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02-27-2015, 09:27 AM   #1
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Odd question about shooting sunrises,...

Hello Folks,

First of all, only had it ten or so days but loving my K3. Great camera.

I'm strictly a JPEG shooter and use the "Bright" style, which is default to the camera. I like everything about the results,.......except,.....I am not getting very colorful sunrise shots. They are not nearly as pink as the actual scene. This morning, I tried boosting the saturation in Bright mode, then saturation and contrast together. No improvement noted.

I'll keep trying, of course, but the colors are best for only a minute. If someone has a suggestion, I'd appreciate it.

Jack

02-27-2015, 09:36 AM   #2
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My tip is to meter the sky, not the land or combination. Also, you might want to set your white balance for shade.
You would be much better off though to shoot raw, and make adjustments later.
02-27-2015, 09:41 AM   #3
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QuoteOriginally posted by audiobomber Quote
My tip is to meter the sky, not the land or combination. Also, you might want to set your white balance for shade.
You would be much better off though to shoot raw, and make adjustments later.
Thanks, Dan. I tried metering the sky but I think adjusting the white balance is a good idea.

Jack
02-27-2015, 09:54 AM   #4
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Without reading the body, just based on title I wanted to reply, "Yes, you really have to get up that early...!"

You might try a manually adjusted while balance also. This lets you take a shot and then highlight something white to allow the cpu to calculate white balance.

02-27-2015, 10:08 AM   #5
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Is your camera set on auto white balance? Often to record colors at sunset as you see them you need to set the camera to a fixed color temperature. And to record the warmer colors of sunset set the camera to daylight color temperature often does the job. But experiment with the other fixed temperatures.
02-27-2015, 10:33 AM   #6
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QuoteOriginally posted by Setter Dog Quote
Thanks, Dan. I tried metering the sky but I think adjusting the white balance is a good idea.

Jack
Yes, experiment in the field. I often select Shade (in post-processing, I only shoot raw) because it warms up the colours.
02-27-2015, 11:02 AM   #7
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Don't be afraid of the 'K' settings in your white balance options. Sunsets are warm, and you want them a touch warmer to get the colors to pop, so set that to around K5500 or so then adjust up or down to taste. Don't be afraid of bracketing either (its not just for HDRing). Go +/-1EV and set for 5 or 7 brackets.

With the K-3, don't be afraid to try the multi-auto WB setting as well. I haven't thought to use it for a sunset/sunrise yet, but it does an amazing job with night shooting.

I shoot RAW, so my process is a bit different, but I'd also maybe go in and set the color options to 'landscape' then go in and manually punch the contrast and saturation up, maybe even all the way.

Your best bet is really to just practice until you find what works for you.

02-27-2015, 11:10 AM   #8
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OK I'm going to take a completely different tack... leave your white balance on daylight, set your saturation and contrast up a bit, but don't overdo it, especially the contrast... adjust your exposure with the EV button to get the effect you want. Sunsets and sunrises can go from -3 EV to plus 2EV to get a desirable exposure, and turning the camera 10 degrees can have you changing from +2 to minus 3, every time you move the tripod, chimp, look at your histogram, and make sure you have the exposure set for the colours you want. If you don't want to use a tripod, bracket 1 EV stops from -2 to plus 2 and select the best image (5 step bracket).
02-27-2015, 11:23 AM   #9
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QuoteOriginally posted by audiobomber Quote
You would be much better off though to shoot raw, and make adjustments later.

+100

Sunrise scenes have huge range in the dark and bright exposure values that it will be very hard to get it right in camera. With your K-3, you will have a lot of ability to recover the dark regions in the picture, if you shoot in RAW.
If you are dead set in staying with JPEG, they have reverse graduated ND filters that work pretty well...of course it requires a filter and filter holder system.
02-27-2015, 11:46 AM   #10
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Since he's shooting jpeg, I wonder if you could get HDR to do something special...
02-27-2015, 11:49 AM   #11
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QuoteOriginally posted by cali92rs Quote
+100

Sunrise scenes have huge range in the dark and bright exposure values that it will be very hard to get it right in camera. With your K-3, you will have a lot of ability to recover the dark regions in the picture, if you shoot in RAW.
If you are dead set in staying with JPEG, they have reverse graduated ND filters that work pretty well...of course it requires a filter and filter holder system.
For some reason, I decided to try the in camera RAW processing,.....and, Wow, I found it straight forward and simple to adjust AWB, shadows etc, all AFTER taking the picture along with a JPEG. Haven't had a chance to try it on a sunrise yet, obviously, but I'm betting I get exactly what I want. Now, I find myself curious about the in camera RAW and wondering if there is a helpful post of You Tube on this subject. What a camera!!!

Jack
02-27-2015, 04:27 PM   #12
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A different take. I love to use my FA Limited lenses a sunrise. FA31mm and especially FA77mm. I got great shots last year with these.

My 5 cents....
02-27-2015, 08:52 PM - 2 Likes   #13
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This is where the consumer bodies, like K-30 or K-50 have an advantage. You can shoot in scene mode and pick sunset, get a perfect JPG.

Without the scene modes, you really are better off in RAW, using DarkTable or LightRoom as a post processor. Pull the blacks down, saturation and clarity up, that should help make the colors pop. I usually also mess around with the luminance sliders to get the light/dark balance how I want.

Compare the straight out of camera image:


and after a bit of PP:

Last edited by Kozlok; 02-27-2015 at 09:10 PM.
02-27-2015, 09:47 PM   #14
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I just shoot in manual and adjust aperture and shutter so I'm -1 1/2 to -3 stops under what the camera is suggesting. I also set the ISO fixed at 5000 or 5500. Then a quick look at the result lets me home in quickly on exposure. I then shoot plus or minus a half stop to what looks good on the display to cover the bases.
02-28-2015, 01:45 PM   #15
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QuoteOriginally posted by Kozlok Quote
This is where the consumer bodies, like K-30 or K-50 have an advantage. You can shoot in scene mode and pick sunset, get a perfect JPG.

Without the scene modes, you really are better off in RAW, using DarkTable or LightRoom as a post processor. Pull the blacks down, saturation and clarity up, that should help make the colors pop. I usually also mess around with the luminance sliders to get the light/dark balance how I want.

Compare the straight out of camera image:


and after a bit of PP:
I didn't have a lot of color this morning, but there was enough to take a few shots. I shot in RAW + JPEG with CTE white balance. Turned out pretty darn good. Then I processed a couple or RAWs in camera and got slightly better results. I think the secret, even for a JPEG shooter like me, is to shoot in RAW also and improve with just a click or two in camera.

Thanks to all for their suggestions!

Jack

Last edited by Setter Dog; 02-28-2015 at 01:46 PM. Reason: spelling
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