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Old     (tailgate)      Join Date: Apr 2007       10-27-2009, 1:02 PM Reply   
I need some advice with shooting with a bright background...

This picture I took with the sun out of frame but behind the rider, creating a "shadow" rider...
usually only giving me good shots in one direction (sun behind the camera)... Is there anything I can do or set to not get the "shadow rider"

I'm still learning so any advice will be appreciated..

D90, 18-105 kit lens
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Old     (ladiii08)      Join Date: Mar 2009       10-27-2009, 1:25 PM Reply   
nice camera, i have the same ha. i would say you could use a flash, but in order to do that, you would have to be on a tube right under him, because a flash from the boat simply isnt going to reach the rider. other than that, not entirely too sure ha
Old     (dakid)      Join Date: Feb 2001       10-27-2009, 1:58 PM Reply   
exposure bias - learn it.
Old     (cali_rider)      Join Date: Feb 2004       10-27-2009, 4:02 PM Reply   
your rider is also back-lit ..........
Old     (skull)      Join Date: May 2002       10-28-2009, 7:37 AM Reply   
Honestly, just wait until the rider is doing in the other direction. If the rider is back-lit I don't take pics. I wait until the boat turns around then take pictures. I have my camera and everything set-up for taking pictures with the usable light.
Old     (Walt)      Join Date: Jan 2003       10-29-2009, 5:52 AM Reply   
Silhouette shots can be cool sometimes !
The only way I know of to get that shot right is to use fill flash or turn the boat around.
Old     (bakes5)      Join Date: Aug 2006       10-29-2009, 8:37 AM Reply   
Gotta turn the boat around. Can't tell you how many potentially great shots I have missed because of this :-(

Another option is to move to spot metering (instead of the matrix that it is probably already on) That way it will read off the rider rather than everything else. This will of course overexpose everything else, but sometimes it is not too bad. Another option would be to find an exposure that just barely reaches the both of the edges of the histogram and then dodge and burn in lightroom or photoshop. It will not be magazine cover worthy but might be salvagable for personal use.

If your lighting is consistent, manual exposure mode helps your get more consistently exposed as well...just don't forget to change your settings as you change directions, etc. If I am doing a run for pics then I will spend the time and get it set up right in manual. If we are just out there cruising around and shooting for fun then I will leave it in shutter priority.

Good luck

Bakes
Old     (lfrider92)      Join Date: Sep 2008       10-29-2009, 9:15 AM Reply   
when shooting with the sun directly behind an object, a polarizer filter helps a ton.
it might help for this some? and the cool thing about polarizer filters is you dont have to take them on and off. you can pretty much leave it on all the time
Old     (bakes5)      Join Date: Aug 2006       10-29-2009, 11:36 AM Reply   
I think a polarizer is going to make it worse....the rider will be even darker
Old     (lfrider92)      Join Date: Sep 2008       10-29-2009, 12:59 PM Reply   
i havnt tried it on the boat. but ive taken pictures of things with the sun almost directly behind them with that filter. then without. and with the filter the color looks way better, it doesnt really make it darker. but it might be different on the water
Old     (tailgate)      Join Date: Apr 2007       10-30-2009, 7:54 AM Reply   
Thanks for the replies, I agree sometimes the silhouette is pretty cool, just trying to shoot as much as I can and learn the camera and how to use it in different situations.
Old     (mammoth)      Join Date: Apr 2005       11-09-2009, 1:32 PM Reply   
Is there really a strong backlight, or did the meter pick up the bright glare spot off the water? Sky looks pretty dark back there.

Like Bakes said, your D90 is probably using Matrix metering and it's not going to get any better with that shot until you tell it to. You can go to spot metering as mentioned, but remember that you also have an EC adjustment.

You can leave it in Matrix which will get you close, then press that little button with the +/- and spin the wheel. You can get more exposure on the rider, at the cost of blown out detail in those highlight areas. The nice thing about using Matrix and EC is that you still have control over where your exposure is but there isn't as much to keep track of.
Old     (supraman)      Join Date: Jan 2002       11-10-2009, 7:49 AM Reply   
You can also point the camera down at the water, taking the sun and sky out of the frame, lock your exposure and then reframe and focus on the rider. As another poster noted, some of the background will be blown out, but that is how you'd pull color out of the rider.

When I shoot my kid just inside a bright window, I do the same thing. I think that's how most window portraits are shot....

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(Not my photo -- got it from azildalions.ca)

(Message edited by supraman on November 10, 2009)

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