P3D Re: List of empirical exposure settings

[Eric Goldstein <egoldste@xxxxxx>]

WalterOsadciw wrote:

> My Kodak Stereo is now accompanied by a new
> tool:  an 18% grey card with a printout of the exposure scale you posted
> glued to the back.  Check and double check!

Hello Walter! Hope I'm not beating the dead horse and these comments are
not specifically directed at you but toward the discussion in general...

Using an 18% grey card will turn your refectance meter into an incidence
meter,  which with most instuments can be more conveniently accomplish
through the use of the hemispherical diffuser. 

Incidence of course is the basis of the sunny-16 and exposure table
"rules" and use of incidence measurement completely disregards the
reflectance values of the subject matter. Incidence measurements are
used almost exclusively in filmmaking, but extensive test films for
wardrobe and prop tests are conducted to determine the actual
reflectance and contrast of the scenes, and props/light are controlled
accordingly. In the studio Polaroid film is typically the exposure meter
if choice; if you're digital with printed halftones your end product
it's the computer monitor/Epson Color Stylus!

The decision to choose incidence versus reflectance measurements is not
a simple one... I am sorry to say that for serious photography, there
are no magic meters or simple rules or guidelines which will substitute
for an understanding of what meters "meter," and how photographic film
reacts to different quantities of light. If snapshots are your thing
than sunny-16 and tables provide acceptable results most of the time.

I wouldn't worry about dragging your meter and grey card around, as it
will often indicate different exposure values than your tables, and
without such an understanding of the process there would be no way of
knowing which to choose!


Eric G.


------------------------------