At 07:59 PM 12/21/1999 EST, you wrote:
>In a message dated 12/21/99 5:05:39 PM Eastern Standard Time,
>jowilcox@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx writes:
>
>> Roger,
>> Are you sure you want to recommend overexposure? I find that just the
>> opposite compensation works with my 433D and OM-2S. I almost always shoot
>> people in a room at -2/3 stop on the exp comp dial, otherwise the people
>> are nearly vaporized while the flash tries to brighten up the room behind.
>> The only time I've found it be useful to do a +1 stop compensation is in
>> taking pictures of my kids in the bathtub.
>>
>Absolutely...All of the negative films will often take as much as +3 through
>+7 of overexposure, but they die with as little as -1 of underexposure. When
>in doubt, overexpose the hell out of it and you will get a printable
>negative. Transparency films often look better with a little
>underexposure...but usually not a lot unless you are trying to expose for
>some highlights to make a day scene look like night. Then -3 often looks
>terrific.
>I am totally confused by your comment above. Perhaps you are in a room with
>highly reflectant walls, maybe everyone is dressed in white robes, ??????????
>IMHO you shouldn't be getting images with exposures that thin.
>
>Roger Skully
Most likely we're talking at cross purposes. I agree that negative films
have the best room for error on the side of over-exposure. The original
context is now misty, but I had thought you were making your
recommendations in the context of TTL flash.
My comments presuppose shooting TTL flash and, to some degree, using slide
film. In most cases to nail the exposure shooting TTL, I have to anticipate
that the meter/flash combo will try to lighten the shadows to the rear of a
room and in doing so will cause over-exposure of the principal subjects
(usually people, but could be flowers, etc.). I find this tendency even
more pronounced, but more predictable as well, when using defusers with the
flash, specifically in my case, the Stofen omnibounce.
You and several others have recommended simply using manual flash. I think
this is the only sure way to completely predictable results, but TTL is
often preferable when you can't calculate manual flash quickly and you will
simply miss shots altogether if you do rely to some degree on the smarts of
the camera. It's helpful to experiment with TTL to get a feel for using
the exp comp dial to fine tune the result. I wish TTL were more a mindless
path to perfect exposure, but it's not, like almost everything worth
troubling with in photography.
Good holidays!
Joel Wilcox
Iowa City, Iowa USA
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