Hot Spots

Hi - I would welcome some help! I keep getting hot spots on my portrait photos. This is a typical example. If I stop down the exposure they still seem to be there and the image (not surprisingly) is darker. I keep reading how great my inbuilt light meter is so it's obviously something I am doing! Can anyone help please. Thanks

HOSTED PHOTO
please log in to view hosted photos in full size.

The "hot spot" to me looks like direct sunlight, while most of the rest of the photo seems to be in the shade. Here are some possible fixes:

1. When shooting in the middle of a clear day, have your subject's back to the sun. This will prevent hot spots and harsh shadows.

2. Use "fill flash". But I don't think it would have completely solved the problem in this situation.

3. Make sure your subject is completely in the shade.

I think any time you have some part of a persons face with direct sunlight and another part in shade/shadows the camera is going to have a hard time and will either "blow out" the bright parts or underexpose anything that's not being hit by direct sunlight.

Thanks Dave - that is spot on for the conditions. I think I *may* have used a flash but as you say the subjects were half in and out of shade so I guess there wasn't much more I could have done with the camera. At least I know that now!

camera can't do anything about that hot spot. flash power needs to be equal to the "hot spot" power and metered for or to get the spot off of them to begin with. aka... move.

It was hot and sunny, I'd had a nice lunch, they were sitting opposite.....move??

oooh, you see... you said portrait.

i took that to mean you positioned them there. You just saw an opportunity and snapped a picture. then, nothing much you can do minus spending a good deal of time photoshopping it out.

Yep, if you shoot in spotty light you will get spotty shots. You can overpower the sun with fill flash in some circumstances, but even then its hard to even out spots.

Busted! Must think before typing!!

Thanks for the comments...