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#1
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Using a polarizing filter
I've been using a COZO brand circular polarizing filter on a Nikon D70 for
outdoor shots, and am puzzled by the way the sky often appears almost gray rather than, say, a brighter blue. I think I'm aligning it properly, as the clouds stand out as expected. I then have to use the "levels" command in PS to get the colors and brightness back to what I would expect. Is this the usual situation, or am I doing something wrong - e.g., should I increase the exposure by a an f-stop or alter the white balance, etc to get this right in camera? Thanks Alan |
#2
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Using a polarizing filter
Does it matter Alan?
You seem to have found a good solution that works for you - stick with it Artie "AK" wrote in message ... I've been using a COZO brand circular polarizing filter on a Nikon D70 for outdoor shots, and am puzzled by the way the sky often appears almost gray rather than, say, a brighter blue. I think I'm aligning it properly, as the clouds stand out as expected. I then have to use the "levels" command in PS to get the colors and brightness back to what I would expect. Is this the usual situation, or am I doing something wrong - e.g., should I increase the exposure by a an f-stop or alter the white balance, etc to get this right in camera? Thanks Alan |
#3
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Using a polarizing filter
Does it matter Alan?
You seem to have found a good solution that works for you - stick with it Artie "AK" wrote in message ... I've been using a COZO brand circular polarizing filter on a Nikon D70 for outdoor shots, and am puzzled by the way the sky often appears almost gray rather than, say, a brighter blue. I think I'm aligning it properly, as the clouds stand out as expected. I then have to use the "levels" command in PS to get the colors and brightness back to what I would expect. Is this the usual situation, or am I doing something wrong - e.g., should I increase the exposure by a an f-stop or alter the white balance, etc to get this right in camera? Thanks Alan |
#4
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Using a polarizing filter
"AK" wrote in message ... I've been using a COZO brand circular polarizing filter on a Nikon D70 for outdoor shots, and am puzzled by the way the sky often appears almost gray rather than, say, a brighter blue. I think I'm aligning it properly, as the clouds stand out as expected. I then have to use the "levels" command in PS to get the colors and brightness back to what I would expect. Is this the usual situation, or am I doing something wrong - e.g., should I increase the exposure by a an f-stop or alter the white balance, etc to get this right in camera? A good polarizer shouldn't alter the white balance, but it wouldn't hurt to change the WB if you have any doubts. How are you metering your shots? If you're spot-metering off the clouds and using a polarizer, then the normally blue sky would be *very* dark, as your metering would put the clouds at 18% grey and adjust everything else accordingly and clouds are often _very_ bright, meaning other things are relatively much darker. When I use a polarizer and take pictures in which clouds are the predominant feature, I sometimes meter off the clouds and bump up the exposure compensation somewhere between +1/3 and +2 EV, depending on the particular effect I'm trying to achieve. Next time you load one of your darker photos into Photoshop, take a look at its histogram--that'll give you some guidance about compensation. |
#5
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Using a polarizing filter
"AK" wrote in message ... I've been using a COZO brand circular polarizing filter on a Nikon D70 for outdoor shots, and am puzzled by the way the sky often appears almost gray rather than, say, a brighter blue. I think I'm aligning it properly, as the clouds stand out as expected. I then have to use the "levels" command in PS to get the colors and brightness back to what I would expect. Is this the usual situation, or am I doing something wrong - e.g., should I increase the exposure by a an f-stop or alter the white balance, etc to get this right in camera? A good polarizer shouldn't alter the white balance, but it wouldn't hurt to change the WB if you have any doubts. How are you metering your shots? If you're spot-metering off the clouds and using a polarizer, then the normally blue sky would be *very* dark, as your metering would put the clouds at 18% grey and adjust everything else accordingly and clouds are often _very_ bright, meaning other things are relatively much darker. When I use a polarizer and take pictures in which clouds are the predominant feature, I sometimes meter off the clouds and bump up the exposure compensation somewhere between +1/3 and +2 EV, depending on the particular effect I'm trying to achieve. Next time you load one of your darker photos into Photoshop, take a look at its histogram--that'll give you some guidance about compensation. |
#6
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Using a polarizing filter
"Arte Phacting" wrote in message ... Does it matter Alan? You seem to have found a good solution that works for you - stick with it Artie Yes, it matters: Underexposed digital photos contain more noise than properly-exposed photos and sometimes essential detail is lost in the shadows, too. IMHO, it's best to push the exposure histogram as much to the right as possible (without blowing out too much detail, of course)-- this will give you the most room for post-processing and achieving good prints. |
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