Avoid these pitfalls
9: Backlight bugaboo
Pitfall explanation
Here's the happy couple, celebrating their first Christmas in a new house. Thanks to the strong light behind them, which fooled the camera's metering into thinking there was more light in the scene than there was, they're celebrating anonymously, and the moment is permanently blacked out.
Here's the happy couple, celebrating their first Christmas in a new house. Thanks to the strong light behind them, which fooled the camera's metering into thinking there was more light in the scene than there was, they're celebrating anonymously, and the moment is permanently blacked out.
Can this photo be saved?
Sort of. You can bring up the exposure in the midtones, which makes the couple and the stuffed animal she's clutching visible, but not without exposing a lot of image noise.
Sort of. You can bring up the exposure in the midtones, which makes the couple and the stuffed animal she's clutching visible, but not without exposing a lot of image noise.
How can I avoid this problem?
Tip 1: Use fill flash. Force your flash on to illuminate your subjects' faces. One of the drawbacks to this approach is that it usually blows out the brighter areas in the scene.
Tip 2: Use exposure compensation. Bump up the exposure by about a stop--more if necessary--to fool your camera into thinking the scene is darker than the meter says. The drawback here is that it will lighten the entire scene, which will render the bright areas as overly bright.
Tip 3: Use spot or center-weighted metering. If your camera supports it, use one of these metering modes; they weight the light on the subject--in this case, the couple's faces--more heavily than any other area in the scene. Spot metering measures only around the point you choose, while center-weighted metering will weigh that area more heavily but not exclusively.
Tip 4: Use a Backlight scene mode. If your camera has a lot of program scene modes, you've probably got an option for backlight compensation. This mode generally sets the camera to automatically use one or more of the previous methods.
Tip 5: Move the subjects. If there's no reason for them to be parked in front of a bright light source, why not ask them to move?
Tip 1: Use fill flash. Force your flash on to illuminate your subjects' faces. One of the drawbacks to this approach is that it usually blows out the brighter areas in the scene.
Tip 2: Use exposure compensation. Bump up the exposure by about a stop--more if necessary--to fool your camera into thinking the scene is darker than the meter says. The drawback here is that it will lighten the entire scene, which will render the bright areas as overly bright.
Tip 3: Use spot or center-weighted metering. If your camera supports it, use one of these metering modes; they weight the light on the subject--in this case, the couple's faces--more heavily than any other area in the scene. Spot metering measures only around the point you choose, while center-weighted metering will weigh that area more heavily but not exclusively.
Tip 4: Use a Backlight scene mode. If your camera has a lot of program scene modes, you've probably got an option for backlight compensation. This mode generally sets the camera to automatically use one or more of the previous methods.
Tip 5: Move the subjects. If there's no reason for them to be parked in front of a bright light source, why not ask them to move?
Which cameras handle these scenes best?
What it takes: Either the appropriate scene mode or some basic manual-exposure controls. Some models include in-camera processing, which automatically corrects for this sort of exposure problem after the fact.
Suggested models:
What it takes: Either the appropriate scene mode or some basic manual-exposure controls. Some models include in-camera processing, which automatically corrects for this sort of exposure problem after the fact.
Suggested models:
Additional resources
CNET Community: Point and Shout
We've all experienced the joys, the frustrations, and that magical moment when a workaround solution to a particular problem jolts you. Here's a chance to share your brilliance with fellow readers and learn a bit from them.
Online digital photo printing and sharing
Whether you have a handful of vacation shots or you're a serious photographer with a big image archive, there are plenty of sites that can make printing and sharing a pleasure. We tried out more than 40 of them to give you a snapshot of your options.
Digital camera memory-card selector
Choosing digital camera memory--CompactFlash, Secure Digital cards, and Memory Stick--should be a no-brainer compared to choosing a camera. It's not. Let CNET's Digital camera memory selector clear away the smoke and mirrors surrounding these formats and bring storage clarity into your life.
Digital camera buying guide
We've distilled our expert advice on finding the right digital camera into a handy seven-page guide.
CNET Community: Point and Shout
We've all experienced the joys, the frustrations, and that magical moment when a workaround solution to a particular problem jolts you. Here's a chance to share your brilliance with fellow readers and learn a bit from them.
Online digital photo printing and sharing
Whether you have a handful of vacation shots or you're a serious photographer with a big image archive, there are plenty of sites that can make printing and sharing a pleasure. We tried out more than 40 of them to give you a snapshot of your options.
Digital camera memory-card selector
Choosing digital camera memory--CompactFlash, Secure Digital cards, and Memory Stick--should be a no-brainer compared to choosing a camera. It's not. Let CNET's Digital camera memory selector clear away the smoke and mirrors surrounding these formats and bring storage clarity into your life.
Digital camera buying guide
We've distilled our expert advice on finding the right digital camera into a handy seven-page guide.
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