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Sunday, December 13, 2009

How to get better photos of snow.



Have you ever taken a photo of snow on an overcast day
 and wondered why the snow photos look dark or grey 
and not white like real snow?
The reason is simple.  Your light meter in your camera
 is being tricked! Your light meter is thinking "Wow! This 
is a really bright photo.I need to compensate for the 
brightness!"  Your light meter does not know you are
 photographing snow! It thinks you are looking at your 
typical grey scene like spring grass or something.
  So, what happens is that your camera 
lowers the exposure to compensate for the difference in the 
scene.  This is why you get grey snow. 


So, how do you fix this problem?  On almost every 
camera there is an Exposure Compensation button. 
 If you do not know where it is, get into your camera 
manual and look it up. It is a very handy button. I use 
it constantly. Anyway, all you have to do is add in f/stop 
or +1 to your exposure and you should get better photos 
of snow! Who knew it was so easy?   




If you have questions, leave a comment and let me know. 
I will do my best at answering them and if I can't, I will at 
least point you in the right direction.  Have fun as always:)


Here is a photo that I took of snow.  Enjoy:)






10 comments:

  1. Excellent advice! I decided on the Canon Xsi as my first dslr - and I love it. Hopefully I'll learn to use it well. I'm having fun practicing.

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  2. Nice choice on your camera. Enjoy it and if you have any questions let me know.

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  3. I have a Nikon D50. I press the compensation button and rotate the command dial and I don't see any changes anywhere. My exposures are off so maybe this is the problem. I can't figure it out.

    What is Google Friend Connect? How did you get pictures in your popular posts? I have a lot to learn. I'll subscribe to your blog.

    Are you interested in trading photo links? I have a photography blog. - Rob

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  4. Rob, Can you give me more information?

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  5. I figured out the problem. I was in Auto. Once I selected one of the other modes it worked fine. That makes sense...Thanks.

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  6. You're using a simple template maybe that's why you have different layout options. I like what you have going on in on the right. My layout is unsophisticated and not as interesting.

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  7. Glad you figured it out. If you have any other questions let me know. Thanks!

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  8. Hey great tip! This will be my first snow season!

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  9. Hey great tip, this will be my first snow!

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  10. You're welcome!! Thanks for the comment!!

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