MasteringMetering7SimpleandPowerfulTechniquesThatIUseto

NailMyExposureinWildlifePhotography

(andYouCanTotallyDoItToo!)

Gettingtherightexposureisreallyhard.I’vebeenthere.FromP(notProfessional)modetoapertureprioritytoshutterprioritytomanual,I’vetrieditall.ButIdidn’tgetanysatisfactoryresultsuntilIspentyearslearningfrommasterphotographers—frommodelingtheirtechniquesattheir(expensivebutwellworthit)workshops,studyingtheirpublications,spendingdaysandnightsreadinghundredsofbooks,onlineforumsandphotographymagazines,anddoingalotoftrialanderrorinthefieldmyself.I’vehadcountlesspainfulexperiencesthatIdon’twanttoremember—butnowI’msharingwithyousevensimpletechniquesthatIuse,whichconsistentlyproducetheexposuresIenvisioned.Firstofall,whatisthecorrectexposure?Thereisactuallynorightorwrongexposure.Thecorrectexposureistheoneyouenvisionedinyourmind’seyewhenyouwereatascene.Youhavetwoobjectives.Firstistouseallkindsofin-cameracapabilitiestorecordthatdata,whilemaximizingtheinformation(details)fromtheRAWfilesothatthefinalphotowillbereadyforpublication,gallerydisplay,large-formatprinting,andonlineposting.Butmostimportantly,youwanttoobtainthebestqualitythatnotonlysatisfiesyou,butalsomovesandinspiresotherpeople.Second,youwanttohavethequickestandeasiestwaytometeryourshot,sothatyoucanforgetabouttheexposureconcern,andfocusonyourcreativity,composition,self-expressionandcapturingthedecisivemomentwhenyouareinthefield.Ifyouarelikeme,youhavespentthousandsofdollars(ormuchmore,oops)oncamerasandlenses.Thesecamerasandlenses(assumingtheyaredigital)havetechnologywaybeyondanythingfromjustafewyearsback.(IstillrememberIspent$3,000forthefirstCanonD30[not30D!],and$400fora1GBMicrodrive.)Thenewtechnologyhasenabledustotakephotoswithqualitypreviouslyunmatched.Butweneedtolearnhowtooptimizeourtechniquetogetthebestqualityimagefilefromourcameras.Meteringandexposurearecriticalinthisprocess.SowhathaveIlearnedaboutmeteringandexposure?(BTW,allthesemethodsarenotinventedbyme.Theyarefromthegreatmindsofprofessionalphotographers,goodfriends,andonlineforums.Imerelypickedthosethatworkedformeandamnowsharingthemwithyouhere.Soabigthankstoeveryonewhohavehelpedmealongtheway!ThankstoSteveUffman,MelissaGroo,LoiNguyen,andDonaldQuintanafordiscussingwithmeindividuallyonmeteringpriortothewebinar,andTrentSizemoreforrecommendingmeandgivingmetipsonhowtodoawebinar.)

1. Pre-TripSettingforaSunnyDayHowmanytimeshaveyoumissedanopportunitybecauseyouhaven’tsetupthecamerawhenyoucameuponananimalunexpected?It’scriticalthatwedoapreliminarysetupsothecameraisreadytofire(withoutcatastrophicexposureerrors)inthecaseofunexpectedencounters.Butbeforewegettothatpoint,weshouldalwayschangetwosettingsinourcamerabodies.

• OneistoenableHighlightAlertsothatwecansee“blinkies”(partoftheimageblinking)onthefinalimageontheLCDiftheimageisover-exposed,withcertainareascompletelywhite(losingdetailsthatarenotrecoverable).OnethingtobearinmindisthattheimageyouseeontheLCDisaJPEGconversionoftheRAWfile(whichyoushouldalwaysuse).Thatmeanssometimessomeover-exposedblinkiesontheJPEGdisplaycanberecoveredwiththehigherbitrateofRAWfiles.Butstill,trytoavoidhavingblinkies.

• ThesecondsettingtocheckisthattheHistogramdisplayshouldon,withRGB(amust).Youneedtoalwayscheckthered-green-bluehistogramtomakesurenopixelissaturated(meaningbeingcutoffat255).

Also,alwayschecktheweatherreportforyourdestination.Checksunriseandsunsettime,weatherandwind.Then,planaccordingly.Generally,thesearethecriteriaIconsider:sunny,cloudy(overcast),andwindy(sometimescertainbirdsdon’tgohuntingwhenit’swindy,pluswinddirectionhelpsyoudeterminethetakeofforlandingdirectionforcertainspecies,suchasSandhillcranes).Ifitisasunnyday,youcanfollowtheSunny16rule.Ifmyobjectiveforthetripisbirds-in-flight,Iusuallysetmycamerameteringmodetomanual,andsetthecameratof/7.1,1/2000s,ISO400.Thatshouldbethepre-tripcamerasetting.Forovercastdays,it’strickier.Iwilltalkaboutthatlater.

2. ManualExposure(BestforBirdsinFlightonaSunnyDay)MostpeopleItalkedtoseemtousespotmeteringonthesubject,andtheyallowthecameratomakeitsownjudgment.Butalotofexposurecompensationisneededifthebirdiswhiteorblack(orboth).Andyouneverknowhowbigthespotisfor“spotmetering.”Soit’snotareliablemethod.Tohaveamorereliablemethod,youhavetocommunicatewithyourcamerabetter,meaningyouhavetomanuallytellthecamerawhatitislookingat(i.e.,pointthefocuspointofthecameratoaspotthatis18%grey,alsoknownasmid-tone).Youtellthecamerathisspotismid-tonebyadjustingtheshutterspeed,aperture,orISOsothatthelightmeterpointstozero.Forsunnydays,ifyouarephotographingbirdsinflight,thebestmethodwouldbeto:

• Havethesunexactlybehindyou.• Lookatyourshadow.• Checkwhereyourshadowispointing.That’swhereyouwillbephotographingthebird

orwildlife.Alwaysmoveyourfeetaccordingtothislineofsunvs.wildlife.Threetofivedegreesoffcouldcreateatinybitofshadowtomaketheimagemore3D,butthatalsodependsonthetimeoftheday.Keepexperimenting.

• Setyourcameratospotmeteringandmanual(M)mode.Lookatthatareaandspotmeteronanythingthathasconsistentmid-tone,suchasgrassoratreetrunk.

• Youhavetopracticeseeingthingsingreyscale,andbeabletotellwhichpartismid-tone.

• Aimthefocuspointtothatareaandhalfpresstheshuttertogetareadingofthelightmeter.

• Ifthelightmeterinsideyourviewfindergivesyouanegativereading,thendecreaseshutterspeed,reducef-stop,orincreaseISOuntilthelightmeterpointstozero.

• Whenindoubt,takeapicandreviewitinLCD,thenseehowthehistogramlooksandmakesuretherearenoblinkies(again,makesuretoturnonhighlightalert.)

Thebenefitofthismethodisthatsincethesunisbehindus,thelightilluminatedonthefieldinfrontofusshouldbeveryconsistent.Thus,theexposureofanypartofthesceneinthatdirectionshouldbethesame.Thistakescareoftwoproblems:

• Itdoesnotdependontheluminosity(brightness)orcolorofthebirdorwildlife.• Itdoesnotdependontheluminosityorcolorofthebackground.

Thisisparticularlyusefulfortrackingbirdsinflightwhenthebirdisilluminatedbythelightbutthebackgroundbrightnesskeepschanging.Thisway,theexposureonthebirdisalwayscorrect.Ifyouusespotmeteringonthebird,sometimesyoumayspotontheeyeofthebird,whileothertimesonthewing.Thentheexposurewillbechanged,whichiswrong.

SomeoneaskedmehowIdealwithbirdsflyinginandoutofbrightandshadowyareas.That’satoughquestion.Spotmeteringonthebirdwouldnotworkbecauseifyouarenotabletokeepthefocuspointrightonthedesiredregionofthebird,thenyourexposurewillchangerapidlyduringtheAFtracking.Youneverknowhowbigthespotisforspotmetering.Itmaybebasedonasmallpartofthebird,oritmayincludethesurroundings.Evaluativemeteringalsodoesn’tworkbecauseitdependslargelyonthebackgroundwithbirdsinflight,asthatvariesalotduringflying.Onewaytodealwiththisistospotmetermid-toneregionsinboththebrightregionandtheshadowregion,andrememberhowmanystopsoflightareinthedifference.Then,whenthebirdfliesfromthebrighttotheshadowregion,youmanuallyadjustthedifferenceinstops.Butitisverydifficulttoadjustallthesefactorsinrealtime.Myadviceisthatifthelightisbeautiful,theshotwhenthebirdisintheshadowwillnotbeextremelygood.Inthatcase,Iwilljustgiveupthoseshotsandenjoythemomentinnature.Butifyoureallywanttogettheshot,thenpleasereadsection6.

3. SnowWhatifthereisnomid-toneregion,suchaswheneverywhereiscoveredwithsnow?Remember,manualmodeandspotmeteringisallabouthelpingthecameramapareferencepoint.Itdoesnotnecessarilymeanamid-tone.Here,wecansettomanualmodeandspotmeterataregionofwhitesnow,thenadjustshutterspeed,aperture,andISOsothatthelightmeterreads+21/3.Wearebasicallytellingthecamerathatwhatitislookingatiswhite.Thenthecameraisgoodtogo.SpecialthankstoCharlesGlatzer,CanonExploreroftheLight,forhiswisdomonthis.

4. Pre-TripSettingforSnowEnvironmentOnethingtobearinmindistokeepcheckingthereadingoffthesnowsothatyouarereadyatalltimes.Beforeyourtrip,youshouldsetyourcameratoManual(M)modeandspotmetering.Forexample,whenyouareinasnowcoachoryourowncarandyousuddenlyseewildlifenearby,thefirststepwhenyouopenthecarwindoworwhenyouslowlygetoutofthecarshouldbetoimmediatelyspotmeteronsnowtoadjustyoursettings.Thisway,youdon’tneedtofumblewiththesettingswhenyougetclosertotheanimal.

5. OvercastConditions,orWildlifeinandoutofBrightandShadowyAreas

Iuseevaluative(matrixforNikonusers)metering(note:notspotmeteringhere),manualmode(M)withautoISO+1/3exposurecompensation(seesection8)anditworksformemostofthetime!(thankstomygoodfriendRoyDunnwhotoldmethatexposurecompensationonautoISOisfinallyavailableonsomeCanonmodelsandhelpedmesetthatup.)It’srare,butyouhavetopayattentionwhenallofasuddenthesunshinesthroughthecloudandtheanimal(that’swhiteorhaswhitehighlights)getsintoanareawithadark

background.Thenyouhavetodialdown2/3to1stop.Forthoseofyouwhosecamerasdon’thaveexposurecompensationwhenusingmanualandautoISO,youare“stuck”withaperturepriorityorshutterpriority.Theyareokaslongasyouknowtheirlimitations.Foraperturepriority,ifthelightsuddenlydropstwostops,yourshutterspeedmaygetsolowthatyoucannotfreezethemotion.Forshutterpriority,thephotowillbeunderexposedifthef-numbercannotgetlowerwhenthelightsuddenlydrops.SomepeoplemayuseautoISOwithanupperlimitforshutterpriority,butIdon’tknowhowyoucancontrolthef-stopinthiscase.AndsometimesyoucouldhavealowerISOandalowerf-numberbutstillnotbeabletocontrolit.

6. Pre-TripSettingforOvercastConditions,orWildlifeinandoutofBrightandShadowyAreas

Thisiseasy.Justchooseevaluative/matrixmetering,manualmode,autoISO+1/3exposurecompensationbeforethetripandyouaregoodtogo.

7. ExposetotheRightAlotofthetimewewanttoopenuptheshadowsofthedarkareastoseemoredetails.Butthisusuallyendsupinducingalotofnoiseinthoseareas.Toremedythis,wecanintentionallyover-exposeourphotos(withoutcausingblinkies),sothatthedarkregionwillbebrighterandcancapturemoredetails.Meanwhile,thebrightregionwillbebrighter(butnotcutoffat255).Thisway,allweneedistoslidethehighlightbartothelefttodarkenthehighlightoftheimage,whileretainingthedetailsofthedarkregion.That’swhyweadded1/3or2/3exposurecompensationinsection6.Alongthesamelines,wecanalsoadd1/3stopinsection3afterspotmeteringatthemid-tone.However,itisnotadvisedtoaddmorestoptosnowscenesinsection4.NOTE:Allyourphotoswillappearover-exposedbutthat’sexactlywhatitistryingtodo:tomaximizetheacquisitionofdetailsintheshadow/darkerareaofanimagewithoutinducingnoise,whilepushthehistogramallthewaytotherightwithoutanyclippingofhighlight.SoreviewyourphotoswithRGBhistogramsinthecameraLCDandcheckyourblinkiesconsistently.Youmaysay,“that’salotofwork!”Well,whosaidgettingtheultimateimagequalityiseasy?AfteryoudownloadyourphotosinyourcomputerandopentheminLightroom,youcangotoDevelopmodeandeasilyslidethe“highlight”bartothelefttodarkentheareaoftheimagethat’sover-exposed.Thisway,theshadow/darkerareawillnotbedarkened,andallthedetails(thatyoupaidthousandsofdollarsforyourcamera)willbethere.Andsittight,asyoumayfalloffyourchairseeingthequality.Formoreinfoonmeteringandexposure:CharlesGlatzer,CanonExplorerofLight,hasawonderfulworkshopcalledthe“technicalseriesworkshop”.Thisparticularworkshopisabout$1,500andmyfriendswhoattendedsaidit’swellworthit.Gocheckthatoutatwww.shootthelight.com.YoucancheckoutArthurMorris’sdigitalbasicsathisBirdsasarthomepage(about$50).

SotoSummarize:Remember,story=mood+emotion,asmentionedinRobertMcKee’sbookStory.Ourgoalistogetthemostdetail/informationfromourRAWcapturesthroughone-shotexposure,sothatwecanrealizewhatourmind’seyesseeatthescene.Soherearesometipswhenyouprepareforatrip:

• Checktheweatherchannelforsunriseandsunsettime,andsunnyorovercastconditions.Also,lookatthemaptoseewherethewildlifewillberelativetothesunsoyoucanfindaspotwherethesunisbehindyou.(Ifyouwanttolearnmoreaboutbacklitphotography,pleasesignupformynewsletterforfuturewebinarsandblogpostonthistopic.)

• MakesureyouhaveactivatedRGBhistogramdisplayandhighlightalert(blinkies)inyourcamera.

• Ifitissunny,setyourcameratomanual(M)modeandspotmetering.ThenremembertheSunny16ruleandadjustyourcamerafirst(forbirds-in-flight,Iusuallystartwithf/7.1,1/2000s,ISO400.)Then,lookforyourshadow.Setmanual(M)exposureandspotmeterthemid-tonewhereyourshadowispointing.Iusuallyintentionallysetthelightmeterto+1/3tooverexposeby1/3stop(sometimeseven2/3stopifyoudaretolivedangerously)insteadofsettingthelightmeterto0(exposetotheright.)Butmakesuretotakesometestshotstocheckforblinkies.Alsokeepcheckingthelightbyspotmeteringthemid-tonefromtimetotimeincasethelightdropsnearsunsetorthelightgetsstrongerwhenitisnearsunrise.Thenadjustyourshutterspeed,aperture,andISOaccordingly.

• Ifitisovercast,orifthewildlifeismovinginandoutofshadow,thenuseevaluative(matrix)metering,manual(M)mode,autoISO+1/3ev.Ifyourcameradoesn’tallowexposurecompensationwhileusingMmodeandautoISO,thenchoosebetweenaperturepriority(Av)orshutterpriority(Tv).IfyouchooseAvmode,bewareofsuddenlightdropwhichmakestheshutterspeedtooslow(remembermybobcatjumpingstory).IfyouchooseTvmode,bewareofunderexposurewhenlightdrops.Sometimeswegetcarryawaybythewildlifewearelookingatthroughtheviewfinderandforgettochecktheshutterspeedorthelightmeterreadingintheviewfinder.

• Bewarewhenthelightbreaksthroughthecloudsorifthewildlife(thathasanywhitecolor)movesinfrontofablackbackground.Inthatcase,immediatelychangeyourshutterspeed,apertureorISOtodroptheexposurebyonestop.

So,wenailedit.Youareallclearbynow,right?No?Stillconfused?Ok,hereisatablejustforyou.

Weathercondition

Pre-tripsetting

In-the-fieldsetting Beware

Sunny Sunny16Rule!

1. Mmode(startfromf/7.1,1/2000s,ISO400)

2. SpotMetering,3. lookatwhereyourshadowispointing

at,4. findmid-toneandhalfpressfocusto

getlightmeterreadinginyourviewfinder,

5. adjustAperture,shutterspeed,ISOuntillightmeterisat+1/3stop

Note:Thisisthemostaccurateexposuremethod,regardlessoftheluminosity(brightness)ofthesubjectorthebackground.Disadvantageisyouhavetospotmeteronmidtonefromtimetotime(every15-30mins)tore-adjust.

Every15minsorso,checkmid-toneagain,especiallynearsunriseandsunsetForbird/wildlifethathasanywhitecolor,lightmetersetto0insteadof+1/3forsafety

Snow Sameasin-the-fieldsetting

1. Mmode,2. SpotMetering,3. findthe“whitest”patchofsnow,4. adjustAperture,shutterspeed,ISO

untillightmeteris+(2and1/3)stop

Every15minsorso,spotmeteronsnowagaintoseeiflightincreasedordecreased

Overcast,predawn,aftersunset,wildlife/birdinandoutofshadow,orevenrainyday

Sameasin-the-fieldsetting

1. MmodeandautoISO(Iusuallystartwithf/5.6,1/1600s)tobegin.

2. Evaluative/MatrixMetering3. Adjustexposurecompensationto+1/3

stop(or+2/3ifdangerisyourmiddlename)

Note:Thisisthefastestsetupforunexpectedactionwhenyouaretotallynotready.Setyourcamerawithahighershutterspeedsuchas1/1600spriortothetrip.Usuallyunexpectedactionissuper-fast,andsuper-awesome.Nailingthoseshotsshouldbeyourtoppriority.

Ifsunlightsuddenlyburststhroughthecloudandthebird/wildlifegetstoadarkbackground,immediatelyadjustexposurecompensationto-2/3or-1stopCheckyourblinkiesifyoudaretouse+2/3.Everybrandofcamerasvaries.

That’sitfornow.It’sthatsimple.I’llbebacksoonwithmoregreatstuff!Makesuretocheckmyhomepagefromtimetotime,andtellyourfriendstosignupformynewsletterathttps://tinmanphotoblog.com/newslettertogetupdatesonupcomingwebinars(!)andmoregoodies.Shootmeanemailattinman@tinmanlee.comtosayhiifyouenjoythis.

TinManLeehttps://tinmanphotoblog.comMarch25,2017

(GentoopenguinsandmeaftersunsetattheFalklandIslands,2016.TakenbymyDad.GuesswhatmeteringmodeIwasusing?)