Garyminor wrote:
Dave,
Without a doubt, the best quality comes from exposing as far to the right as you can, without exceeding the capabilities of the sensor.
Certainly, I would prefer a camera with a sensor of large dynamic range.
I'm simply pointing out that it is not always best to use all of that dynamic range, depending on the scene and the objectives.
It may be more important to have larger depth of focus, or shorter shutter duration, rather than a higher quality image.
I also understand that if the brightest highlights fall one stop less than the highest available from the sensor, then 50% of the possible sensor values are going unused.
My assertion is that when you expose beyond the right, you incur the cost of longer shutter duration or larger aperture.
Here is my rationale.
Start with a normally exposed, sunny day scene, ISO 100, 1/100 sec shutter, f/16 aperture, using a 200mm lens.
In this case, it would be difficult to hand-hold the 200 mm lens, but a monopod would probably be OK.
If instead, you expose beyond the right, then according to the tutorial, the shutter duration would become 1/200 and you would be able to hand-hold a 200mm lens.
It seems to me that this is incorrect.
What actually happens is that the shutter duration becomes 1/50 sec, and a tripod is required. This is exactly opposite of what is stated in the tutorial.
Note 1: My comments and justifications are related to raw capture.
Note2: This is not an expression of my opinion of when to use EBTR. Each user must evaluate the benefits and cost, depending on the objectives.
Thanks,
Gary
Dave, br br Without a doubt, the best quality com... (
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Gary,
Your premise is incorrect.
When you use the "Sunny-F/16" rule you are using the accepted and very useful rule for exposing film and JPEG files.....
NOT for exposing for optimal raw image data capture.
Raw capture is a totally different imaging medium from film and JPEG files.
There is no "down side" to an appropriately exposed raw capture. If you need to stop motion, use an ultra-short shutter duration; if you need a shallow DOF , use a large aperture, if you need....well...you get the idea. The image seen in your camera's display will be washed-out with blown highlights...which is what you WOULD have captured IF you had shot a JPEG file. But when you download that SOOC raw file into your raw converter and tonally normalize it by sliding the Exposure slider to the left, you'll find the image you visualized capturing.
You really have to give it an honest try, Gary, before you can begin to understand its merits. And having captured an appropriately exposed raw capture, you'll find that image file has amazing creative versatility from high-to low-key approaches and imaginative manipulations of tonal and color range and spectra.
And finally, the decision as to whether or not to use EBTR is, of course, up to the photographer. From my perspective, if capturing raw image data, EBTR is always the exposure tactic of choice; however, if JPEG capture is to be used ... for example when it it must be under some circumstances...such as some burst exposure modes for B.I.F.s ...then the traditional film/JPEG exposure strategies that I've used since the late 1940s become the comfortable recourse.
It's all based upon and derived from what I consider to be the basic Canon of Digital Exposure Knowledge:
Reichmann, Michael, essay in Luminous Landscape, 2003
"Expose Right"
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/expose-right.shtml...and a follow-up in 2011:"Optimizing Exposure"
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/optimizing_exposure.shtmlFraser, Bruce,
"RAW Capture, Linear Gamma, and Exposure"Adobe White Paper, 2004,
http://www.adobe.com/digitalimag/pdfs/linear_gamma.pdfFraser, Bruce, and Jeff Schewe, "Real World Camera RAW.
Peachpit Press, 20O9,
Schewe, Jeff, "The Digital Negative", Peachpit Press, 2013
Schewe, Jeff, "The Digital Print" , Peachpit Press, 2014
I can't remember if I've posted these graphics in our discussions, but if I have...redundancy has its merits.
Best regards,
Dave