How would you have taken this photo?

[Hello.there]

I took a few photos one afternoon last week using just the auto settings on my Nikon D40 - below is just an example. The sun was trying hard to come out but it was a hazy grey-ish afternoon, the sky and sea blended in to one grey-ish silvery colour.

The settings were:

Aperture: f/5.6
Shutter Speed: 1/2000
ISO: 280

What settings would you have used to have improved the shot? Is light like that just really difficult to shoot in, or is it possible to get more vivid colours, etc if you know what you're doing?

Would really appreciate some advice, thanks.

 

[worriedmac]

The only real reason to use 1/2000 of a second for exposures is because the subject is moving fast. I would drop the ISO as low as it goes (100ISO probably). Also closing off the aperture would be a good idea to f18 say. You should still be able to handhold that.

 

[M@lew]

I would've made the aperture narrower. 5.6 isn't really enough to get suitable sharpness with the subjects that far away. f/11 may have been good and it was pretty sunny.

Also, composition wise I could do something about that tree/bush in the foreground. Very distracting.

 

[worriedmac]

The focul length appears to be about 70mm you do need to keep the exposure number above this. Its a rule of thumb. 1/160 would probably be safe unless those boats are moving fast. I changed my mind after looking closer about the f-stop. f11 would probably be the smallest aperture for the job in hand.

 

[compuwar]

I took a few photos one afternoon last week using just the auto settings on my Nikon D40 - below is just an example. The sun was trying hard to come out but it was a hazy grey-ish afternoon, the sky and sea blended in to one grey-ish silvery colour.

The settings were:

Aperture: f/5.6
Shutter Speed: 1/2000
ISO: 280

What settings would you have used to have improved the shot? Is light like that just really difficult to shoot in, or is it possible to get more vivid colours, etc if you know what you're doing?

Would really appreciate some advice, thanks.

The haze really wants a circular polarizing filter on the front of the lens.

With that much shutter speed, I'd shoot at base ISO. I'd have gotten closer or used a much longer FL lens, and probably gotten lower down too- but honestly there's nothing composition-wise that would have had me take this shot- especially in that light.

You want better for these conditions, get a circular polarizer.

 

[Blue Velvet]

The amount of haze and the intensity of the fluorescent colours on the boats shows how much UV is around. Apart from issues of composition where a better position closer to the waterline may have helped, a good UV filter may have been of use here; maybe a polarising filter as well.

 

[Hello.there]

Thanks everyone, appreciate the advice - noted, will do better next time

Should have mentioned, the focal length was 200mm (I was using my 18-200mm lens).

Agree about that tree, but I didn't bother cropping the photo because light-wise it was a complete failure. But...

 

[riscy]

I think the crop without the tree leaves the boat at the bottom too close to the edge - I would have used the Clone stamp tool to recreate the water where the tree is.

 

[Hello.there]

I think the crop without the tree leaves the boat at the bottom too close to the edge - I would have used the Clone stamp tool to recreate the water where the tree is.

I agree, it doesn't look good at all - but honestly, it's not a photo worth saving, I was just using it here as an example of my light problems that day.

 

[compuwar]

a good UV filter may have been of use here; maybe a polarising filter as well.

Given the colors of the sails being UV-active, don't you think a strong UV filter would probably mute the colors- where a CPL wouldn't change the overall colors, just tone down the light scatter?

 

[Blue Velvet]

Given the colors of the sails being UV-active, don't you think a strong UV filter would probably mute the colors- where a CPL wouldn't change the overall colors, just tone down the light scatter?

Fluorescence works by converting available ambient UV light to light in the visible spectrum which explains why fluorescent objects seem so much brighter and more intense than other objects. This is particularly noticeable at dusk when certain flowers and objects seem to glow.

So, I doubt it would have affected the saturation of the sails as the light coming from them to the lens would have essentially remained the same, but a UV filter may have helped punch through the haze a bit more, reducing the aerial perspective. If a UV filter was placed between the sails and the sun, then it would have eliminated or reduced the fluorescence.

This is just my opinion; don't hold me to it.

It would be interesting to see if someone can replicate this using some filters just for comparison.

 

[Doylem]

Haze is always bad news, and, yes, you need to lower the shutter speed. But... if the light is grey and unrevealing, there really isn't a great deal you can do to rectify matters. If the event is unrepeatable, just take the best shot you can. Otherwise, make a mental note to revisit the scene when the light is better...

 

[AlaskaMoose]

Shoot RAW, and PP with PhotoShop.