Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2008/09/02

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Subject: [Leica] About to take M8 plunge - but worried about blown highlights...
From: kididdoc at cox.net (Steve Barbour)
Date: Tue Sep 2 09:36:18 2008
References: <200809020336.AWF59279@rg4.comporium.net> <93642647159018605813317929417096646172-Webmail2@me.com> <C8DF4E7A-CB74-4543-A255-219DEE000A1F@mac.com>

On Sep 2, 2008, at 8:54 AM, Lottermoser George wrote:

> In my experience:
> The M8 set to -2/3
> (which is how mine is set 24/7 for all conditions)
> will preserve highlight detail in "most" situations.

I'm no real photographer,  but I echo George...

my M8 does the trick, a routine  -2/3 in RAW...can do it...


Steve






>
>
> As Tina indicated digital imaging is much more like transparency  
> film than negative film.
> Yet, the M8 displays very good, useable dynamic range compared to 5D.
> Software allows for successfully reclaiming highlights (to a point);
> and what can be pulled out of a shadow from an M8 file continues to  
> drop my jaw.
>
> Obviously if one is photographing available light within a room with  
> sunlight outside a window; any film or sensor will be strained to  
> hold detail throughout 14 -20 stops.
>
> As Daniel mentioned - taking a trip to a dealer and working the  
> camera near a window would quickly answer your concerns. If you do  
> this, be sure to bracket in one third stop steps and then spend some  
> time with the files in Lightroom. If you don't have experience with  
> Lightroom - find someone who does - so that you can truly see  
> everything within the image file. You will be amazed at these files.
>
> Fond regards,
> George
>
> george@imagist.com
> http://www.imagist.com
> http://www.imagist.com/blog
> http://www.linkedin.com/in/imagist
>
>
>
> On Sep 2, 2008, at 4:10 AM, Wyndham Pulman-Jones wrote:
>
>> The one thing that has held me back from buying an M8 is my dislike  
>> of the look of blown highlights in digital photos. Almost all of my  
>> shooting is of people interacting in social and working situations  
>> - and I always expose by taking incident readings for people's  
>> faces and letting everything else fall where it may. This  
>> frequently means that lighter exteriors visible through windows or  
>> doors are overexposed - but when using fast colour negative film  
>> there is almost always some tone and character to the overexposed  
>> area. The same also applies to highlights on people's hair when  
>> strongly backlit.
>>
>> When I have used digital (Epson RD-1, Canon 1Ds) I have not liked  
>> the totally white blown out highlights, fringed with un-natural  
>> looking chromatic aberation, that often result from shooting in  
>> this way (when you are not able to worry about exposinig for areas  
>> of the photo not carrying the narrative interest, which might end  
>> up significantly overexposed.)
>>
>> Does the M8 suffer from this just as much as any other digital  
>> camera? If so, what's the best technique for stopping those  
>> 'outside the scene' highlights from blowing out? Or is it just not  
>> possible with the M8 to 'set and forget' exposure in the way that  
>> you can with incident metering for the latitude of negative film?
>>
>> (I found some M8 DNG samples which show totally blown out 'through  
>> the window' highlights which have the digital look that just  
>> doesn't look right to me: http://rpo.eranet.tv/)
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Simon.
>> Cambridge, UK.
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Leica Users Group.
>> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Leica Users Group.
> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information


In reply to: Message from images at comporium.net (Tina Manley) ([Leica] IMG: Playing with Fire)
Message from simonpj at mac.com (Wyndham Pulman-Jones) ([Leica] About to take M8 plunge - but worried about blown highlights...)
Message from imagist3 at mac.com (Lottermoser George) ([Leica] About to take M8 plunge - but worried about blown highlights...)