Has this ever happened to you?

**Lowell Goudge** · 05-30-2008, 08:40 AM

I got the shock of my life last evening, while taking twilight shots on Karluv Most in Prague.

I was approached by a canon owner who must have been looking over my shoulder when the images flashed on my screen every time I shot. He asked how come my images were so good, his were all flat and under exposed.

My initial response was because I have a pentax

.

Then I explained how I metered, and that the camera generally would get fooled with the bright sky and dark ground.

Maybe I am suffereing too much from the pentax inferiority complex.

jani · 05-30-2008, 08:45 AM

thats cool

so how did u meter? share the secret lol

**Lowell Goudge** · 05-30-2008, 09:08 AM

Originally posted by jani

thats cool

so how did u meter? share the secret lol

WHat I did was use the light grey paving stones as a grey card, metered off the stones, and just walked around & shot as I wanted.

For the statutes on the bridge, I used spot meter off the statute, to insure I got detail, generally the sky was blown out, but I didn't care.

This approach also worked well when shooting up and down river where a lot of glare and reflections would otherwise screw up things.

jani · 05-30-2008, 09:23 AM

thats clever! are you going to post pix too?

**Lowell Goudge** · 05-30-2008, 10:13 AM

Originally posted by jani

thats clever! are you going to post pix too?

When I get home,

vizjerei · 05-30-2008, 10:25 AM

Originally posted by Lowell Goudge

I got the shock of my life last evening, while taking twilight shots on Karluv Most in Prague.

I was approached by a canon owner who must have been looking over my shoulder when the images flashed on my screen every time I shot. He asked how come my images were so good, his were all flat and under exposed.

My initial response was because I have a pentax

.

Hahaha That's a good one~ I found a lot of ppl just think it is the brand or the camera model that will take good picture for them automatically, i have seen people keep saying they need to switch to other camera when they see other people using other camera take great picture, but not understand it is the skill of the photographer...

JCSullivan · 05-30-2008, 10:35 AM

Quote:

My initial response was because I have a pentax

Very funny - hope you enjoy your stay in Prague. From what I've seen and heard about the place it is marvelous.

jani · 05-30-2008, 10:44 AM

Originally posted by vizjerei

Hahaha That's a good one~ I found a lot of ppl just think it is the brand or the camera model that will take good picture for them automatically, i have seen people keep saying they need to switch to other camera when they see other people using other camera take great picture, but not understand it is the skill of the photographer...

yeah, that's so true.
some people just keep on jumping from brand to brand
instead of working on the techiques

dantuyhoa · 05-30-2008, 11:00 AM

Lowell

More than once !

One day I shot a water fountain with a low angle and turn around seeing 3 people waiting to shoot from the exact spot ! More than often people want to see my shots and during the talk I discovered that they didn't even bother to "play" with the camera. They just shoot like a machine gun and hope one of those images is good .

I'm no expert but using the palm of my hand and bump it up to 1 or 2 stops works well for me .

wlachan · 05-30-2008, 11:24 AM

I don't know which Pentax or Canon models were involved but I have found the LCD playback of my DS is much better than the 40D. While the actual shots are equally good, the 40D LCD playback just look blurry and a little flat. It is not usually a practical concern except I have no way to tell whether the subject was in focus on the spot.

tybeck · 05-30-2008, 11:42 AM

I've had several friends comment about my pictures when I was just shooting with my little Cannon Powershot. I used the same kind of technique you use, meter and then recompose. Sometimes I'd use exposure compensation if I counldn't find some thing equivalent to 18% grey. They only way I've been able to get detail in a darker area against a bright sky is with HDR methods. Either multiple exposures and mixed in software or shooting and an exposure in between the two ideal ones and using a relight function in PP.

05-30-2008, 08:40 AM	#1
Lowell Goudge Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Toronto Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,891	Has this ever happened to you? I got the shock of my life last evening, while taking twilight shots on Karluv Most in Prague. I was approached by a canon owner who must have been looking over my shoulder when the images flashed on my screen every time I shot. He asked how come my images were so good, his were all flat and under exposed. My initial response was because I have a pentax. Then I explained how I metered, and that the camera generally would get fooled with the bright sky and dark ground. Maybe I am suffereing too much from the pentax inferiority complex.

05-30-2008, 10:25 AM	#6
vizjerei Veteran Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: Toronto Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,418	Originally posted by Lowell Goudge I got the shock of my life last evening, while taking twilight shots on Karluv Most in Prague. I was approached by a canon owner who must have been looking over my shoulder when the images flashed on my screen every time I shot. He asked how come my images were so good, his were all flat and under exposed. My initial response was because I have a pentax. Hahaha That's a good one~ I found a lot of ppl just think it is the brand or the camera model that will take good picture for them automatically, i have seen people keep saying they need to switch to other camera when they see other people using other camera take great picture, but not understand it is the skill of the photographer...

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05-30-2008, 08:45 AM	#2
jani Forum Member Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 63	thats cool so how did u meter? share the secret lol

05-30-2008, 09:08 AM	#3
Lowell Goudge Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Toronto Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,891 Original Poster	Originally posted by jani thats cool so how did u meter? share the secret lol WHat I did was use the light grey paving stones as a grey card, metered off the stones, and just walked around & shot as I wanted. For the statutes on the bridge, I used spot meter off the statute, to insure I got detail, generally the sky was blown out, but I didn't care. This approach also worked well when shooting up and down river where a lot of glare and reflections would otherwise screw up things.

05-30-2008, 09:23 AM	#4
jani Forum Member Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 63	thats clever! are you going to post pix too?

05-30-2008, 10:13 AM	#5
Lowell Goudge Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Toronto Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,891 Original Poster	Originally posted by jani thats clever! are you going to post pix too? When I get home,

05-30-2008, 10:35 AM	#7
JCSullivan Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Windsor, Canada Posts: 3,056	Quote: My initial response was because I have a pentax Very funny - hope you enjoy your stay in Prague. From what I've seen and heard about the place it is marvelous.

05-30-2008, 10:44 AM	#8
jani Forum Member Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 63	Originally posted by vizjerei Hahaha That's a good one~ I found a lot of ppl just think it is the brand or the camera model that will take good picture for them automatically, i have seen people keep saying they need to switch to other camera when they see other people using other camera take great picture, but not understand it is the skill of the photographer... yeah, that's so true. some people just keep on jumping from brand to brand instead of working on the techiques

05-30-2008, 11:00 AM	#9
dantuyhoa Veteran Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: California Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,245	Lowell More than once ! One day I shot a water fountain with a low angle and turn around seeing 3 people waiting to shoot from the exact spot ! More than often people want to see my shots and during the talk I discovered that they didn't even bother to "play" with the camera. They just shoot like a machine gun and hope one of those images is good . I'm no expert but using the palm of my hand and bump it up to 1 or 2 stops works well for me .

05-30-2008, 11:24 AM	#10
wlachan Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Canada Photos: Albums Posts: 2,625	I don't know which Pentax or Canon models were involved but I have found the LCD playback of my DS is much better than the 40D. While the actual shots are equally good, the 40D LCD playback just look blurry and a little flat. It is not usually a practical concern except I have no way to tell whether the subject was in focus on the spot.

05-30-2008, 11:42 AM	#11
tybeck Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: San Francisco, CA Posts: 452	I've had several friends comment about my pictures when I was just shooting with my little Cannon Powershot. I used the same kind of technique you use, meter and then recompose. Sometimes I'd use exposure compensation if I counldn't find some thing equivalent to 18% grey. They only way I've been able to get detail in a darker area against a bright sky is with HDR methods. Either multiple exposures and mixed in software or shooting and an exposure in between the two ideal ones and using a relight function in PP.