filters that can be applied during your processing, Ie Nik. But try not to darken the rider’s head.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

I would recommend a variable ND filter. U can dial in what you need. I only use mine on a tripod. For what you want u might just a polarizer.

repleo Loc: Boston

Breakthrough Photography have a good guide to ND filters here.

https://breakthrough.photography/pages/nd-buying-guide

The terminology can be very confusing with some referring to the strength in 'Stops' and some in 'X----'

Breakthrough make great filters. I have switched to Breakthrough from B&W.

fetzler Loc: North West PA

Robert594 is correct. You have a lighting problem. The scene has a wide dynamic range. You may have to let the sky go white. Expose for the horse. A polarizer may help a bit with the sky. If possible change your position so that the sun is to your back or at least to the side. Use a lens hood. If you are close enough this an opportunity to use fill flash. Using RAW files may help to recover they sky. Another possibility would be to replace the sky in post.

ND filters only allow one to use slower shutter speeds or wider apertures.

Robertl594 Loc: Bloomfield Hills, Michigan and Nantucket

I would NOT use a flash. Horses can spook and we do not want to be the ones responsible for spooking a horse. Trust me, you will feel terrible and embarrassed, but not as hurt or angry as the rider who is thrown and or hurt. Long fast lenses are really your best friend at a horse show.

SusanFromVermont Loc: Southwest corner of Vermont

I agree with the Circular polarizer solution. It will bring out colors as well as darken the view. Be sure you understand that it works best when the sun is at a 90 degree angle to the lens. When you turn the filter, you will see the changes in what you see.

Before starting with the actual photographing of horses, try doing some test shots to see if you can find a good balance that will give you both subject and sky. Using the histogram can help with preventing blown out highlights, but it is not always the best way to decide on exposure settings.

I've taken lots of horse photos in bright light and had them turn out OK. Just don't shoot toward the sun! The local horse show here is a jumping competition, and there are mountains and lots of trees around. As a result, my photos seldom include a lot of sky. I did find one taken in 2012 that will illustrate. I don't think I used a filter or why I chose the settings I did, but that is another issue! The point is, if you use a good editing program, you can make changes selectively that will bring out the sky and bring out the rider. Shoot in RAW.

Unedited Original

(Download)

Darkened to bring out sky

(Download)

Brightened to bring out horse and rider

(Download)

User ID

`

Stick with raw files, shifting your histogram
as needed left OR right as required, and do
learn area selection skills to use in PP. And
ignore all those mentions of polarizers and
NDs. Thaz all crapola. Trying to alleviate
your extreme dynamic range challenge by
using on-lens accessories is a fool's errand.
If you've got plenty of time to waste, you
can prove that to yourself by doing it :-(

Summarily, there seems to be many posts
in the thread that just parrot what they've
read about landscape shooting and try to
transpose it onto your action photography.
Acoarst that won't fly.

Sifting thru the thread, there is plenty of
exposure advice and PP advice. Those are
by your trustworthy advisers. Take care.

.

scsdesphotography Loc: Southeastern Michigan

You've asked a good question and User ID has done a good job of laying out the issues for you, in other words shooting in that kind of light is always a challenge. And ID is correct, there is no total in camera solution. But, since you are shooting in RAW, it is possible to produce a satisfactory image, by starting with camera settings that will produce a RAW friendly file. Here is how I handle it.

First, what kind of bright sky are you seeing? is it featureless, all blue no clouds or uniform clouds and no blue? In either case we don't care about sky, we just need to get the horse right. If there are clouds then we'll need to compromise our setting a bit. Do not forget to set your WB for daylight or cloudy (or set a custom WB) as appropriate. The histogram is most useful when the light is uniform and contrast is not extreme, so ignore it as a guide in this situation. Use your LCD as your guide to get the exposure approximately right.

Let's assume that you do have an interesting sky. Next be prepared to take a series of test shots. Start with these settings; aperture around 7.1, ISO around 100 and shutter at 1/500 and take a test shot. Look at the preview and begin adjusting your shutter speed until you have as much visible detail in the horse as possible without losing all the sky, the horse is more important, so lean a little that way.

Now, pull up the image in your RAW converter (I use LR) and adjust the highlights and shadow sliders. Move the highlights slider to the left until the sky looks good and move the shadow slider to the right until the horse looks good. At some point you should get the image you are looking for. Also, as your skills advance, you will find the histogram display and the levels sliders in your RAW program to be very useful in fine tuning your images.

These are just starting points for you to follow, every lighting situation can be different and everyone has a unique relationship with their camera. Don't get discouraged, experiment and have fun.

timcc Loc: Virginia

I suggest using a polarizer rather than an ND, trying to shoot against a darker background if possible (is there an elevated point you could shoot more downward from?), and spot metering on the horse.

NDs are usually used to enable a slower shutter speed, but since you are shooting moving horses, you will want to keep the shutter speed relatively high.

Robertl594 Loc: Bloomfield Hills, Michigan and Nantucket

I also zoom in close enough so that your subject is the horse and rider, not the background. Otherwise there is no real focal point of the picture. Riders like the close ups as well if you have the horse and part of the jump and ground to see how high they are.

lamiaceae Loc: San Luis Obispo County, CA

Deleted after reading thru replies and further posts.