On Aug 5, 2005, at 2:52 AM, Kostas Kavoussanakis wrote:
- The rule of thumb says that, in order to get a very snowy picture to look white, you add +2 to whatever the (say, CW) meter says. Will the +2 correction work with a white flower on a macro (ie mostly white) shot?
Rules of thumb are approximations. It all depends where you want to place Zone IX ... Zone IX being defined as the brightest part of the scene that you want to retain detail in.
- How many stops between 18% gray and pure white? Is it 2, as per the rule of thumb?
18% reflectance gray is Zone V. So if the flower is to be Zone IX, it's three stops brighter than Zone V.
- Assume a backlit (setting sun, still white light) white flower. How do you meter that sod? The palm method does not work, I don't think, because the white flower-petals are translucent but the palm isn't. If you get the palm to face the source of light, one's metering device/own body shadows it. Or can you take an accurate enough reading even if spot metering the palm from an angle?
Place where you want your highlights to be featureless at the spot meter reading + 4 stops. And bracket a lot.
Godfrey
