Nubie needs help with SUNNY DAY SHOOT

[Suffian Harris Mustapa]

Hi all, im quite new here,
ive just got this oppurtunity to try my boss's xl-1.

malaysia is a tropical country, and now, its hot and sunny.
im going to shoot some footages, just trying to get myself familiar with xl-1.
whats the best settings for hot sunny day shoot for xl-1,
please advice.


-nubieyubie-

[Chris Colin Swanson]

In sunny you will most likely have to much light and too much contrast. That means the darks vs. the brights will be more than the camera can take. Shoot all sunny or all shadow to eliminate this If you shoot in places without shadow just change the aperture and the shutter speed. Use the ND filter on the lense. The ND and a polarizing filter both will help with contrast. If this doesn't work fiddle with the gain down (the AE shift)
Thats the basics but I am sure others will say alot more. I would rather have sunny that dark anyday, you have more options.
Remember not to let the viewfinder look at the sun, it can burn it. Have fun on your adventure.

[Tom Hardwick]

I've just returned from KL and it's the humidity more than anything that's the killer. The sunshine is no better than in Scotland, but even so I'd most certainly use the in-built ND filter(s) and keep the zebras turned on at the 100% setting to warn you of the over-exposed areas.

Keep the camera on the defauly 1/50th sec shutter speed but you can up that by a stop or so to avoid using apertures smaller than f/5.6, when the camera gets less and less sharp. I'd avoid using external filters if you can as the very short focal lengths mean they must be kept absolutely spotless.

tom.

[Robert J. Wolff]

Might I suggest that you bring along an umbrella to sheild the camera from the sun. The heat generated inside the camera, on some occasions, could cause the tape to deform.

[Waldemar Winkler]

In photography, getting the right exposure on bright sunshine days (or in any situation) used to involve a lot of educated guesswork which had to based upon where one wanted to see the greatest amount of detail and sharpness in the final image. That always had a bit of suspense because one had to wait until the film was processed. With video and digital still cameras, what one gets is only the patience of a few seconds, if not instantaneous, and that is a wonderful gratification. However, I don't see a whole lot of change in latitude between film and digital imaging. The cameras manage to display about 25% of what the eye can perceive in the subtle shifts between pure black and pure white.

I could get into exposure theory, but that is a bit long. The bottom line is simply to get the scene to look correct in your viewfinder. Manual exposure is best, but that won't manage pans and zooms very well. I prefer aperture priority because that establishes what, if anything, behind the focus point will be out of focus and very likely produce the image clarity you want to see. The smaller number (f1.6) will produce a very short depth of focus where the larger number (f11 or f16) will produce more depth of focus. The use of the camera's built in ND filter will reduce the light passing through the lens to a level that the camera's sensors can manage. The addition of a polarizing filter will do two things. First, it only allows parrallel light to pass through the lens. That eliminates unwanted reflections as well as increases contrast. Second, it acts as an additional ND filter, though not quite as intense. A polarizing filter works best when the camera is at 90 degrees to the sun, and diminishes its effect as the camera's lens is aimed more in line with the path of the sun.

Lastly, and this may seem almost a contradiction, try to shoot in the morning or afternoon hours. The shadows created by the sun will significantly enhance the interest of your images. When the sun is at its zenith the light appears flat and boring.

[Chris Colin Swanson]

All good information above. I just want to point out that f4-f8 is the sweet spot but like in tennis the shot you return with is better than the shot you missed trying to hit with the sweet spot.

[Tom Hardwick]

We're talking 1"/3 chips here, so treat f/5.6 as the smallest aperture if you want to avoid diffraction losses. In HDV, move that goalpost to f/4.

[Thomas Weilguny]

how noticeable will diffraction be if you go below that? I always thought that especially with 1/3´´ ccds it would be a good idea to have the iris as far open as possible to avoid that "in focus from here to infinity" look.

[Tom Hardwick]

That's very true Thomas. Getting differential focus with tiny 1"/3 chips means shooting as wide open as possible. Trouble with that though is max aperture vignettes the corners of the frame (all lenses do this) and there's a lot more veiling flare. But then again, I'd much rather shoot wide open than at f/11.

tom.

[Waldemar Winkler]

Originally Posted by Tom Hardwick

We're talking 1"/3 chips here, so treat f/5.6 as the smallest aperture if you want to avoid diffraction losses. In HDV, move that goalpost to f/4.

I've spotted that as well. Indeed, I rarely shoot at an fstop smaller than 5.6. For discussion purposes, f11 and 16 fit photographic theory.

Has anyone found the video equivalent of the "sunny 16" rule?

[Tom Hardwick]

There's no 'sunny 16' any more as chips vary so hugely in their light gathering caopacity. In fact 'sunny 4' is more like it, with lots of ND thrown in.