Metering and Exposure

Basic Exposure An exposure at its most basic level is a combination of your shutter speed and aperture. An example of an exposure is f11 This means the shutter speed is 1/125 th of a second and your aperture is f11. When combined they make an exposure.

Shutter Speed Standard shutter speeds: 1/2 1/4 1/8 1/15 1/30 1/60 – This is the slowest shutter speed you shoot handheld. Any exposure that requires a longer shutter speed than this should be shot on a tripod. 1/125 1/250 1/500 1/1000

Shutter Speed The shutter speed controls how you photograph motion. There are 4 ways to use shutter speed: 1. Stop motion 2. Subject motion blur 3. Panning 4. Static

Stop Motion In order to stop motion you have to shoot with a shutter speed of at least 1/500 th of a second. Since the shutter is only open for a fraction of a second, it freezes time and the subject matter remains in focus.

Subject Motion Blur This is achieved by using lower shutter speeds on a subject that is moving very quickly. The camera remains static while the subject moves. The blur is created because the placement of the subject changes in the time it takes for the shutter to open and close.

Panning Shot This shot is a mix between motion blur and stop motion, but instead of stopping motion through the camera, it is physical. Instead of increasing the shutter speed to 1/500 th or higher, you use a regular shutter speed of 1/60 th or 1/125 th and follow the motion of the subject with your camera so it remains in the frame as opposed to crossing the frame. This creates a blur on the background instead of the subject.

Static Shot A static shot is as it sounds. There is no movement to consider, so the shutter speed is less relevant. Aside from considering if you need a tripod or not, the shutter speed doesn’t matter.

Aperture Standard aperture settings: f1.4 f2.0 f2.8 f4 f5.6 f8 f11 f16 f22

Aperture Your aperture works much like your eye. On a bright day, your iris will constrict to limit the amount of light it lets in. You consider this f22, or the smallest aperture. In a dark setting your iris will open wide to let in more light. You can consider this f2.0, or one of the widest apertures.

Depth of Field Aperture also controls depth of field, or the field in which an object will be in focus. There are three basic depth of fields to consider: 1.Shallow depth of field 2.Mid-range depth of field 3.Large depth of field

Shallow Depth of Field A shallow depth of field is created by using an aperture of f1.4 to f5.6. This means that the distance in which your subject will be sharp is very small.

Mid-Range Depth of Field This is in the middle between shallow and large depth of field and uses and aperture of f8-f11. This gives you a little longer distance which will appear in focus.

Large Depth of Field This will give you the largest distance of focus. Helpful if you are shooting landscapes. Uses aperture of f16 or greater. Notice that the foreground and background are now in focus.

Light Meter What is a light meter?

Light Meter A light meter is used to give you your correct exposure for a scene. All digital cameras have a built in light meter.

Light Meter A light meter reads for “middle” or 18% gray. That means it will give you the exposure that turns the metered tone into middle gray. When metering you need to consider highlights, shadows and mid-tones to meter accordingly.

Light Meter Example 1: Metering from the highlights. Notice that the highlights are brought to near middle gray.

Light Meter Example 2: Metering for the shadows. Notice how dark or shadow area is brought towards middle gray & highlights are blown out.

Light Meter Example 3: Correct exposure using an 18% gray card. Notice how highlights remain light and shadows remain dark.

Light Meter A gray card is a useful tool for getting correct exposures, but it is not always practical. Think about how a meter works and what you can meter from for a correct exposure.

Light Meter How to read your light meter: In your camera, your meter reading goes from -2 f-stops below correct exposure to +2 f-stops above correct exposure. If you are metering from a gray card, you want the reading to be right in the middle.

Light Meter If your meter reading looks like this: You are 1 f-stop overexposed. If your settings are currently f11, then you would change your settings to f16. This will make your meter look like this:

Light Meter If your meter reading looks like this: You are 1 f-stop underexposed. If your settings are currently f11, then you would change your settings to f8. This will make your meter look like this: