Wow! This is one of the most concise tutorials I have heard on the issues of proper exposure, and the explanation of ETTR is awesome. Great job! I learned a lot from watching this video.
Great advice! I am about 9-10 months into photography as a hobbyist...so much to learn. I started off using the on-board exposure meter to determine "proper" exposure, but now use the histogram all of the time. Another big hurdle is color simulations.
I shoot a Sony (an A7R3), and it offers an option that is a variation of ETTR. It offers a setting that it calls "Zebra stripes". I set the Zebra stripes to 100% and then adjust my exposure until I just begin to see them. Then, it is easy to do any minor fine tuning to the exposure that is needed in post.
Very good video and examples. Especially the part of the meter reading the jpeg profiled shot (did I understand that right?). Good work. Maybe see you on the trail some day.
Great Tips Mike...i never really think of "ETTR" i always figure i can fix in post. Im gonna have to try this and see if my pics come out more like the real scene.
Thanks Mike, great video. I have started to use ETTR to manually bracket high dynamic range compositions as well to eliminate having way too many bracketed photos to sort through in post processing.
great video! I've been doing Landscape photography for a while now and use my histogram all the time just to make sure because that LCD is quite misleading sometimes
This is something I learned a couple of years ago. I think you covered everything. One of the issues I still have is I want to know what type of histogram I should have for certain situations. I know what it should look like for milky way photography but I've had a couple of other situations where I wasn't sure because it was a dark situation. When in doubt I will bracket my shots. If it's a blue hour shot with city lights I will bracket because of the dynamic range between the dark sky and city lights. Learning how's to use luminosity masks is a game changer. Not just for blending exposures but for adjusting specific areas in the photo and dodging and burning.
Hi Mike, great information on proper exposure. I do astrophotography so I need the best setting I can get. I'll try this method to see my results. Thanks!!
Hi Mike, a really great overall tutorial about exposure! I also usually expose to the right to get the best possible quality. But interesting is, that newer sensors got that good meanwhile, that it doesn't make the biggest difference anymore. But it's definitely still a good tip. Thank you for sharing and winterly greetings from Austria, Christian
Very good tips- maybe too many but I got them all since I've been reading books and practicing for a trip. Bottom line: 1. When in doubt learn how to do EXPOSURE BRACKETING- it is easy. 2. It is better to slightly over expose then the under expose. 3. Always shoot in RAW if you plan to edit otherwise, RAW + JPEG 4. Set up the camera so you can see your HISTOGRAM and set it to B&W and not color. You will get more accurate view of the image and exposure. Set meter by pointing at the sky or the color green- you get better results this way (per the expert in the great book called Understanding Exposure. 5. Use matrix metering.
@Noah Ortuno Glad it helped. How did your pics turn out- any online galleries? FYI, you can host on Amazon for free- if you have prime- full resolution and you can share.
Once again an excellent, well thought out and well explained video. On the topic of snow, I know Nikon and I think Canon have a built in library of images for their Matrix/Evaluative meter modes to compare. That said, back in the film days, we metered off the snow or sand and opened up a stop. Sounds familiar……
Nice presentation Mike. As you use a Nikon, couldn't you just use the "Highlight-weighted metering" option (and maybe if prefered use 0.3 stop compensation) ? Regards
I bracket like hell but as a general rule I do underexpose a lot of my images by about a stop. It gives me the look I’m after. But as I said I do bracket like mad. When shooting directly into the sun I tend to use 1/8000. I shoot a lot of birds etc so I always use stop metering.
On my canon i use 1 of the user picture styles and turn sharpening strength to 0, fineness to 1 and threshold to 1, and i've found images are sharper when adjusting sharpening to in post to 2 or 3 than they are when starting at the preset of 4,3,3 of auto & standard and 4,4,4 that landscape style use.
Really great video Mike with great info. I have a 5DSr and was curious your opinion on setting the AF point selection: MANUAL SELECT: SPOT AF MANUAL SELECTION: 1 PT. AF I only shoot landscapes. No sports, BIF, wildlife, weddings, etc. Also living here just out of Portland and having the Gorge and all its waterfalls, I am conflicted on purchasing the Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM or the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 II USM. Only enough money for one and I have a brand new KASE 77mm Pro ND filter set. Any thoughts? Thank you for your time.
Thanks James! I always use Single Point AF, (Nikon). That’s my preference anyway, but neither is wrong. And for me, I’d opt for the f/4 lens, just because it’s lighter and less expensive, compared to the 2.8. The 24-70 is a great range, so I’d also think about what focal lengths you tend to gravitate towards more. I love wide angle lenses, but another photographer might prefer the 24-70
When you do a few exposures at sunset where do you do the base exposure?? Do you put it in the middle at 0 in evaluative? Thanks so much - loving your tutorials!
Thank you! I just keep an eye on my histogram and make sure I get enough exposures that expose for the highlights and the shadows. Usually 2-3 exposures are plenty. I take them at 1 full stop apart. That’s the most accurate way to get everything you need. If you’re using your camera’s light meter, then I would take at least 3. One at 0, one at -1, and one at +1. That should be plenty.
Interesting vid Mike. I heard the other day that the Brightness histogram is an average of the Red, Green and Blue histograms so potentially you can blow one of them out but wont know it because the average on the Brightness histo. seems OK. I have always used the Brightness histogram up to now but just switched to showing the individual ones as a trial. Any thoughts on whether that's sensible or a waste of time?
Hey Steve. Yes it’s possible. The red channel is the most likely to be blown out in colorful sky situations, but I find that generally the brightness histogram does represent the luminosity values accurately. It is beneficial as well to double check the RGB histograms when reviewing your image.
I find myself needing to work left more than I'd like on the histogram. In the woods, I often have to watch how the breeze is moving tree tops. This forces a faster shutter speed or higher ISO. I'd rather pull up exposure in post (provided I didn't lose the blacks) as this seems to introduce less noise than increasing ISO to expose right. Thoughts? ~J
Honestly, I’d like to see a side by side using both methods on the z7ii. But from the few photos I’ve played with, including the cypress tree in this video, the issue isn’t only the noise, but details and contrast in the shadows and blacks. It doesn’t look good, and takes more work to fix. I’ve always brought down exposure in post, and the higher iso values are easier to clean up, compared to selectively cleaning it up more in shadows via double processing or creating separate layers in PS with a smart filter etc. Just like in wildlife photography, making sure you get a fast enough shutter speed in the field for a sharp image, and for me, getting the proper exposure is much more beneficial than trying to bring exposure up later with software on the computer. Again I’d love to do a side by side with noise specifically on that.
@@PereaPhotography Fair point... In fact, this process for me started when I had my D810 which didn't handle higher ISO values as well as my current Z6 or even the Z7ii. I need to give this another try.
Metering modes do not have a direct impact on the histogram. First point a camera directly at a light source next to a wall and adjusting the camera to read a histogram to have no clipping. Now change the metering modes. You will see no change in the histogram while the exposure readings will change particularly when selecting spot with the light at the center of the frame. Indirectly of course, using the light meter will affect the resulting image's exposure and so the resulting histogram. But, the two are not directly linked electronically in the camera.
The first 1,000 people to use this link will get a 1 month free trial of Skillshare: skl.sh/pereaphotography02221
Wow! This is one of the most concise tutorials I have heard on the issues of proper exposure, and the explanation of ETTR is awesome. Great job! I learned a lot from watching this video.
Appreciate this video that takes us back to basics to get perfect exposures! Thanks you...
Capture as much data in the field, expose in post. Best explanation I've ever heard of ETTR and of the purpose of its application.
Thank you!
Great video and well explained. Good to see the fine detail on the menu on the back. Thanks for sharing the video 👍🙏
Thanks buddy!
Thanks Mike, I always learn something new with your videos. 👍
Love your teaching. Thanks very much. Never thought about the preset profile affecting the histogram.
🙏🏼
Back in the day when needing an ISO 1200
Thank you Mike for the great tips. 👍 have a great day !
Great advice! I am about 9-10 months into photography as a hobbyist...so much to learn. I started off using the on-board exposure meter to determine "proper" exposure, but now use the histogram all of the time. Another big hurdle is color simulations.
Thanks for the advice. I've always exposed to the middle. I'll be trying this soon 👍👍👍
I shoot a Sony (an A7R3), and it offers an option that is a variation of ETTR. It offers a setting that it calls "Zebra stripes". I set the Zebra stripes to 100% and then adjust my exposure until I just begin to see them. Then, it is easy to do any minor fine tuning to the exposure that is needed in post.
Very good video and examples. Especially the part of the meter reading the jpeg profiled shot (did I understand that right?). Good work. Maybe see you on the trail some day.
These are great tips for getting the best exposure! I really like the detailed information here!
Really great video Mike. Very well explained as always and easy to understand. Good stuff buddy ..!!!!
Thanks so much Richard!
Once again a great video Mike !! You guys are killing these type of videos !! So much info and all on point again.
Great Tips Mike...i never really think of "ETTR" i always figure i can fix in post. Im gonna have to try this and see if my pics come out more like the real scene.
Thanks Mike, great video. I have started to use ETTR to manually bracket high dynamic range compositions as well to eliminate having way too many bracketed photos to sort through in post processing.
great video! I've been doing Landscape photography for a while now and use my histogram all the time just to make sure because that LCD is quite misleading sometimes
This is something I learned a couple of years ago. I think you covered everything. One of the issues I still have is I want to know what type of histogram I should have for certain situations. I know what it should look like for milky way photography but I've had a couple of other situations where I wasn't sure because it was a dark situation. When in doubt I will bracket my shots. If it's a blue hour shot with city lights I will bracket because of the dynamic range between the dark sky and city lights. Learning how's to use luminosity masks is a game changer. Not just for blending exposures but for adjusting specific areas in the photo and dodging and burning.
Hi Mike, great information on proper exposure. I do astrophotography so I need the best setting I can get. I'll try this method to see my results. Thanks!!
Some good tips, thank you.
Hi Mike, a really great overall tutorial about exposure!
I also usually expose to the right to get the best possible quality. But interesting is, that newer sensors got that good meanwhile, that it doesn't make the biggest difference anymore. But it's definitely still a good tip.
Thank you for sharing and winterly greetings from Austria,
Christian
This is an awesome explanation of the traditional way of processing your photos. I’m not a traditionalist. 🤠
Very good tips- maybe too many but I got them all since I've been reading books and practicing for a trip.
Bottom line:
1. When in doubt learn how to do EXPOSURE BRACKETING- it is easy.
2. It is better to slightly over expose then the under expose.
3. Always shoot in RAW if you plan to edit otherwise, RAW + JPEG
4. Set up the camera so you can see your HISTOGRAM and set it to B&W and not color. You will get more accurate view of the image and exposure. Set meter by pointing at the sky or the color green- you get better results this way (per the expert in the great book called Understanding Exposure.
5. Use matrix metering.
@Noah Ortuno Glad it helped. How did your pics turn out- any online galleries? FYI, you can host on Amazon for free- if you have prime- full resolution and you can share.
Once again an excellent, well thought out and well explained video.
On the topic of snow, I know Nikon and I think Canon have a built in library of images for their Matrix/Evaluative meter modes to compare. That said, back in the film days, we metered off the snow or sand and opened up a stop. Sounds familiar……
Thanks Jay!
Nice presentation Mike. As you use a Nikon, couldn't you just use the "Highlight-weighted metering" option (and maybe if prefered use 0.3 stop compensation) ?
Regards
Very Very good. Thank you.
Great info. D you use Matrix metering for Sunrise/ Sunset photography also?
I bracket like hell but as a general rule I do underexpose a lot of my images by about a stop. It gives me the look I’m after. But as I said I do bracket like mad. When shooting directly into the sun I tend to use 1/8000. I shoot a lot of birds etc so I always use stop metering.
On my canon i use 1 of the user picture styles and turn sharpening strength to 0, fineness to 1 and threshold to 1, and i've found images are sharper when adjusting sharpening to in post to 2 or 3 than they are when starting at the preset of 4,3,3 of auto & standard and 4,4,4 that landscape style use.
Enlightening! 🌞😎👍
Really great video Mike with great info.
I have a 5DSr and was curious your opinion on setting the AF point selection:
MANUAL SELECT: SPOT AF
MANUAL SELECTION: 1 PT. AF
I only shoot landscapes. No sports, BIF, wildlife, weddings, etc.
Also living here just out of Portland and having the Gorge and all its waterfalls, I am conflicted on purchasing the Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM or the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 II USM. Only enough money for one and I have a brand new KASE 77mm Pro ND filter set. Any thoughts?
Thank you for your time.
Thanks James! I always use Single Point AF, (Nikon). That’s my preference anyway, but neither is wrong. And for me, I’d opt for the f/4 lens, just because it’s lighter and less expensive, compared to the 2.8. The 24-70 is a great range, so I’d also think about what focal lengths you tend to gravitate towards more. I love wide angle lenses, but another photographer might prefer the 24-70
@@PereaPhotography - Appreciate your time. Thank you again.
When you do a few exposures at sunset where do you do the base exposure?? Do you put it in the middle at 0 in evaluative? Thanks so much - loving your tutorials!
Thank you! I just keep an eye on my histogram and make sure I get enough exposures that expose for the highlights and the shadows. Usually 2-3 exposures are plenty. I take them at 1 full stop apart. That’s the most accurate way to get everything you need. If you’re using your camera’s light meter, then I would take at least 3. One at 0, one at -1, and one at +1. That should be plenty.
@@PereaPhotography thanks!
Interesting vid Mike. I heard the other day that the Brightness histogram is an average of the Red, Green and Blue histograms so potentially you can blow one of them out but wont know it because the average on the Brightness histo. seems OK. I have always used the Brightness histogram up to now but just switched to showing the individual ones as a trial. Any thoughts on whether that's sensible or a waste of time?
Hey Steve. Yes it’s possible. The red channel is the most likely to be blown out in colorful sky situations, but I find that generally the brightness histogram does represent the luminosity values accurately. It is beneficial as well to double check the RGB histograms when reviewing your image.
I find myself needing to work left more than I'd like on the histogram. In the woods, I often have to watch how the breeze is moving tree tops. This forces a faster shutter speed or higher ISO. I'd rather pull up exposure in post (provided I didn't lose the blacks) as this seems to introduce less noise than increasing ISO to expose right. Thoughts? ~J
Honestly, I’d like to see a side by side using both methods on the z7ii. But from the few photos I’ve played with, including the cypress tree in this video, the issue isn’t only the noise, but details and contrast in the shadows and blacks. It doesn’t look good, and takes more work to fix. I’ve always brought down exposure in post, and the higher iso values are easier to clean up, compared to selectively cleaning it up more in shadows via double processing or creating separate layers in PS with a smart filter etc.
Just like in wildlife photography, making sure you get a fast enough shutter speed in the field for a sharp image, and for me, getting the proper exposure is much more beneficial than trying to bring exposure up later with software on the computer.
Again I’d love to do a side by side with noise specifically on that.
@@PereaPhotography Fair point... In fact, this process for me started when I had my D810 which didn't handle higher ISO values as well as my current Z6 or even the Z7ii. I need to give this another try.
@@MidlifeRovers subject for a video!! “High iso or raise exposure in post?!!” Which is worse?? It may surprise you…
Can you still ettr when shooting in Jepg or does it have to be raw? I don't do post processing!
Yes you can!
Thank you
Metering modes do not have a direct impact on the histogram. First point a camera directly at a light source next to a wall and adjusting the camera to read a histogram to have no clipping. Now change the metering modes. You will see no change in the histogram while the exposure readings will change particularly when selecting spot with the light at the center of the frame.
Indirectly of course, using the light meter will affect the resulting image's exposure and so the resulting histogram. But, the two are not directly linked electronically in the camera.
💕👌💕👌💕👌💕💕👌💕
few cameras with raw histogram