EXPOSURE AND FLASH COMPENSATION

Sometimes the camera’s exposure meter is deceived by high key or low key subjects. For example, a very bright scene, such as a snowy landscape or a white sandy beach, can appear too dark in the

1

0.5Ev

steps

0.3Ev

steps

Flash compensation

Exposure compensation

The ambient light and flash exposure can be adjusted

2before the image is captured to make the final picture lighter or darker.

To compensate the ambient exposure, press the Dial Lock Release and turn the exposure-compensation dial to the appropriate position (1). To adjust the flash exposure, turn the flash-compensation dial using the lever at the front of the camera (2).

The exposure compensation dial has two scales. The orange scale adjusts the exposure up to ±2.0Ev in 0.3Ev steps. The silver scale allows the exposure to be adjusted up to ±3.0Ev in 0.5Ev steps.

The position of the dial also affects the exposure modes. See Camera Notes on page 41. When using 0.3Ev increments, the maximum and minimum lens apertures may not be displayed correctly.

When setting exposure or flash compensation, the change in Ev is shown on the monitor. Flash compensation is only displayed when the flash is raised. The viewfinder Ev scale only shows changes to exposure compensation; ±2.5Ev is shown with an arrow, ±3.0Ev is indicated with a blinking arrow. After the setting is made, the shutter-speed and aperture displays indicate the actual exposure.

captured image. Before taking the picture, adjusting the exposure by +1 or +2 Ev results in an image with normal tonal values.

Calculated camera exposure

–1.0Ev

–2.0Ev

In the example above, the dark water caused the camera to overexpose the image making it bright and washed-out. By compensating the exposure, detail is brought out in the leaves, and the stones and water appear richer.

When using fill-flash to reduce harsh shadows caused by bright illumination or direct sunlight, flash compensation can change the ratio between the highlights and shadows. Fill flash affect the darkness of the shadows without affecting the area illuminated by the main light source. By decreasing the flash output with a negative Ev setting, the shadows receive less light and are darker, but subtle details in the shadows that would not appear without the flash are apparent. Increasing the flash output by using a positive Ev setting softens and nearly eliminate shadows.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Camera Notes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Exposure compensation can be assigned to the con-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

+2.5EV

 

+3.0EV

 

trol dials in section 2 of the custom menu (p. 96).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Positive compensation

No compensation

Negative compensation

No flash

48 Advanced recording

49