Photography in a hangar
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Photography in a hangar
Any thoughts or hints on getting good photos when an airliner is in a hangar with its tail sticking out, what tends to happen is the camera adjusts for the dark of the hangar then you loose the tail due to the bright light outside. We once had a channel 4 camera crew in the hangar and they decided against it when trying to film from the inside. It might just be impossible.
Any thoughts or hints on getting good photos when an airliner is in a hangar with its tail sticking out, what tends to happen is the camera adjusts for the dark of the hangar then you loose the tail due to the bright light outside. We once had a channel 4 camera crew in the hangar and they decided against it when trying to film from the inside. It might just be impossible.
This is were HDR is useful. It's the combination of under and overexposed images of the same subject. Without trying HDR, the next best option is to go full manual and try to hunt for the settings that produce the best compromise, but it will never be good.
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bracket exposures, one for the shadows one for the bright stuff and merge them. Or expose for the highlights and boost the shadows in processing, you can normally recover shadows but not overexposed bits. Try different metering modes to see which is better. You need to take control of the camera rather than letting it do its auto stuff.
Not manual vs automatic
It has nothing to do with manual or automatic.
The difference in lighting/intensity between the inside and outside is greater than the latitude of the film.
I typically use a graduated neutral density filter when I shoot video in a situation like this. Maybe a train is in shadow with bright sky above. Easy to fix with a filter that's darker on top than at the bottom.
As an aside, I used to be a "manual snob." Then one day I realized all automatic does is "center the needle" in an exposure meter. If I'm not smart enough to realize when a scene is not 'average' then automatic and manual will give me identical exposures. Automatic might actually do better when I need 1/750 of a second and the manual camera only has 1/500 and 1/1000. Half a stop more accurate exposure. If I'm taking pictures of a stage with a spot light on manual I use one or two stops/steps less exposure than the meter calls for. On automatic I simply set -2. Automatic in my modern Nikons with logic in the metering database is far more accurate than my manual Olympus OM-1 was, uh, 40 years ago.
I have multiple DSLR bodies and several lenses. I probably shoot 80% of my pictures on Program. Why? Under any given set of circumstances there are not that many choices for exposure. If I want something specific I make the camera do it. I depress the shutter button and read what it says in the viewfinder. If I'm happy with the setting I take a picture. For more precision I can zoom in on the subject, lock in the exposure, and recompose.
Sorry for the thread drift!
The difference in lighting/intensity between the inside and outside is greater than the latitude of the film.
I typically use a graduated neutral density filter when I shoot video in a situation like this. Maybe a train is in shadow with bright sky above. Easy to fix with a filter that's darker on top than at the bottom.
As an aside, I used to be a "manual snob." Then one day I realized all automatic does is "center the needle" in an exposure meter. If I'm not smart enough to realize when a scene is not 'average' then automatic and manual will give me identical exposures. Automatic might actually do better when I need 1/750 of a second and the manual camera only has 1/500 and 1/1000. Half a stop more accurate exposure. If I'm taking pictures of a stage with a spot light on manual I use one or two stops/steps less exposure than the meter calls for. On automatic I simply set -2. Automatic in my modern Nikons with logic in the metering database is far more accurate than my manual Olympus OM-1 was, uh, 40 years ago.
I have multiple DSLR bodies and several lenses. I probably shoot 80% of my pictures on Program. Why? Under any given set of circumstances there are not that many choices for exposure. If I want something specific I make the camera do it. I depress the shutter button and read what it says in the viewfinder. If I'm happy with the setting I take a picture. For more precision I can zoom in on the subject, lock in the exposure, and recompose.
Sorry for the thread drift!
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Any thoughts or hints on getting good photos when an airliner is in a hangar with its tail sticking out, what tends to happen is the camera adjusts for the dark of the hangar then you loose the tail due to the bright light outside. We once had a channel 4 camera crew in the hangar and they decided against it when trying to film from the inside. It might just be impossible.
Either bring strobes / led panels inside, or wait for the dusk/night and lit the tail properly then. Night and tail light might turn out good!
Shoot with a modern cellphone. They will do the balancing quite nice.
What sort of camera are you using ?
Channel 4 unit is irrelevant as they will have their own sets of acceptability, however I am surprised.
An ND filter may well be overkill.
Bracket to merge or HDR sound like good options; you or a friend will need PShop or similar to take advantage of these.
I tend to use Aperture Priority but that is because of the sort of shots I take. My camera has all sorts of options but should I feel the system will not produce what I wish, then Full Manual is the way to go, of course some understanding of the principles is required.
Or just shoot a load, see how they look and re-shoot with the best set of settings.
My credibility may well be doubted, so some of my stuff is at https://www.flickr.com/photos/47885101@N07/sets/
Channel 4 unit is irrelevant as they will have their own sets of acceptability, however I am surprised.
An ND filter may well be overkill.
Bracket to merge or HDR sound like good options; you or a friend will need PShop or similar to take advantage of these.
I tend to use Aperture Priority but that is because of the sort of shots I take. My camera has all sorts of options but should I feel the system will not produce what I wish, then Full Manual is the way to go, of course some understanding of the principles is required.
Or just shoot a load, see how they look and re-shoot with the best set of settings.
My credibility may well be doubted, so some of my stuff is at https://www.flickr.com/photos/47885101@N07/sets/
I would suggest to shoot into RAW and make sure the sky is not overexposed so EV -1 or more is a must. You can correct dark areas easily from RAW file but blown out picture is beyond repair. HDR bracketing with tripod may be also a good idea.
Raw is a definitely good suggestion,
Bracketing may also be an option
Both of these will benefit from using a tripod, if you can.
Low light and corresponding higher ISO tends to introduce noise and reduce DR. You'll get better DR with Raw, and also if you keep the ISO low - slow shutter speeds may introduce camera shake, which will ruin bracketing, hence a tripod.
Bracketing may also be an option
Both of these will benefit from using a tripod, if you can.
Low light and corresponding higher ISO tends to introduce noise and reduce DR. You'll get better DR with Raw, and also if you keep the ISO low - slow shutter speeds may introduce camera shake, which will ruin bracketing, hence a tripod.
And “expose to the right”: rather than exposing for the highlights and pulling in shadows, do the opposite.
Expose for shadows, while trying not to completely blow out the highlights - again this is for noise reduction.
Use a good low light camera, Canon R6 or 1DX. Both can be rented if the image is worth it.
And of course the biggest widest (open) fastest lens you can find. Seriously though, a wide-angle will also maximise the close up, & minimise the distant (contrasting tail).
Good luck.
Expose for shadows, while trying not to completely blow out the highlights - again this is for noise reduction.
Use a good low light camera, Canon R6 or 1DX. Both can be rented if the image is worth it.
And of course the biggest widest (open) fastest lens you can find. Seriously though, a wide-angle will also maximise the close up, & minimise the distant (contrasting tail).
Good luck.
That would certainly be the simplest solution. You could then choose from the resulting range of photos, depending on whether you want one with the dark bits or light bits correctly exposed.
Or push the plane out of the hangar for a moment?
We also do not know the difference in light levels between outdoors and inside the hangar etc etc, or how "critical" the shot is - "for fun", for commercial use in advertising etc, whether or not it is practical to bring along a selection of studio lighting to try to balance light levels etc etc