Exposure and Lighting For Digital Photographers Only

Exposure and Lighting For Digital Photographers Only

Released November 2006
Publisher(s): Wiley
ISBN: 9780470038697

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Book description

Even with digital cameras and automatic exposure, lighting and exposure remain the most difficult element to master in the quest for quality photography. This book, written by a professional photographer for photographers, provides real-world advice to help you achieve true creative control over lighting and exposure. Discover how to take your digital photos to the next level with the scores of lighting diagrams, techniques, and stunning full-color photographs. Order your copy today!

Table of contents

  1. Copyright
  2. about the authors
  3. credits
  4. preface
  5. acknowledgments
  6. I. PAINTING WITH LIGHT
    1. 1. THE NATURE OF LIGHT
      1. 1.1. Recording Reflected Light
      2. 1.2. Exercising Creative License
        1. 1.2.1. Being Selective
        2. 1.2.2. Manipulating Light
      3. 1.3. Examining the Character of Light and Shadow
        1. 1.3.1. Hard Light and Shadows
        2. 1.3.2. Soft Light and Shadows
      4. 1.4. Defining Shape with Light
      5. 1.5. Q&A
    2. 2. THE COLOR OF LIGHT
      1. 2.1. Understanding Color Perception
      2. 2.2. Color Temperature
      3. 2.3. How We Perceive Light
      4. 2.4. How the Camera Sees Light
      5. 2.5. Color Temperature and White Balance
        1. 2.5.1. Selecting a Preset White Balance
        2. 2.5.2. Automatic White Balance
        3. 2.5.3. Manual White Balance
      6. 2.6. Q&A
  7. II. WHAT'S YOUR EXPOSURE
    1. 3. BALANCING THE ELEMENTS OF EXPOSURE
      1. 3.1. What Is an Exposure?
      2. 3.2. Over and Under Exposure
        1. 3.2.1. Recognizing Under Exposure
        2. 3.2.2. Recognizing Over Exposure
      3. 3.3. What's the Correct Exposure
      4. 3.4. Reading a Histogram
      5. 3.5. Aperture, Time, and Sensitivity
      6. 3.6. Equivalent Exposures
      7. 3.7. One Best Exposure
      8. 3.8. Bracketing for Exposure Insurance
      9. 3.9. Q&A
    2. 4. MEASURING YOUR EXPOSURE
      1. 4.1. Measuring the Light
      2. 4.2. Reflected versus Incident Meters
        1. 4.2.1. Incident Light Meters
        2. 4.2.2. Reflected Light Meters
      3. 4.3. The Myth of Average Reflectance
      4. 4.4. Using a Gray Card
      5. 4.5. Using Separate Light Meters
        1. 4.5.1. Reflective Light Meter
        2. 4.5.2. Spot Meter
        3. 4.5.3. Incident Light Meter
        4. 4.5.4. Flash meter
      6. 4.6. Using an In-Camera Meter
        1. 4.6.1. Average Metering
        2. 4.6.2. Spot Metering
        3. 4.6.3. Matrix Metering
        4. 4.6.4. Selecting the Metering Mode
        5. 4.6.5. Lock/Hold Exposure
        6. 4.6.6. Exposure Compensation
      7. 4.7. Metering Special Situations
        1. 4.7.1. Back Light
        2. 4.7.2. High Key or Highly Reflective Subject
        3. 4.7.3. Low Key Subject
        4. 4.7.4. Bright Light in the Frame
      8. 4.8. Exposure Rules of Thumb
      9. 4.9. Q&A
    3. 5. MAKING CREATIVE EXPOSURE CHOICES
      1. 5.1. Selecting the Best Exposure
        1. 5.1.1. Let the Camera Do the Work
        2. 5.1.2. Controlling an Automatic Exposure
      2. 5.2. Deliberate Exposure Deviation
      3. 5.3. Getting into the Zone System
        1. 5.3.1. Reducing a Wide Tonal Range to Zones
        2. 5.3.2. Using the Zone System Manually
        3. 5.3.3. Adjusting the Exposure with a Sliding Zone Scale
        4. 5.3.4. Using a Quick Auto Zone V Exposure
      4. 5.4. Creating Exposure Effects
      5. 5.5. Q&A
    4. 6. CONTROLLING MOTION WITH SHUTTER SPEED
      1. 6.1. Understanding Shutter Speed's Effect on Exposure
      2. 6.2. Shutter Speed and Subject Motion
        1. 6.2.1. Stopping Action
        2. 6.2.2. Implying Motion
      3. 6.3. Shutter Speed and Camera Motion
        1. 6.3.1. Stopping Camera Shake
        2. 6.3.2. Panning with the Motion
      4. 6.4. Special Considerations for Long Exposures
      5. 6.5. Q&A
    5. 7. TAKING CONTROL OF APERTURE SELECTION
      1. 7.1. Understanding Aperture's Effect on Exposure
      2. 7.2. Balancing Exposure and Depth of Field
      3. 7.3. Keeping Everything Sharp
      4. 7.4. Adjust the Hyperfocal Distance
        1. 7.4.1. Using Manual Focus Lenses
        2. 7.4.2. Using Auto-Focus Lenses
      5. 7.5. Selective Focus
      6. 7.6. Apertures and Image Quality
      7. 7.7. Using Aperture-Priority Exposure
      8. 7.8. Q&A
    6. 8. DEALING WITH DIGITAL FILM
      1. 8.1. Image Preview & Analysis
      2. 8.2. ISO Settings and Digital Noise
      3. 8.3. Time for Time Exposures
      4. 8.4. In-Camera Image Processing
      5. 8.5. File Formats
        1. 8.5.1. Camera Raw
        2. 8.5.2. TIFF
        3. 8.5.3. JPEG
      6. 8.6. Q&A
  8. III. PUT A LITTLE LIGHT ON THE SUBJECT
    1. 9. LIGHTING TOOLS AND APPROACHES
      1. 9.1. Lighting Tools
        1. 9.1.1. Continuous-Light Systems
          1. 9.1.1.1. Hot lights
          2. 9.1.1.2. Cool lights
          3. 9.1.1.3. HMI lights
        2. 9.1.2. Flash and Strobe Light Systems
          1. 9.1.2.1. Portable flash
          2. 9.1.2.2. What are flash guide numbers?
          3. 9.1.2.3. AC-Powered flash
          4. 9.1.2.4. Power pack and head systems
          5. 9.1.2.5. Monolights
        3. 9.1.3. Tools for Modifying and Manipulating the Light
          1. 9.1.3.1. Reflectors and diffusers
          2. 9.1.3.2. Other light modifiers
      2. 9.2. Controlling Light Intensities
        1. 9.2.1. Brightness versus Distance
        2. 9.2.2. Inverse Square Law
        3. 9.2.3. Light Ratios
      3. 9.3. Q&A
    2. 10. MAKING LIGHT AVAILABLE ON LOCATION
      1. 10.1. Adapting to Existing Light
      2. 10.2. Working with Daylight
        1. 10.2.1. Times of Day
        2. 10.2.2. Atmospheric Conditions
      3. 10.3. Working with Available Light Indoors
        1. 10.3.1. Window Light
        2. 10.3.2. Home and Office Lighting
        3. 10.3.3. Gym and Stadium Lighting
        4. 10.3.4. Churches and Other Locations
      4. 10.4. Augmenting Available Light
        1. 10.4.1. Softening the Sun with Shades and Diffusers
        2. 10.4.2. Filling Shadows with Reflectors
      5. 10.5. Lighting with On-Camera Flash
        1. 10.5.1. Direct Flash
        2. 10.5.2. Bounce Flash
        3. 10.5.3. Using Flash Fill
      6. 10.6. Using Portable Studio Lights
      7. 10.7. Q&A
  9. IV. LIGHTING AND EXPOSURE FOR SPECIFIC SUBJECTS
    1. 11. MAKING PICTURES OF PEOPLE
      1. 11.1. The Goals of Portraiture
      2. 11.2. Natural-Light Portraits
      3. 11.3. Artificial-Light Portraits
        1. 11.3.1. Broad Lighting
        2. 11.3.2. Short Lighting
        3. 11.3.3. Split Lighting
        4. 11.3.4. Rembrandt Lighting
        5. 11.3.5. Loop Lighting
        6. 11.3.6. Butterfly Lighting
        7. 11.3.7. Other Portrait Lighting Schemes
      4. 11.4. Tips for Other People Pictures
      5. 11.5. Q&A
    2. 12. GETTING INTO THE ACTION
      1. 12.1. Shooting Things That Move
      2. 12.2. Exposure Considerations
      3. 12.3. Shooting Sports
        1. 12.3.1. Stopping the Action
        2. 12.3.2. Accentuating the Action
      4. 12.4. Shooting Kids, Pets, and People in Motion
      5. 12.5. Q&A
    3. 13. PHOTOGRAPHING NATURE
      1. 13.1. Selecting the Light and Exposure for a Landscape
        1. 13.1.1. Setting the Exposure for Landscapes
        2. 13.1.2. Photographing Moving Water
      2. 13.2. Capturing Wildlife
      3. 13.3. Shooting Beach and Snow Scenes
      4. 13.4. Capturing the Sky and Clouds
      5. 13.5. Capturing Rain, Fog, and Atmospheric Effects
      6. 13.6. Lighting Flowers and Nature Close-Ups
      7. 13.7. Q&A
    4. 14. TAKING PICTURES OF OBJECTS
      1. 14.1. Lighting Still Lifes and Small Products
      2. 14.2. Lighting Food
      3. 14.3. Lighting Silver and Reflective Products
      4. 14.4. Lighting Glass and Transparent Subjects
      5. 14.5. Lighting Larger Objects
      6. 14.6. Lighting Room Sets
      7. 14.7. Lighting Artwork and Flat Objects
      8. 14.8. Q&A
    5. 15. APPROACHING ARCHITECTURAL SUBJECTS
      1. 15.1. Photographing Architectural Exteriors
        1. 15.1.1. Pick the Time of Day
        2. 15.1.2. Get a Good Sky
        3. 15.1.3. Get a Good Exposure
        4. 15.1.4. Unusual Lighting
      2. 15.2. Photographing Architectural Interiors
        1. 15.2.1. Working with Available Light
        2. 15.2.2. Dealing with Mixed Light Sources
        3. 15.2.3. Supplementing Available Light
      3. 15.3. Shooting Office Interiors
      4. 15.4. Shooting Residential Interiors
      5. 15.5. Shooting Industrial Locations
      6. 15.6. Q&A
    6. A. CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS
      1. A.1. Dan Dry
      2. A.2. Tony Guffy
      3. A.3. Dean Lavenson
      4. A.4. Charlotte K. Lowrie
      5. A.5. Randy J. McCaffery
      6. A.6. Alicia McGinnis
      7. A.7. Bryan Moberly
      8. A.8. Fred D. Reaves
      9. A.9. Ramon Rodriguez
      10. A.10. Rob Sheppard
      11. A.11. Also
    7. PRO GLOSSARY

Product information

  • Title: Exposure and Lighting For Digital Photographers Only
  • Author(s):
  • Release date: November 2006
  • Publisher(s): Wiley
  • ISBN: 9780470038697