 Monte d. Brooks |
How to properly use a gray card Would someone please explain to me in "relatively simple" terms about how to properly use a gray card? I have purchased a gray card and I also bought a Minolta IV F light meter. If I am using a light meter, would that be better than even trying to understand the concept of using a gray card? When I view the gray card thru my lens, do I operate my camera in the manual mode? If so, what am I supposed to be looking for the reading to tell me? I have searched dilligently for some answers, but cannot find anything that simplifies it. I understand the concept behind it, but not the proper technique to use it. Help please!
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Mark Feldstein |
Steady there Monte, it sounds like your glue is melting but you're asking in a good place I think. A IV F is a great meter, very accurate and pretty versatile. When you use it with a gray card, initially you need to make sure you've placed the disk on it for taking reflected readings versus the white dome for doing incident-type readings. Double check your meter's settings for the ISO you're shooting at too and forget about your camera for a moment and back-up a bit. To use a gray card, all you need to understand are two things: First, that light meters are basically gray meters that can't think for themselves. Second, when properly used, the 18 per cent gray card with a reflected reading from it, will produce a reading that's about zone V or the middle of the zone scale Ansel Adams cooked up of I thru X. That mid-tone reading will produce an average exposure for everything in the scene. To use the gray card, set it in the scene pointing toward the camera lens or the position you'll be standing in. Stand to the side of the card so as not to block the light. Hold the meter say a foot from the card and take your reading. That's it. You've made a zone V, average reading. Blast away and that should produce a reasonably good exposure so pop off a couple of frames at that point. To fine tune that exposure, however, you need to do some interpreting of the reading you got off the gray card. Now, if you use the gray card and meter, yes, you should operate the camera manually to set the exposure at the initial reading and any bracketing you do (unless you have automatic bracketing). If you place the gray card in the scene and meter with the camera, you can do that with the spot meter mode. Just fill the center spot with the gray card. So long as you use the spot mode, you should be able to be in manual or automatic. In my view, however, manual mode gives you a bit more creative control over things like shutter speed and depth of field. Nonetheless, assuming the light hasn't changed, the spot mode should produce a reading fairly close, though not necessarily identical, to what you got when you were standing next to the card and taking the reflected reading off of it. How to interpret the reflected reading you get from the meter, with or without using a gray card, takes a bit of practice but it's worthwhile learning in order to really get accurate, pleasing exposures. Something else you can experiment with is after you've gotten your reading off the card, save it to memory in the meter, then go take a couple of additional readings from the darker and brigher objects in the scene, plug those into the meter memory, hit average and you should be pretty close to right on without having to do the actual exposure math in your head. But after awhile, you'll probably get so good at it that you'll be able to take a single reading, judge the scene, interpret the meter without making multiple readings. And lastly for now, if you're using filters and want the camera to calculate the shooting exposure, in the manual mode, plug in the incident reading you obtained, put the filter on the lens and see how much f-stop or shutter speed compensation you need to add for the filter. Or, with the filter on and the camera in spot meter mode, find your gray card, get a reading, interpret the highlights and shadows, compensate for that and blast it. But again, until you feel more comfortable with the techniques, bracket your exposures a frame or two plus or minus in 1/2 stop increments to see what results are most appealing to you. That way, you'll learn to be in sync, so-to-speak with your meter (and/or gray card). A book I'll recommend you score is called (oddly enough) "The Hand Exposure Meter Book" by Silverman, Zuckerman and Bob Shell. It was initially published by the book division at Mamiya of America, but probably has another publisher by now. A very good, basic, useful text that explains all the hand-held metering techniques. The Minolta IVF manual is pretty good too. Let me know if you don't have one. Meanwhile....take it light. ;>) and if you've got more questions about this stuff, let's hear them. Be well.
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- Gregory LaGrange Contact Gregory LaGrange Gregory LaGrange's Gallery |
Mr. Monte, did you find that relatively simple?
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Andy |
This link from NYIP has a couple pictures demonstrating how to use the gray card and meter: http://www.nyip.com/tips/tip_graycard.html
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BetterPhoto Member |
Hey Mark, you just wrote a book about a piece of paper
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Kerry L. Walker |
That takes talent.
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Mark Feldstein |
Yeah, Digi, you're right. I should probably copyright the thing. But did YOU learn anything from it? And Kerry, you're right as well. Thanks for noting that. Oh, and I might also add it was a much better (and simpler) explanation than you guys offered up to help the guy. ;>) Tell me, judging by your collective average charm and wit, do the three of you, Digital, Greg and Kerry usually work as a comedy team or was this just a coincidental special appearance?
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Samuel Smith |
hello, if a simple explanation is over a few paragraphs long , us stand in a swamp and take pictures of a frog photographers won't get it. a little humor makes my day.in other words,don't let the teacher have a paddle ? i'm just a dumb member , and this is just a humorous comment. chuckle /
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- Gregory LaGrange Contact Gregory LaGrange Gregory LaGrange's Gallery |
I'm totally independent, comsically and spiritually. And I'll point out the humor in anything, specially if there's a contrast between asking for a simple explanation, and the unexpected length of that response.
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Kerry L. Walker |
It was a coincidence. You had done such a good job of explaining how to use a gray card I saw no reason to add anything. However, I could not pass up the chance to inject a little humor.
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Bob Cammarata |
Monte, Where did you buy your cards? I got a pack recently and the instructions for use...including implementation of the Zone System, were printed on the back of each one.
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BetterPhoto Member |
The wierdest people, usually make the most creative pics
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BetterPhoto Member |
you can also use the palm of your hand and underexpose a little, same thing Or you can walk up to their face meter and walk back and forth all day
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Mark Feldstein |
Ok Ok, honestly, I do appreciate your humor, really I do. In fact I suppose I need to be careful lest my own sense of humor be mistaken for sarcasm. (Or, sclerotic wit, eh Greg? LOL !). And thanks Kerrie, I appreciate your comments too. Always. Have a great day gang.
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- Gregory LaGrange Contact Gregory LaGrange Gregory LaGrange's Gallery |
Sometimes endodiodidactic, sometimes exodiodidactic.
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Kerry L. Walker |
Me - I'm just nuts!
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Monte d. Brooks |
Thanks to all who responded on the use of the gray card. Mark, I especially appreciate your response and the time you took to write it. But again, your response is exactly the type of answer that confuses me. I am sure that I am probably trying to make this thing more difficult than it truly is. The gray cards were manufactured by Kodak and yes, they did include instructions. Same thing, lengthy confusing instructions. Since I am using a light meter, can I pretty much put the gray card away? Doesn't the light meter actually serve the same purpose? I'm not a newbie at photography, but not yet intermediate status either. Basically I guess I want to know if the gray card serves the same purpose as a meter, since they both give you a reading. I understand the 18% theory on the gray scale, etc. Sorry if I am making this more difficult than it should be. Again, Mark, I truly appreciate your response. I know it took some effort on your part to write all of that. But it also confirms that simple is sometimes not so simple.
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Kerry L. Walker |
Monte, the gray card is not a substitute for the meter in your camera. It is more of a substitute for an incident meter which measures the light falling on a subject. To put it simply, a gray card comes in handy when there is a lot of white in the picture - like snow - which your camera meter will read as 18% gray. Under these conditions, point your camera at your subject, put the gray card about 1 foot in front of the lens, and take your meter reading off that. Then, the white will come out white rather than gray. Yes, there are other times when a gray card is handy but this will get you started.
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- Gregory LaGrange Contact Gregory LaGrange Gregory LaGrange's Gallery |
Since you have the minolta meter, just use that. Fits in your pocket, also meters flash.
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