Understanding Exposure:ZONE SYSTEM

[szichri]

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Quote:


Seems kinda strange for someone to know about Zone system and apply it to flash photography in a mostly point-and-shoot event. Bounced flash does not necessarily "burn" (over-expose) but tend to under-expose (produce dark shadows under the eye lids.)

In the case of Ansel Adams, he applied heavy post-processing work (dodge & burn) on his his shots to reveal the different shades of gray in his print. Just like what HDR honchos are doing today in colored photos.

zone system and flash/strobe can work hand in hand... you just know how to mixed the two... probably it wouldn't work on point and shoot type of shoots, but definitely will work on a will planned and laid out shoots such as portraits outdoor...

didn't get your point on the bold sentence...

@carlo

flash/strobe is best measured using incident type of metering and not reflected type.. that is where light meter comes in and becomes more useful...

and i prefer ladies drink sad... im allergic to horses with color... hehehehehe

[cmontoya]

@Fafa dj_dark: (OT pa rin) Aay, landi mo talaga gurl.

@Fafa szichri: Ah, kaya pala sa YouTube, meron strobist may dala flash meter or something. At ina-alam lighting ratio ek ek.

O sige mga harot, kelan ba tayo mag-iinoman ng bj at o (tee hee) at mwiss ko na kwayoo. I-pm ko na lang kayo sa kabila.

[uyarchie]

same here...having the same question about zone system in using flash...


btw, how about EV button sa nikon (im not sure about sa canon), what if mag change ka, lets say -2 EV, does it affect the whole frame or on the spot your metering?

you can still use the zone system with flash.. =) yes yes yes. camera and the flash system has their own metering system when taking a photo just as long as you are using a proprietary flash systtem fitted to your body, i.e. Canon ETTLII Flash in a Canon body; Nikon iTTL system on a nikon body..or as long as you are using automatic flash, rock and roll ra gyapon ang zone system.

the proprietary automatic flash system (iTTL, ETTLII) also uses the zone system "more or less", if you are mixing ambient light and flash or if there is enough light metered o from the camera, you flash automatically functions as fill flash, this is where you dont have to worry because the flash is only illuminating the shadow area, just meter using the zone system with your flash on ETTLII or iTTL set at "0". pero if you are trying to underexpose the background or imung subject backlit or dark kaayo ang location, flash will be your main light. meter using the zone system at the background so set na imo ambient exposure, next use AF to you subject and fire away, the AF distance is what the flash will be using for the flash exposure leaving your camera settings exposed for the ambient light( nga imung gi underexpose or overexpose) if ngit ngitan raka sa imung subject use the Flash Exposure Compensation and dial in the exposure you want apply the zone system if it matters, black is FEC -2, White FEC +1 or 2.. season to taste nalang.

now youll have two distinguished exposures going on, sa camera and flash. keep on shooting lang and know your camera well para dika ma chowking experience is still the best teacher =) rock n roll =)

[szichri]

you can still use the zone system with flash.. =) yes yes yes. camera and the flash system has their own metering system when taking a photo just as long as you are using a proprietary flash systtem fitted to your body, i.e. Canon ETTLII Flash in a Canon body; Nikon iTTL system on a nikon body..or as long as you are using automatic flash, rock and roll ra gyapon ang zone system.

the proprietary automatic flash system (iTTL, ETTLII) also uses the zone system "more or less", if you are mixing ambient light and flash or if there is enough light metered o from the camera, you flash automatically functions as fill flash, this is where you dont have to worry because the flash is only illuminating the shadow area, just meter using the zone system with your flash on ETTLII or iTTL set at "0". pero if you are trying to underexpose the background or imung subject backlit or dark kaayo ang location, flash will be your main light. meter using the zone system at the background so set na imo ambient exposure, next use AF to you subject and fire away, the AF distance is what the flash will be using for the flash exposure leaving your camera settings exposed for the ambient light( nga imung gi underexpose or overexpose) if ngit ngitan raka sa imung subject use the Flash Exposure Compensation and dial in the exposure you want apply the zone system if it matters, black is FEC -2, White FEC +1 or 2.. season to taste nalang.

now youll have two distinguished exposures going on, sa camera and flash. keep on shooting lang and know your camera well para dika ma chowking experience is still the best teacher =) rock n roll =)

tuara ang saktong tubag... thanks for the enlightenment....

[uyarchie]

WOW usa sa sikat na photog sa amu skul ^^... so sa skin dyu d diay ei meter ?? nag libog man ko gud.. usually if mag portraite ang mata man akong ei.. meter... yeah nana ko idea.. about ani.. ang ako practice lang dyud.. kay ag practice ko ghpon. lisud man diay labaw na og outdoor kay the lights keep on changing. and damn i have to re-meter, results is na ratol ko kay maikog ko sa model. nyhaha nag av na lng ko.. nyhahaha

pwede ra bisan asa ka mu meter bai =) ako meter for my subject as a whole, because, as long as you get your subject metered correctly everything will follow ra. rock and roll dritso. but i focus on the eyes, i dont meter off them kai gamay man ang mata mag lisod ka meter, gawas ug naa kai handheld spot meter nga 1degree pwede ra.. but you can go for the skin. rock n roll rana. for outdoors yes, meter jud ka pirmi, unless you are using semi automatic modes exposure compensation raka dritso.. i use full manual man most of the time, i rely so much on the meter. rock n roll bai

[cmontoya]

you can still use the zone system with flash.. =) yes yes yes. camera and the flash system has their own metering system when taking a photo just as long as you are using a proprietary flash systtem fitted to your body, i.e. Canon ETTLII Flash in a Canon body; Nikon iTTL system on a nikon body..or as long as you are using automatic flash, rock and roll ra gyapon ang zone system.

the proprietary automatic flash system (iTTL, ETTLII) also uses the zone system "more or less", if you are mixing ambient light and flash or if there is enough light metered o from the camera, you flash automatically functions as fill flash, this is where you dont have to worry because the flash is only illuminating the shadow area, just meter using the zone system with your flash on ETTLII or iTTL set at "0". pero if you are trying to underexpose the background or imung subject backlit or dark kaayo ang location, flash will be your main light. meter using the zone system at the background so set na imo ambient exposure, next use AF to you subject and fire away, the AF distance is what the flash will be using for the flash exposure leaving your camera settings exposed for the ambient light( nga imung gi underexpose or overexpose) if ngit ngitan raka sa imung subject use the Flash Exposure Compensation and dial in the exposure you want apply the zone system if it matters, black is FEC -2, White FEC +1 or 2.. season to taste nalang.

now youll have two distinguished exposures going on, sa camera and flash. keep on shooting lang and know your camera well para dika ma chowking experience is still the best teacher =) rock n roll =)

Ako ni i-save sa Word Salamat kaayo bai.

[noelie_023]

pwede ra bisan asa ka mu meter bai =) ako meter for my subject as a whole, because, as long as you get your subject metered correctly everything will follow ra. rock and roll dritso. but i focus on the eyes, i dont meter off them kai gamay man ang mata mag lisod ka meter, gawas ug naa kai handheld spot meter nga 1degree pwede ra.. but you can go for the skin. rock n roll rana. for outdoors yes, meter jud ka pirmi, unless you are using semi automatic modes exposure compensation raka dritso.. i use full manual man most of the time, i rely so much on the meter. rock n roll bai

wow wow .eheh pwee thnks for the comment bro archie. hehe lagi. .that's why all i have to do now is practice practice practice. ehhe.. pero.. dli dyud ko kasbt sa imu gi explain sa taas. about sa flash2. hehe kay wla pa ko alamag ayu about flash... im still learning and mastering sa ambient light.. hope mka kuyg nya ko ana mka pa tudlo nimo bro archie. hehe. ^^

[uyarchie]

have some examples using the zone system + automatic flash.. yes pwede ra magamit..hehe =)

this picturre, i was metering behind her, i metered off the grassy background, i set my camera exposure to it. so normally my subject would be underexposed kai naa man mi sa shaded area nag shoot, i used the flash here using ETTL and compensated around +1 FEC. nag aperture priority ko ani kai changing man ang light sa background it helps a lot. haha

as you can see naa koi exposure bias sa camera, -1 EV thats my ambient exposure underexposed to 1 stop para naa silay contrast sa akong subject nya +1 or +2/3 sa flash.

exif:
Exposure: 0.01 sec (1/100)
Aperture: f/1.8
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 50
Exposure Bias: -1 EV
Flash: On, Fired
Eds


for this one, the same ra location and time, but ang diference is apil na ang sky which presents a lot of problems kai the sky is really brighter man than kai it is considered a light source, good thing lang cloudy cya.. i cant remember asa ko nag meter ani for the ambient exposure sa sky ba or grass but more or less nara sa duha haha. then season to taste na dayon ang subject.

Exposure: 0.008 sec (1/125)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 24 mm
ISO Speed: 50
Exposure Bias: -1 EV
Flash: On, Fired

mas taas ug dynamic range imu makuha kai 2 man ka exposures imo gibuhat (camera and flash) and thats without using HDR. picture is as is when it was taken, corrected lang cya for white balance and exposure and thats it. =)

this one kai using an OC-E3 shoe cord, nya underexposing background nya zooming in the flash for a tighter area of illumination. naka manual nani.
Exposure: 1/4000 sec
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 51 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On

Cheryl Baldicantos


this one is an example of killing ambient light. kai wa lang daghan man ug colors ang ambient nya bati tan-awn. haha the light you see sa background kai ang spill nalang na sa flash, nag shutterspeed ko ug 200 ani at 2am in the morning. quickie band photoshoot. hehe
i used a cord gyapon pero wa cya ni register kai kana mang baratohon akong nagamit haha dili available akong pocketwizardds ug OC-E3 ani kai gi hulman. so there. the skin color is the result of using a Pale Gold gel.

Exposure: 0.005 sec (1/200)
Aperture: f/9.0
Focal Length: 28 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire

Zzubu Band


lastly, kani mao pina ka chowking.. nag request sila ug group picture on the same night nag shoot ko ug event i didnt have anything except a flash and a OC-E3..and in no time to prepare i used the band room where they would be held after the show. as you can see singot pa kaayu ilang mga dagway. haha what happened in this picture is i metered for the background nga naapa cyay detail from the bulb above them kai akong flash was aiming straight down mimicking its light from the buld. i only got 7 frames and that was it. less than 5 mins of them before they got bored haha

Exposure: 0.02 sec (1/50)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 24 mm
ISO Speed: 800
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On, Fired

The Line Divides

[noelie_023]

have some examples using the zone system + automatic flash.. yes pwede ra magamit..hehe =)

this picturre, i was metering behind her, i metered off the grassy background, i set my camera exposure to it. so normally my subject would be underexposed kai naa man mi sa shaded area nag shoot, i used the flash here using ETTL and compensated around +1 FEC. nag aperture priority ko ani kai changing man ang light sa background it helps a lot. haha

as you can see naa koi exposure bias sa camera, -1 EV thats my ambient exposure underexposed to 1 stop para naa silay contrast sa akong subject nya +1 or +2/3 sa flash.

exif:
Exposure: 0.01 sec (1/100)
Aperture: f/1.8
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 50
Exposure Bias: -1 EV
Flash: On, Fired
Eds


for this one, the same ra location and time, but ang diference is apil na ang sky which presents a lot of problems kai the sky is really brighter man than kai it is considered a light source, good thing lang cloudy cya.. i cant remember asa ko nag meter ani for the ambient exposure sa sky ba or grass but more or less nara sa duha haha. then season to taste na dayon ang subject.

Exposure: 0.008 sec (1/125)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 24 mm
ISO Speed: 50
Exposure Bias: -1 EV
Flash: On, Fired

mas taas ug dynamic range imu makuha kai 2 man ka exposures imo gibuhat (camera and flash) and thats without using HDR. picture is as is when it was taken, corrected lang cya for white balance and exposure and thats it. =)

this one kai using an OC-E3 shoe cord, nya underexposing background nya zooming in the flash for a tighter area of illumination. naka manual nani.
Exposure: 1/4000 sec
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 51 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On

Cheryl Baldicantos


this one is an example of killing ambient light. kai wa lang daghan man ug colors ang ambient nya bati tan-awn. haha the light you see sa background kai ang spill nalang na sa flash, nag shutterspeed ko ug 200 ani at 2am in the morning. quickie band photoshoot. hehe
i used a cord gyapon pero wa cya ni register kai kana mang baratohon akong nagamit haha dili available akong pocketwizardds ug OC-E3 ani kai gi hulman. so there. the skin color is the result of using a Pale Gold gel.

Exposure: 0.005 sec (1/200)
Aperture: f/9.0
Focal Length: 28 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire

Zzubu Band


lastly, kani mao pina ka chowking.. nag request sila ug group picture on the same night nag shoot ko ug event i didnt have anything except a flash and a OC-E3..and in no time to prepare i used the band room where they would be held after the show. as you can see singot pa kaayu ilang mga dagway. haha what happened in this picture is i metered for the background nga naapa cyay detail from the bulb above them kai akong flash was aiming straight down mimicking its light from the buld. i only got 7 frames and that was it. less than 5 mins of them before they got bored haha

Exposure: 0.02 sec (1/50)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 24 mm
ISO Speed: 800
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: On, Fired

The Line Divides

all i can say its superb.. wee i get the principle, pero i need to practice more specially abotu sa flash. i guess i have to buy one , pero not now.. im trying to master first the ambient light. hehe.. libog man ko sa flash

ayus ayu bro archi pyter

[uyarchie]

all i can say its superb.. wee i get the principle, pero i need to practice more specially abotu sa flash. i guess i have to buy one , pero not now.. im trying to master first the ambient light. hehe.. libog man ko sa flash

ayus ayu bro archi pyter

thanks bai. yep practice lang sa sa metering sa available light. when you get a hang of it then start with flash, then mix them together. kai flash photography like learning to use your camera again.. its kinda different since you'll be creating your own light na, then capture it with your camera. go go go.

read a lot bai, im sure youll find a lot of info's somewhere. thats what i did a few years back even up to now =) continuous ang learning sa photography wai nya wai sakto wai sayop as long as rock n roll ang picture rock n roll nana tanan. =) cheers!