Not satisfied with my Canon 20D

yogestee wrote in post #8360655
HDR is only useful with static subjects,,people as in the OP's image aren't static subjects.. The slightest movement of a person (or persons) between exposures will result in ghosting or unsharp image..

All depends how much light is available. On a sunny-16 day, there's plenty of light; enough to squeeze off three auto-bracketed shots, with very little people movement at f/2.8 or even f/4. Especially if one is smart and bumps the ISO up to 400 for really fast shutter speed even at -2EV.

HMetal wrote in post #8365857
All depends how much light is available. On a sunny-16 day, there's plenty of light; enough to squeeze off three auto-bracketed shots, with very little people movement at f/2.8 or even f/4. Especially if one is smart and bumps the ISO up to 400 for really fast shutter speed even at -2EV.

Here's the problem,, there has to be exactly no movement at all..

Just for interest sake,,could you post an example or two of HDR where people are the subject??

To the OP:

Wow. You've had your camera for 3 years and are posting such a beginner problem/question?

A few suggestions.

There's no need to use f14 when you're at 17mm for greater DOF because 17mm gives you good DOF already. You'd have been fine with f8. And you can back off your shutter speed too from 1/250 to 1/100 for that type of photo. So you probably could have been down at iso200 easily.

Metering. You have a back-lit photo where the bright background is being seen as the dominant light. For something like this try partial metering with EC +1/3 or use centerweighted metering with EC +1 1/3, or use a fill flash to illuminate the people.

Taking photos of people in the shadows with a bright background isn't an easy thing for digital. If you expose for the people your background with be very over exposed and blown highlights. You'd had been best off at iso200, 17mm, 1/60 and the popup flash in Av mode.

HappySnapper90 wrote in post #8365970
To the OP:

Wow. You've had your camera for 3 years and are posting such a beginner problem/question?

A few suggestions.

There's no need to use f14 when you're at 17mm for greater DOF because 17mm gives you good DOF already. You'd have been fine with f8. And you can back off your shutter speed too from 1/250 to 1/100 for that type of photo. So you probably could have been down at iso200 easily.

Metering. You have a back-lit photo where the bright background is being seen as the dominant light. For something like this try partial metering with EC +1/3 or use centerweighted metering with EC +1 1/3, or use a fill flash to illuminate the people.

Taking photos of people in the shadows with a bright background isn't an easy thing for digital. If you expose for the people your background with be very over exposed and blown highlights. You'd had been best off at iso200, 17mm, 1/60 and the popup flash in Av mode.

He is asking a question. Help, not judgment is what he needs.

f/14 @ ISO 1600?

What does your handheld light meter tell you to shoot at?

Does the camera still underexpose at those settings?

yogestee wrote in post #8328276
I agree with this Mike but there is more than just reading your histogram.. One needs to read the scene and visualise where your histogram will lie..

Perfect explanation! And one my very own mentor would use, and quite ofetn too .. lol!
What he always said was, "you need to see what you're looking at."
And in film days, I believe that was alot more important to understand at that time, as opposed to .. now.

yogestee wrote in post #8328276
Historgrams can even fool the experienced photohrapher.. For example a lowkey image histogram will lie the the left, a highkey to the right.. If your histogram lies in the middle with these images you are overexposing for a lowkey image and underexposing for a highkey image..

Absolutey incrediblebly true!