Re: Good exposure

[P3D Dr. George A. Themelis <fj834@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Paul Talbot writes:

>Dr. T raises a very good point that could stand to be expanded on
>somewhat.  "Good exposure" can only be defined with respect to a
>particular *combination* of camera, film, development, and viewing
>method.

Paul, this has been a favorite topic of discussion for me and, if I wanted
to be mean, I could dump enough "DrT Quotes" on this and related topics to
fill an entire digest.  But, I am in a good mood today, so I'll summarize
my views in a couple of sentences:

IMO, there is a range of acceptable ("good") exposures.  This range can be
as wide as 2 f-stops or more.  The best exposure within this range depends 
on the viewing conditions as you elaborated.  IMO, there is no such thing 
as PERFECT exposure.  I have defended my casual approach to exposure and I
believe that a beginner can get very good results without a $300 light
by relying on empirical rules or a quick check via an SLR, etc. as I did
when I got started into 3d.  This is only a personal opinion based on my
experience and the kind of photography that I practice.  Others claim that
there is such thing as perfect exposure, 1/2 f-stop can turn an excellent
slide into garbage and a beginner absolutely needs a good light meter to
get decent results with, say, a Realist camera.  Go figure...  -- George


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