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Blown out and or shinny faces?

sunnyabcsunnyabc Registered Users Posts: 14 Big grins
edited August 10, 2010 in Finishing School
I am trying to stay within Lightroom to do my edits as I am far from proficient in PS so I am HOPING to find a fix for these two reoccurring problems. I have tried skin soften and cloning neither of which really seem to be the right tools (or maybe is the way I am using them). Any help would be very much appreciated!

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    pathfinderpathfinder Super Moderators Posts: 14,699 moderator
    edited August 10, 2010
    bump
    Pathfinder - www.pathfinder.smugmug.com

    Moderator of the Technique Forum and Finishing School on Dgrin
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    jjbongjjbong Registered Users Posts: 244 Major grins
    edited August 10, 2010
    sunnyabc wrote: »
    I am trying to stay within Lightroom to do my edits as I am far from proficient in PS so I am HOPING to find a fix for these two reoccurring problems. I have tried skin soften and cloning neither of which really seem to be the right tools (or maybe is the way I am using them). Any help would be very much appreciated!

    I know some techniques in PhotoShop, but I don't know Lightroom.

    However, if these are recurring problems, it seems that the problem to fix is exposure. I don't know how you shoot or with what camera, so it's hard to be terribly specific.

    In the past, I found myself correcting exposure problems a lot, so I focused (so to speak) upstream, on that issue. I've been using the Zone system with very good results. You need a camera that can do spot metering to do that.

    But in any event, just try backing off on the shutter speed. You can bracket it with multiple shutter speeds, starting at whatever you're using now, and going 3 or maybe even 4 stops back to see what you get.
    John Bongiovanni
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    sunnyabcsunnyabc Registered Users Posts: 14 Big grins
    edited August 10, 2010
    pathfinder wrote: »
    bump

    I'm pretty sure that I am supposed to know what this means.
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    sunnyabcsunnyabc Registered Users Posts: 14 Big grins
    edited August 10, 2010
    jjbong wrote: »
    I know some techniques in PhotoShop, but I don't know Lightroom.

    However, if these are recurring problems, it seems that the problem to fix is exposure. I don't know how you shoot or with what camera, so it's hard to be terribly specific.

    In the past, I found myself correcting exposure problems a lot, so I focused (so to speak) upstream, on that issue. I've been using the Zone system with very good results. You need a camera that can do spot metering to do that.

    But in any event, just try backing off on the shutter speed. You can bracket it with multiple shutter speeds, starting at whatever you're using now, and going 3 or maybe even 4 stops back to see what you get.



    Thanks so much for your response... I can definitely see I should have been in spot metering (I was in zone but it was direct sun on faces) At least I shot RAW so I can try to adjust in LR. Thanks again!
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    jjbongjjbong Registered Users Posts: 244 Major grins
    edited August 10, 2010
    sunnyabc wrote: »
    Thanks so much for your response... I can definitely see I should have been in spot metering (I was in zone but it was direct sun on faces) At least I shot RAW so I can try to adjust in LR. Thanks again!

    I may have confused you with the terminology. Sorry.

    I didn't mean Zone mode on the metering (whatever that might mean on your camera). I was referring to the Zone system of exposure:

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zone_System

    The short answer is that you set spot metering on your camera, and meter to bring the spots on the faces to be +2,
    or the high end of the camera's range. It's a little tricky to get that without blowing it out, so you adjust the settings (shutter speed, I'm assuming) so that you see it go just below +2, and then adjust lower one setting.
    John Bongiovanni
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