Please Share Tips-High Contrast Days

[Jalva22]

This is an area of struggle for me, and given that outdoor photography at WDW often presents these circumstances, I was hoping some of the skilled photographers on this board could post some tips/tricks for getting a good shot.

Basically what I'm thinking of is a day with bright sun and strong shadows. My results are generally either an underexposed subject or blown-out surroundings.

Thanks!
Jim

 

[photo_chick]

Shots with a wide dynamic range can be challenging.

In some instances filters will help. Neutral density and polarizers can come in handy for different purposes. But a lot of times when the subject is in the shade and it's sunny in the background there isn't much to do except move the subject or use a flash to help even out the exposure. I'm anti-flash myself so I usually move the subject. You can also take multiple exposures on site and merge them later, by hand or with HDR software.

In any of the cases the number one rule I go by is expose for the subject. They're the important part. The rest, well if you botch it up maybe you can fix it in post, maybe not. At least you'll have the subject there for the memory.

 

[Twigs]

You could also try a graduated neutral density filter, positioning it so that the tinted part of the filter covers the area that would be underexposed.

 

[JoeDif]

You could try slipping one of these little guys past security.

Only kidding but some subtle flash may help in these situations