

However, while keeping your camera in one of the automatic modes, you can skew the exposure up or down by telling the camera to either over- or underexpose the image. There are imaging techniques and methods that you may be using that require what would otherwise be an incorrect exposure, but the final image you previsualized needs this exposure. Based on experience, using the Sunny 16 Rule or a handheld meter, you can figure out and decide for yourself what settings to use.

Manually adjusting the exposure controls is a time-proven method that has existed since photography was invented and developed some 200 years ago. No matter how advanced and well-designed a photographic metering system may be, there are situations and conditions that demand that you, the photographer, take control.

There are times, though, that the capabilities of modern exposure automation are strained to their limits. Photo by Sunyu Kim from Pexels Why Use Exposure Compensation? Whatever name it goes by – matrix metering, smart metering, evaluative metering – it is based on preset computer programs that examine a scene for the common metering issues that would normally be poorly exposed. Frankly, I can’t imagine my current photography without this feature being available.Įvaluative metering has increased the accuracy of regular exposure automation. For serious photography of many types, this has been of tremendous value. In low-light levels, using autofocus may even sometimes be more accurate than you could achieve by eyeballing the viewfinder.Īutomatic flash exposure control was revolutionized in the 1970s and 80s, with many camera systems adopting off the film (OTF) plane through-the-lens (TTL) flash metering. Other techniques help you use that automation properly. It depends on the situation.įor instance, many times, using the very swift and accurate autofocus of modern cameras is a boon for wildlife and sports photographers.
ACDSEE PHOTO STUDIO DARKEN TURNS GREEN PROFESSIONAL
A primary reason is because I don’t want the settings to change as a pan around to take all the images for stitching together.Īs a professional photographer, I can tell you that there are good reasons to take advantage of the automatic modes of your cameras and other photographic equipment. In that situation, you bet I am using manual. I meter meticulously, average out readings, use tables for exposure and hyperfocal distances, relate it all to my experience in similar conditions, and bracket several shots. Sure, many times I do have to take complete control of every setting on my camera for a particular image or process, such as when making HDR spherical panoramas for virtual tours.
ACDSEE PHOTO STUDIO DARKEN TURNS GREEN FULL
One of the options is exposure compensation.Īs for the thought that you can’t be a real photographer without using your camera on full manual, it isn’t completely true. If the image is too dark or too light, you have options to take care of that. Unless you’re in a fast moving once-in-a-lifetime situation, you can always review your images in order to make sure they look okay. Besides exposure automation, this can also apply to focusing and to electronic flash.

Especially in this digital age of photography, no beginning photographer needs to be too anxious about taking some control from the automatic modes of your camera.
