What's wrong with this?

TelePaul

Or how can I improve it? I have real issues with exposure.



One thing I notice about my photography is that if there's hazy sunshine, the background can get quite obscured - in this case, the mountains in the background are covered in hazy sunshine, and lose colour and clarity. Is there anything I can do about it?

challengemaster

HDR / Multiple exposure shot

DaireQuinlan

challengemaster wrote: »

HDR / Multiple exposure shot

Shoot film

Polariser will do wonders to try and clarify the background in shots like that, although sometimes there -isn't- anything you can do. Some days are just hazy and indistinct, so unless you're looking for just that sort of shot its a day to go shoot something other than landscapes.

Part of the problem with the exposure (if thats what you're also asking about, could be my monitor here in work, but the foreground there looks very dark) is that you've exposed to try and avoid blowing out the sky too much, so the ground is underexposed. Given the situation there (looks like the sun was in behind those clouds ?) there isn't a whole pile you could do about that either, except a bracketed HDR as challengemaster suggests, or (if its even an option) shooting film, which has considerably better latitude in these situations. Film would probably blow out at the clouds here aswell to an extent, but it looks a lot better when it does it ...

-edit- or of course, use an ND-grad. I've never used them but a lot of the landscape peeps here seem swear by them.

mloc

DaireQuinlan wrote: »

-edit- or of course, use an ND-grad. I've never used them but a lot of the landscape peeps here seem swear by them.

Agreed. ND Grad would be ideal in that.

The best way to use them is to meter for the foreground, meter for the sky, work out the difference in stops and then use a suitable grad filter. For example, if the sky meters 3 stops brighter than the foreground, use a 3 stop ND Grad to balance it all out.

Overblood

You could use a CPL filter, it would get rid of most of the hazyness in the distance.

Or a ND Grad filter.

TelePaul

Overblood wrote: »

You could use a CPL filter, it would get rid of most of the hazyness in the distance.

Or a ND Grad filter.

Thanks lads. What's a CPL?

So outside of buying an ND or using HDR, there's ntohing I can do in 'the appoach' to fix this? I'm a big believer in getting things right first time.

DaireQuinlan

TelePaul wrote: »

Thanks lads. What's a CPL?

So outside of buying an ND or using HDR, there's ntohing I can do in 'the appoach' to fix this? I'm a big believer in getting things right first time.

CPL is a polariser. Specifically a circular polariser.
Using a graduated ND would be fixing it in "the approach" if I understand you rightly, it won't need any PP, or at least no more than you usually apply. Its probably the only way to shoot that scene and try and keep everything exposed more or less correctly. mloc points out the correct approach to doing it.

Stephen

CPL = circular polariser.

Overblood

I'd leave HDR as a last resort. They usually end up looking fake and... plasticky?!

Arciphel

Grad filter on the sky, bit of fill light in the foreground and you're good to go I reckon. Is this in Glendalough? I think I have a pic from the exact same spot

(If you have the link to the full siae image, put it up here & I'll diddle with it in Lightroom and post it back up here to show you what I mean....)

TelePaul

Arciphel wrote: »

Grad filter on the sky, bit of fill light in the foreground and you're good to go I reckon. Is this in Glendalough? I think I have a pic from the exact same spot

(If you have the link to the full siae image, put it up here & I'll diddle with it in Lightroom and post it back up here to show you what I mean....)

That'd be great, thanks!

Here it is

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3562/3379208994_67cee6347b_b.jpg