I promise this isn't a fake!

I was at Chester Zoo and spotted this crane (I think). I'd been reading Chris Gomersal's book and he'd stated that when you take a white bird you should take a spot reading off the plummage and then over expose by about 1 2/3. So that is what I did. Pity the background looks like a white studio wall.

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Well looking at the first shot of the Crane Damian, it shows quite good detail in the whites. Good focus on the bird too.
What is the ID of the second shot Damian? are they the Humboldt penguins?
Certainly have something to chat about. Nice colours on these birds, well done.

Over expose on a spot-metered white bird?

I find that very surprising, Damian - a recipe for blown highlights in my experience!



That said, no such probs with your stork - it's perfectly exposed.

Nice shots of the birds Damian. The white bg really gives a different flavor. It's always good to try different things. Learning is all about experimenting, trial & error, and digital makes it cheaper too.

Nice! I wish that second shot had been in time for the contest.. it's a great pic!

Very good shots. And I'm very surprised about overexposing the white bird. I have enough trouble with that even when the exposure comp. is all the way down! Amazing detail.

Keith R wrote in post #1999969
Over expose on a spot-metered white bird?

I find that very surprising, Damian - a recipe for blown highlights in my experience!



That said, no such probs with your stork - it's perfectly exposed.

Keith,

The theory is that the meter will attempt to expose what it meters to be an 18% grey. That would be about in the middle of your histogram. You can try this on white paper if you doubt it. In any event, given the dynamic range of the modern DSLR sensors, 1 2/3 stops will push the exposure of the white subject from the middle to the right, but it should not push it far enough to blow the highlights. This is also very similar to what Art Morris recommends.

Likewise, when metering (partial or spot) on a black or dark bird, you should underexpose a similar amount, based upon just how dark the bird is. You do not want the black bird to turn out 18% grey!

Of course, if you have the luxury of being able to do so, it is always best to fine tune these settings by consulting the histogram. Just remember that your light subject should be to the right of middle (i.e. the white birds) and your dark subjects should be to the left.

= Ed =

Yes, open up from the spot meter reading of a white bird to make it look white instead of gray. The meter only tells you the exposure that would render an object 18% reflectance gray.


For what it's worth, that looks like a white stork to me.

CyberDyneSystems wrote in post #2000562
Nice! I wish that second shot had been in time for the contest.. it's a great pic!

Thanks CDS - that is quite a compliment. I don't think I'd have had the confidence to submit anyway.

Keith R wrote in post #1999969
Over expose on a spot-metered white bird?

I find that very surprising, Damian - a recipe for blown highlights in my experience!



That said, no such probs with your stork - it's perfectly exposed.

I was surprised too. I wnet back and read and re-read and then read another book to make sure. And the theory is as stated - if you don't over-expose the bird will look grey and not white. Seems to go against everything I thought I knew about exposure but it worked! And the opposite it true about black birds!

Always learning!

Thanks everyone for you comments. The white behind #1 was the reflection from water.

Hi guys,

I understand the theory, but it jars with my own experience.

Living by the sea, I take lots of pictures of white birds - gulls, winter-plumage waders - and have routinely used spot metering and negative EV to avoid blowing highlights.

Indeed, back when I was a Nikon D70 user my camera lived at -1/3 to -2/3 EV.

The 30D appears to be a lot more forgiving in this regard, incidentally...

Of course, much depends on how much light is hitting the white subject, but dialing in negative EV to avoid blowing white highlights is pretty standard behaviour with bird photographers I know, if the light is decent.

Well I only accepted the advice from Chris Gomersal the RSPB's staff photographer and Andy Rouse - I was sceptical but it works.

Yes, it works, but I would reserve this for something not in direct sunlight. In direct sunlight, if you can carefully meter just the hot spot(s), you can probably still use this trick. If you are too far away for that, then the meter will average this brightest and darkest parts of the white on the bird and I'd probably start out by shooting as metered - and again, check the histogram.

If you want to prove to yourself that this works, just take something that is bright white (a piece of paper will do, or a pillow in a white pillow case) and put it in a scene such that you can spot meter on the paper alone. Do this in somewhat flat lighting or at lest not direct sunlight with harsh shadows, as I've said. Try it both over exposed by 1 to 2 stops, and underexposed as Keith suggests. Go ahead and do one at the metered reading as well. I think you'll be convinced by the results.

You can also do the opposite test with blacks.

= Ed =