Question about sunny beach photos

[Prairie_Gal]

Why do some of my photos of a sunny beach scene, escpecially with water turn out looking dark? Is this where you need a circular polarizing filter? Here are a couple of examples of what I mean.

 

In this one I kind of like the effect of my DH being silhouetted, but this is not what the scene really looked like.

 

Jan 23, Victory cruise. by Prairie Gal2, on Flickr

 

 

[pierces]

Metering tries to average the entire scene to an average level 18% grey, if you're interested ;)). If the scene contains large expanses of high brightness like snow, sand or bright sky, the average will be set too low and the scene will be rendered dark and muddy-looking. Sunny beach or snow scenes should be shot with the exposure compensation adjusted to +1.0 or even +1.5 stops over what the camera is telling you.

 

Most cameras, including DSLRs, now include a Beach/Snow scene mode that automatically adjusts the exposure to compensate.

 

Dave

[chipmaster]

One thing I suggest is look at pictures or take a test picture and correct

 

If subject is dark but background is bright turn on the flash

If everything is too dark boost exposure +1 and check again...

 

Also if too bright do the opposite...

 

:D

[burchan]

Why do some of my photos of a sunny beach scene, escpecially with water turn out looking dark?

 

You took photo against the sun. You can see reflection in the sea. This is what metering adjusted to.

[awboater]

As others have said, this is where the exposure compensation comes in handy. You typically have to make some adjustment on bright sunny days.

 

Also in your past photo there is a lot of glare coming from the waves. A circular polarizer would help here.

[johneeo]

Why do some of my photos of a sunny beach scene, escpecially with water turn out looking dark? Is this where you need a circular polarizing filter? Here are a couple of examples of what I mean.

 

In this one I kind of like the effect of my DH being silhouetted, but this is not what the scene really looked like.

 

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Jan 23, Victory cruise. by Prairie Gal2, on Flickr

 

 

 

What kind of camera are you using? As some have suggested, many cameras have a setting for bright sun scenes that could help.

 

Also, if sunlight is looking at you, as in your first pic, you will get a silhouette effect. If you are close enough to your subject, use your flash in such circumstances to compensate.

[donaldsc]

If your camera has a spot metering setting, you could put your exposure setting to manual instead of P and then spot meter the object you want to be properly exposed. The problem with this approach, however, is that everything else will be overexposed. Another possibility would be to use active-D-lighting or its equivalent.

 

DON

[TLCOhio]

Here are a few of my pictures from Mykonos in Greece and off of the Norway Coast in the scenic Lofoten Islands. Things worked fine for me. Maybe having a mix of other elements and items, besides just water and beach, helped things. Time of day when shot can be a factor, also.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 65,236 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 59,620 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

 

Rocks, beaches and dramatic scenery in the Lofoten Islands when we did our DIY drive south and then back on the Lofoten Islands.:

 

 

 

On the opposite side of the Mykonos village on the island, here's a sampling of the beachside activities. This includes Agrari, Elia and the long sweeping Kalafatis beach that has become famous to wind surfers:

 

 

 

 

 

Here are some additional visual samples on the opposite side from the Mykonos village for various beachside activities: