ISO - when to change it, when to leave it alone
How to choose to set your lighting:
Random other notes:
- When in doubt leave it alone. As my best friend from Uni's Dad says "Leave it on auto, a camera at that level, knows what it is doing better than you do"
- The teacher from my photography class's view on the ISO "Only change the ISO if the picture is too dark. Doubling the ISO will double the effects of the light."
- My opinions on the ISO:
- Bigger ISO# = brighter photo, but try to lighten the photo using your shutter speed & aperture first.
- Use a bigger ISO when photographing dancers and other subjects with quick movement.
How to choose to set your lighting:
- Set your light meter off of the brightest spot. Example: If you have someone sitting next to a window, their cheekbone is going to be the brightest spot, so set the light meter off of this. It is better to have a black half of the darker side of the face than it is to have a light half elsewhere.
- Light metering: sets off of your brightest spot in the photo
- Matrix metering: sets off of the overall lighting of the photo
- Center weighted metering: better for non-manual
Random other notes:
- To shoot mixed couples, don't shoot in light, shoot in cloud cover
- Instead of carrying around a lens hood for each lens, keep a nice thin index card and a rubber band in your camera bag. When you need to block some light, use the rubber band to wrap the index card around the side of the lens where the light is coming from.