Need help with outdoor exposure PLZ!

This is straight out of the camera. The sky was a beautiful red and I didn't capture it at all. Please help me with 20D camera settings for this kind of shot.
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1/8 sec. - f9 - iso 800 - 17 mm.

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am I posting this in the wrong forum?

There is no "wrong" forum - some are better than others for a particular issue. In any case, this is probably the best forum for problems in "taking" pictures.

First, there is no EXIF data embedded in your image, so all I have is shutter speed, aperture and ISO setting. I have no info about other important settings. One way to include the EXIF data is to NEVER use Save for Web, because that specifically excises the EXIF data. I have appended my notes on saving for this forum, below.

The exposure data that you supplied adds up to a scene brightness of EV 6+. That is a very low brightness level for a daylight scene as you describe it. So, my first reaction is that the scene must be overexposed. However, there is certainly not much brightness in any part of the scene except the sky. I also note that 1/8 is extremely slow shutter speed to be using hand held. So, I hope this was on a tripod.

As to the red sky, the answer is simple. Every area of the sky in that image is blown out to a value of 255 - bone white - except for the bluish corner in the upper left. That means that your Highlight Alert or clipping display was blinking the entire sky in the playback display. In other words, the sky was extremely over-exposed. I would suggest that you look at the EXIF data for this shot and see if there was some positive Exposure Correction being applied, because the only way that it could have overexposed that much would be if you were reading the exposure from the lower area that is in deep shadow.

Metering a scene like this can be a challenge, and the Zone System is an entire graduate level course in exposure, so I won't go into that here. However, I will suggest that you undertake to learn everythng you can about the Histogram display and the Highlight Alert for your camera - see page 104 of your Users Manual.

Here are my suggestions for sizing images for posting in Critique Corner:
Size your image to not larger than 800 pixels in either direction (that's the guideline max.).
In Photoshop use Image->Image Size and enable Resampling (this will downsample your larger image to the new smaller size by throwing away some of the information, so save this smaller version under a different name from your original or you may lose your original).

Do not be confused by the dimensions in inches or the DPI value - those are irrelevant. The size of the image on a monitor depends only on the screen resolution of that monitor and the number of pixels in your image. For example, most monitors are set for screen resolution of 70 to 100 pixels per inch. That means that an 800 pixel image dimension will actually be from 8" to 11" on the monitor.

In order to stay under the 100kB limit on file size, use JPG compression quality low enough to get under 100kB by watching the file size change as you adjust the quality slider. It may be a little in error, so stay under 90 kB to be safe.

If the file size limit poses problems, you may want to host on another site and place a link to the image hosted elsewhere, but the 800 pixel maximum still applies.

A related issue is the EXIF data. In order to be sure that your EXIF data is available for the critique, do NOT use File->Save for Web. That process removes the EXIF data from the file. Following my suggestions above preserve the EXIF data in the file.

I can't thank you enough for taking the time to help me out so thoroughly! I am VERY new to photography so some of what you said went right over my head... but I will research it to get a better understanding. Unfortunately I was told to "save for web." I won't do that again. I will repost like you said so you can see my EXIF data. Hopefully, I will get that right. I did not use a tripod. I took this on a whim quickly on my way to work standing on a bridge as semi's rushed past me. I set my f-stop and i have no idea how i metered this shot . Poorly would come to mind.

Since the tracks are in my town I will make it point to pratice this again

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Personally on sunsets or a setting that has harsh shadows set your meter on partial and in manual mode take three meter readings. The bright sky, high in the sky and in the shadows. Then average the readings and set your exposure. Then bracket your shots and check your histogram. I agree with Bob on several points and also feel that this shot is at minimum 2 stops overexposed. Hope this helps.

thanks so much... I don't know what bracket my shot means or how to read a histogram. I have so much to learn

dkenney wrote:
thanks so much... I don't know what bracket my shot means or how to read a histogram. I have so much to learn

Fortunately the material on page 104 will cover the essentials on the Histogram. However, bracketing can be done two ways. Most of the Canon line provides a 3 shot exposure bracketing feature that offer something like this:
You think the shot should be at x shutter speed and y aperture. You set up the exposure bracketing for 1 f-stop bracketing. It takes 3 pictures in a row - one at your nominal x, y setting, another with 1 f- stop more than that and the last with 1 f-stop less than the nominal. Of course, you can use manual exposure and do the manual exposing at any values you want to use. The whole idea is that it's easier to get a kill with buckshot than it is with a BB gun.

The next time you are playing with the camera, take a picture and then look at it in the playback. If no part of it is blinking, then take the same shot again with an additional f-stop of exposure. Repeat that loop until you see some part of the image blinking - that is your Highlight alert. It tells you which highlights are blown out.

You rock! Thanks again for your help

You are very kind indeed. I am taking a vacation this week and hope to put this into practice.

Just came back to check this post activity. Right on Bob. I shoot a lot of +- 1 stop bracket shots, especially when there is no retake opportunities. The book explains it and it has sure saved my bacon a few times. I've often been quoted as saying, "if I could get it right every time I would most likely be on a beach drinking those funny drinks with the umbrellas".

haha. just don't shoot AFTER one of those funny umbrella drinks

i get those pics alot - been told it is better to under expose then over expose cause it is easier to brighten up a pic, then take away.

True. It's always best to preserve the highlights. However, I believe it's also desirable to have the histogram as far to the right as possible (without blowing the highlights!) to get the most information possible.

dkenney wrote:
I can't thank you enough for taking the time to help me out so thoroughly! I am VERY new to photography so some of what you said went right over my head... but I will research it to get a better understanding. Unfortunately I was told to "save for web." I won't do that again. I will repost like you said so you can see my EXIF data. Hopefully, I will get that right. I did not use a tripod. I took this on a whim quickly on my way to work standing on a bridge as semi's rushed past me. I set my f-stop and i have no idea how i metered this shot . Poorly would come to mind.

Since the tracks are in my town I will make it point to pratice this again

This later post does have the EXIF data embedded, and I did not see any indication of an exposure correction factor or offset. So it looks like the exposure was supposedly correct for whatever the lightmeter was reading.

I know I'm kind of late to this thread, but this looks to me like one of those bright sunsets that simply has too much dynamic range to capture while preserving detail in both the highlights and shadows. That said, I know of two possible solutions. A graduated ND filter does wonders for sunsets like this, bringing the sky's exposure down while maintaining detail in the landscape. Graduated colored filters can also add some punch to the sky. The other method is to bracket like crazy (as much as 3 stops in each direction) using a tripod and merge the two or three best pictures in photoshop, perhaps using the HDR tool. I tried to take pictures of a similar scene (in terms of dynamic range) in the Tetons last year before investing in sone relatively affordable Cokin filters and it was impossible to avoid blowing out the sky without massively underexposing the mountains.

Tweathererred,

I was thinking the exact same thing on the two methods you listed. What is the HDR tool and is there someplace to find more information on it?

On the ND filters, I have never used them. Would you meter on the sky, then meter on the land, and then select the filter that covers the exposure difference?