What are your techniques for setting your camera?

[Pirate]

For those that do not use a light meter, do you know the EV scale? Is that what you use to figure your settings?

I learned the EV scale and now understand how to set the camera accordingly. I look around and figure which EV I'm in, then set my camera to the basics:
Every F/stop corresponds to one EV point (F/22 is EV 16, F16 is EV 15... etc), match the shutter speed to the film ISO. This gives me my basic starting point, then I adjust aperture and shutter speed from there to suit what I want.

Anyone do anything different? What are your techniques for making your settings?

 

[pvdhaar]

When I'm shooting without light meter, I use the sunny-16 rule and I think in aperture values..

f16 sunny/ f11 sunny with clouds/ f8 white sky/ f5.6 open shade or heavy clouds / f2.8 indoors

 

[Keith]

I seem to have to start with the maximum and work backwards. Every situation is a certain number of stops away from the sunny sixteen setting of f16 and film speed for shutter speed!

Sunny day in open shade ... open up four stops, if it's cloudy open another two stops for the same situation.

 

[shyoon]

Sunny 16 usually. In tricky lighting situations, I just have a stab at approximate shutter speed and aperture values - with the wide latitude of B&W film, I can usually get usable results. I definitely don't recommend this method; it's a terrible habit that I've got myself into! 🙂

 

[Mablo]

I'm doing exactly like pvdhaar described it above. It works much better if you know your film and developer thoroughly. I'm always fussing around with new films unfortunately.

 

[Doug]

Pirate, I do the same as the other gents said. No reference to EV numbers, but if my camera had EV numbers with the shutter and aperture rings moving together like some older Hasselblads and Kodaks, then I think learning EV numbers would be a good thing.

I started off a few years ago (this was before light meters were invented, or at least shortly thereafter, heh heh) with a Kodak exposure card. About the size of a playing card, it had another bit of card, circular, riveted to the center so it could rotate. Colorful Kodak printing, it was essentially a Sunny Sixteen calculator. Like a light meter, you could set your ASA (ISO), rotate to the relevant "Hazy Bright" or whatever light level, and then choose from among the matched shutter speeds / apertures. It was in puzzling this thing out that I learned about reciprocity, the reciprocal relationship between lens openings and shutter speeds. Very educational/useful, and I wonder what I did with that thing... I'll have to see if I still have it. 🙂

 

[Spyro]

I take a reading every hour or so, then I just wing it

 

[denmark.yuzon]

Sunny 16. Works everytime.. But when it gets around the afternoon (4-6pm, I get confused..

 

[Chris101]

I use sunny 16 if there is bright sun hitting my subject. I use a meter if there isn't.

 

[morback]

At 100asa is use f8 @ 500 for full sun, open shadow f5.6 @ 60/30. Indoor office-type lighting is f2 @ 30/15. I measured around and then memorized those settings. When in strange situations I add or subtract stops compared to these two situations (eg, subject indoors but by a huge window on a sunny bright day)

Shooting in the city though forces you to change your settings constantly, and I have to say I'm starting to miss my AE (ZM off to repair). Opportunities have been missed.

Not to mention that tiny shutter dial on the M2 is a PITA.

In one of the many threads about metering without meter someone said something really nice. Instead of looking at the light, look at the quality of he shadow (sharp, soft edge, barely visible, none) to give you an idea for exposure.

Strangely my exposures are usually quite good...Sometimes I over-think it and lose the moment though...Maybe it's time to bring the OM2 out?

p.s: http://expomat.tripod.com/

 

[johannielscom]

I've got one of those circular calculator thingies Doug has, but also a light meter app on the iPhone.

When taking both the M6 and M3, I read the M6 meter off the palm of my hand in both sun and shade, take the average and set the M3 accordingly. Works every time.

Both color and B&W have at least two stops latitude in photoshop and lightroom, so I'll get something useful from 90% of 'trouble shots' after all.

 

[Doug]

Looked last night but I haven't yet found my exposure calculator card. However I did come across my shirt-pocket size Kodak Master Photoguide, publication R-21, 1962 printing, that includes a bound-in exposure calclulator plus a bunch of others, such as for flash exposures, use and selection of filters, etc.

The Kodak website doesn't know about R-21 so I guess it might be out of print. And so soon...😉 But there's this AC-61 at the following URL that is downloadable also as a pdf. http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=74907&page=9

It includes a comprehensive exposure chart with good starting points for many "existing light" situations.

 

[Juan Valdenebro]

First thing I learned was settings for 400 film under direct sun: that never changes (well, a bit depending on the place, but let's forget it...) Also absolute is the value for direct sun with 100 film.

Then, if there's haze but yet sunny (less strong shadows), you might need to open 1/2 or 1 stop...

And about overcast days: I gave names like a)Luminous overcast, b)Normal overcast, c)Dark overcast, d)Lead/Rainy overcast...

For example with Tri-X under sunlight I give a generous exposure with yellow filter at 1/250 f/11, and with haze f/8... On sunny days but in the shadows, 2-4 stops below depending on surroundings... On overcast, from bright to rainy, 1/250 f/5.6-f/2... I based my learning on the mechanical speed of my Nikon FE2...

B&W and color negative give some error margin, and in doubt it's better to overexpose... With slide film I'm confident under direct sun only.

Low light levels are beyond my skills.

Cheers,

Juan

 

[SolaresLarrave]

I do like Juan... and then, whenever in doubt (which happens all the time), I flip out a meter and take a reading off the subject (or as close as I can get to it).

 

[Thardy]

Low light levels are beyond my skills.

Cheers,

Juan

Light is usually much darker than I imagine. I was playing around with a couple J8 lenses testing sharpness at F2. With Iso 400 film, I was surprised that the shutter speed measured at about 1/15 - 1/30.

 

[Juan Valdenebro]

I do like Juan... and then, whenever in doubt (which happens all the time), I flip out a meter and take a reading off the subject (or as close as I can get to it).

I'm a nerd: constantly using my Sekonic and my in camera meters checking my guessing... Hope one day it all ends...

Cheers,

Juan

 

[Juan Valdenebro]

Light is usually much darker than I imagine. I was playing around with a couple J8 lenses testing sharpness at F2. With Iso 400 film, I was surprised that the shutter speed measured at about 1/15 - 1/30.

Oh, yes! Our eyes are incredible... Film stops seeing so very soon!

Unless we push 3200 film, we easily suffer the 1/8th syndrome...😛

Cheers,

Juan