 BetterPhoto Member |
correct exposure for very contrasty B&W scene I would like to take pictures of my dog playing in the snow. Of course my dog is black. How do I prevent the background from becoming too hot if I meter for her so I can render some detail. Do I take an average of her and the snow? Thank you in advance. Leslie
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doug Nelson |
A greatly simplified version of Ansel Adams' Zone Sysytem works here. Meter off the snow. Snow is two stops (at least) brighter than the 18% reflectance gray the meter is designed to read. So, take your reading and open up two stops. All the tones in your photo will come out right. Try it and see. Meter off the snow and shoot. See if the snow doesn't come out gray. Shoot again two stops over. Shoot again three stops over. See for yourself. You can meter off of anything as long as it's either a middle gray, or you know about how much it deviates from a middle gray.
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