Metering Off White Uniforms

vt1122

Curious what others use for exposure compensation when shooting teams with white uniforms.

1) +1 EV



2) +1 EV



3) -2/6 EV



4) -2/6 EV



Green is so much easier

5) 0 EV



6) 0 EV



7) 0 EV



Critiques and Comments Always Appreciated

johng

White uniforms are a perfect example of why they invented manual exposure. Assuming you don't have sun going in and out of clouds, I always use manual so the faces look right regardless of what color uniform is being worn. For your posted photos, 1 & 2 are a bit bright though some quick PP would bring them around and the rest look like you figured out the lighting pretty well.

Art Scott

In an open field like this I would have poped out my handy dandy Sekonic incident meter took a reading and keep going until lighting changed and then did it again....it usually keeps me with in 1/4 - 1/2 stop of correct..... hasn't failed me yet...................

vt1122

Thanks John and Art for your replies. I am useing a D80 set on center waited metering. If i set the Ev to give me just right of center on the histogram I get the big spike on the right for blown highlites and if I set it to get rid of the spike the rest of the image is under exposed. The shots posted are the best of the bunch. I guess I should have posted some of the worst. How is a light meter going to help or is the range just to much for the camera? The game the first 2 shots are from the sun was in and out of the clouds every couple of minutes.

jww

Your camera has a reflected light meter and you are using center weighted metering. So to translate a bit.. whatever is in the center of your shot, your camera is using that reflected information and weighting that as the information for your shot.

Art is using an incident light meter, Art is looking at the light that is falling on everything so to speak rather than what is being reflected off of a subject as all subjects reflect light differently.

Here is a handy link to learn a bit more about the subject.

http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tutorials/camera-metering.htm

..however if you are going to shoot sports of any type, your best friend would be to shoot manual and learn to react on the fly to the conditions. For example, you could use your center weighted metering, but pick something more neutral like the grass or green jerseys (if not at a bad angle to the sun, especially like wet grass in the morning). Then use that for a starting point for your manual settings. Take some test shots, study your histogram and keep tweaking!

I for one since you said you use Nikon is to use the matrix metering and check the metering on a more balanced scene. i.e. Not off a white jersey glowing in the sun.

Hope this helps!

Nice shots by the way! ..and good luck!

vt1122

Thanks JWW,

This does help, I will try experimenting a little more at the next shoot. Guess it's time to stop letting the camera do all the work. I was using the exposure comp as a step between full auto and manual.

winger

Art Scott wrote:

In an open field like this I would have poped out my handy dandy Sekonic incident meter took a reading and keep going until lighting changed and then did it again....it usually keeps me with in 1/4 - 1/2 stop of correct..... hasn't failed me yet...................

Using a light meter how old skool!!!
I have had a light meter for a bit now and I am just learning how to use it, I friggen love the thing. For sports I dont think it matters as much in terms of appearance of professionalizm, but I think at weddings being able to walk around meter a room and not having to take multiple test shots ups my creditablity. (plus I dont have people posing for fake shots). I still check my histogram, but it takes alot of the guess work out.