Monday, September 17, 2007

Autumn Chill

Autumn has finally arrived and the morning chill is beginning to creep into the bones. Summer was just here a couple weeks ago - how fast it changes!


red sumac leaves in the autumn



I have been doing some experimenting with back lighting lately. For macro shots it is easier to control the exposure without a lot of blown out areas.

I am still experimenting with non-macro images, and I tend to have a hard time calculating the correct exposure. Bracketing once again gives me a choice, and I find myself favoring the darker images as there is more detail in the under exposed areas.

The only worry is the digital noise that tends to creep into the darker images. This was a big concern with my point and shoot camera, and the worry has carried over into my DSLR shooting.

From reading several sources, the advice given is to "shoot to the right", which means to have the picture a bit more over exposed than underexposed.

I will continue to experiment with the back lighting as it can give some dramatic effects when it all works together. Perhaps that's the secret, look at what's there instead of trying to make something there.






23 comments:

  1. This photo is a gorgeous representation of Autumn (my favorite season!). I just love it!!! Cindy at Rosehaven Cottage

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  2. This is a gorgeous backlit shot! Bracketing is good if you have time to change settings before you have to shoot! I never seem to have that window, as I'm usually with someone who wants to move on, or the lighting or composition are changing too fast... :-)

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  3. Thanks Cindy!!

    I hear you Lynda on people waiting while we take photos. I can still hear the "are you ready yet" lingering in my ears!

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  4. I'd say this photo is a success, KML. I think there will be all kinds of photos of red and golden leaves soon; you've set a high standard.

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  5. I love your pic, reminds me of hallowen(sp) I have a new computer and hatn goot a spelll chek on itt yeet.

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  6. Such a nice photo.. I love tone of the photo.

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  7. Good luck finding that spell checker in Vista, Bob!

    Thanks digitalshuttermania!

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  8. Kathy, real beauty. I love fall colors. We were driving home this evening, and I can see the suddle brown shades coming out, soon soon we will have the nice colors, hoping for Indian summer, meaning nice warm fall. Anna :)

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  9. Lovely shot. Those autumn colors are really nice.

    I finally put you in my RSS reader :)

    About noise. I often underexpose my pictures because I like the look. Especially in macro shots of flower, but then I get the problem with noise too.
    I have installed a plugin in photoshop called Noiseware Professional. It works great against noise so I recommend it if you haven't tried it :)

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  10. I love this photo. Have you tried shooting Raw? I find it can help with minor exposure mess ups. I tend to underexpose a bit but because I find it is easier to manage that then blown out areas.

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  11. Thanks for the visit, starbuck

    anna, the browns are only showing on our ash trees right now. they are the first to lose their leaves in our area.

    thanks thomas! I use Noise Ninja for the noise issues, but as with all noise programs, it tends to dull the details. It's always a trade-off!

    digital flower pictures, I have tried RAW, but usually stick with JPG. the more I keep reading about RAW though, I may give it another whirl. I prefer the underexposed images too - at least there is something to work with in them.

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  12. kml, the only thing about RAW is you need a lot of computer power depending on how big the images are.

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  13. Autumn is always a nice time for photography as the changing of the season, creates the beautiful changing colors and that is a nice shot of the falling leaves.
    Fruity

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  14. I have to agree with Thomas, I usually underexpose everything a little, I like the darker and more saturated the colors look when I do it. Great shot.

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  15. Wonderful colours, I'm looking forward to getting the camera out on some sunny Autumn days!

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  16. You did a great job capturing this fall foliage using the back lighting technique. Thanks also for the tip about shooting to the right. That's helpful. I also love shooting autumn leaves, including using back lighting to show the veins of the leaves.
    God bless you,
    Josiah Friberg
    http://fineartinspirationalphotography.blogspot.com

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  17. Thanks for stopping by Chris and Josiah - it's always great to see new visitors!

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  18. I agree Bernie - I tend to shoot darker too.

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  19. OH, I love those rich colours!!! You take fabulous photos!!

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  20. Hello Kim...I would like to feature your blog and a few of your photos in my November newsletter.
    Please let me know if you are in agreement with my thought.

    I have a link on my blog to my newsletter if you would like to get an idea of what it is all about.

    ~D~

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Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment - it is appreciated! I will do my best to return it with a visit to your blog. Take care, and enjoy!

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