Contrast - HOW DO I GET MORE

dugmar

I know it depends on subject, lighting, time of day, etc...

But I have one basic question, how do I get more contrast in my shots? Is it something I can acheive in the settings, or with different equipment? Please, any pointers would be great.

Thanks,

Doug

cletus

Doug,

I can't recall which camera you're using, but it probably has a contrast setting that you can adjust. Check out your owner's manual and see if you can find anything. This would be the best way to get more contrast in your shots.

Adding contrast after taking the shot can be done in Photoshop or any other image editing program. Photoshop has a bunch of tools that can be used to add contrast. Probably the most commonly used is the Curves Adjustment Layer. Levels and Brightness/Contrast adjustments can also be used.

Hope this helps!

dugmar

cletus wrote:

Doug,

I can't recall which camera you're using, but it probably has a contrast setting that you can adjust. Check out your owner's manual and see if you can find anything. This would be the best way to get more contrast in your shots.

Adding contrast after taking the shot can be done in Photoshop or any other image editing program. Photoshop has a bunch of tools that can be used to add contrast. Probably the most commonly used is the Curves Adjustment Layer. Levels and Brightness/Contrast adjustments can also be used.

Hope this helps!

I shoot with a digital rebel.

Doug

cletus

dugmar wrote:

I shoot with a digital rebel.

Doug

Well it should definitely have a contrast adjustment. I've never used a dRebel so I can't help on figuring out how to make the adjustment happen.

Shay Stephens

dugmar wrote:

I know it depends on subject, lighting, time of day, etc...

But I have one basic question, how do I get more contrast in my shots? Is it something I can acheive in the settings, or with different equipment? Please, any pointers would be great.

Thanks,

Doug

1) Shoot using hard light like the sun provides on a clear day.
2) If you want to do it in camera then create a custom parameter that has boosted contrast of +2. The default is for the 300D to use parameter 1 which already has a +1 boost to contrast.
3) A third option, probably more preferable than doing it in camera is to adjust the contrast in your photo editor, ideally from raw, but you can do it with jpg too.

dugmar

Shay Stephens wrote:

1) Shoot using hard light like the sun provides on a clear day.
2) If you want to do it in camera then create a custom parameter that has boosted contrast of +2. The default is for the 300D to use parameter 1 which already has a +1 boost to contrast.
3) A third option, probably more preferable than doing it in camera is to adjust the contrast in your photo editor, ideally from raw, but you can do it with jpg too.

Awesome, thanks everyone.

Doug