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Bridging Tech and Creative Photography
Bridging Tech and Creative Photography
Bridging Tech and Creative Photography
Features

Meter is Metering: Or Please Stop Complaining About Dynamic Range

Chris Gampat
No Comments
03/20/2016
3 Mins read

Chris Gampat The Phoblographer Fujifilm X70 review color and dynamic range (2 of 2)ISO 16001-60 sec at f - 2.8

In 2008, Canon spearheaded a charge for a major state of innovation that would forever change the industry. The Canon 5D Mk II was announced: and not only could it shoot HD video but it could also resolve loads of details, handle ISO noise pretty well and had great dynamic range rendition. At the same time, Trey Ratcliff’s Stuck in Customs was taking off a bit more than it already had as the world marvelled at his HDR photography. I did it, you did it, advertisers did it, etc. All of that created a world where photographers sit there and complain about the dynamic range on the internet because they have a computer and an avatar. For a while, it made sense; but the year is now 2016: and the truth is going to hurt for many of you still stuck in 2005.

Are you ready?

Chris Gampat The Phoblographer Zeiss 21mm f2.8 Canon EF mount review images street and landscape (26 of 29)ISO 1600

Are you seriously ready?

Okay.

The only goddamn thing that is screwing with your ability to get the appropriate level of dynamic range from your camera that you need for your images is your lack of wanting to learn how to meter a scene better.

For many years now, cameras have been fantastic. They’ve all had great sensors and so what if you can’t get more details from your photo. No one ever became a better photographer by accruing more gear: they became better by developing ideas and learning how to meter.

Chris Gampat The Phoblographer Sony A99 Aquarium photos and landscapes edited (6 of 15)ISO 50

Not enough details in your highlights? Underexpose and push the shadows: modern imaging sensors can render fantastic results from pushed shadows.

Not getting enough from your shadows? Raise the ISO or change your settings. If the shutter is too slow then adjust yourself accordingly or use a tripod or a solid, flat surface. If you’re afraid of the high ISO settings then Lightroom or Noiseless Pro (review here) can help you.

Still not getting what you want? Have you considered the use of a flash or a graduated ND filter? Photographers have used them for years and created some of the best and most memorable images ever with them. The fact that you’re complaining about it vs trying to do something about signals laziness. So what you’re secretly exclaiming to the world is that you’re a lazy photographer.

Nikon 24mm 2.8D 20130606Gservo-4301

Can’t get it in one shot? These days we’ve got memory cards that can hold literally thousands of images.

Still not getting the results you want? Shoot multiple images: Lightroom and Aurora HDR (review here) can do a fantastic job for you.

And again, if you’re against doing anything in post-production because you’re too lazy, there are in-camera methods that can accomplish this: like metering and using extra tools. It’s simple. It makes sense.

Chris Gampat The Phoblographer Rokinon 24mm f1.4 review images (2 of 4)

Photography is an expensive hobby, but using the tools that get you the results can help. Even more importantly, using the knowledge that can get you the results help to a greater degree. For what it’s worth, the photography community would be a heck of a lot better if there were less lazy folks and more determined folks looking to actually become better. That isn’t to say everyone is lazy, some people just genuinely don’t know any better.

But sitting there complaining instead of doing something about it isn’t going to make that image any better.

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Chris Gampat

Chris Gampat is the Editor in Chief, Founder, and Publisher of the Phoblographer. He provides oversight to all of the daily tasks, including editorial, administrative, and advertising work. Chris's editorial work includes not only editing and scheduling articles but also writing them himself. He's the author of various product guides, educational pieces, product reviews, and interviews with photographers. He's fascinated by how photographers create, considering the fact that he's legally blind./ HIGHLIGHTS: Chris used to work in Men's lifestyle and tech. He's a veteran technology writer, editor, and reviewer with more than 15 years experience. He's also a Photographer that has had his share of bylines and viral projects like "Secret Order of the Slice." PAST BYLINES: Gear Patrol, PC Mag, Geek.com, Digital Photo Pro, Resource Magazine, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Finance, IGN, PDN, and others. EXPERIENCE: Chris Gampat began working in tech and art journalism both in 2008. He started at PCMag, Magnum Photos, and Geek.com. He founded the Phoblographer in 2009 after working at places like PDN and Photography Bay. He left his day job as the Social Media Content Developer at B&H Photo in the early 2010s. Since then, he's evolved as a publisher using AI ethically, coming up with ethical ways to bring in affiliate income, and preaching the word of diversity in the photo industry. His background and work has spread to non-profits like American Photographic Arts where he's done work to get photographers various benefits. His skills are in SEO, app development, content planning, ethics management, photography, Wordpress, and other things. EDUCATION: Chris graduated Magna Cum Laude from Adelphi University with a degree in Communications in Journalism in 2009. Since then, he's learned and adapted to various things in the fields of social media, SEO, app development, e-commerce development, HTML, etc. FAVORITE SUBJECT TO PHOTOGRAPH: Chris enjoys creating conceptual work that makes people stare at his photos. But he doesn't get to do much of this because of the high demand of photography content. / BEST PHOTOGRAPHY TIP: Don't do it in post-production when you can do it in-camera.
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