Sunrise Sunset help please

CumbrianCanary

CumbrianCanary

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I have had my 450D for a few weeks now and am really enjoying getting to grips with my first SLR camera. When I am brave enough I will post some pictures!

I am looking for some advice on taking sunrise/set pictures. My old point and shoot had a sunrise/set setting and the pictures came out fairly reasonably. When I take them with the 450D on P setting (with standard kit lens) they look very dark as I guess the camera is compensating for have a strong light source. Could anyone give me some tips on the setting I should be looking at changing to get some reasonable sunrise/set pictures please?

Thanks in advance.
CC
 
If you want to stay in P mode, set the exposure compensation to +1. If that's not enough or too much, add or subtract 1/2 a stop and try again.

The alternative is to go to M mode and set the camera to overexpose by a stop or so according to the meter reading.

A read through the manual will tell you how to set exposure compensation - sorry, I'm from the light side (Nikon user).
 
Nod ...isn't Nikon the Dark side?? :D

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Also CC, In P mode, you could swap your light meter for center weighted or spot ...then aim the meter at the area of sky you'd like to expose for.... then press/hold your exposure lock button (I have no idea where that is, I'm a Nikon user) ...then re-compose as you wish and fire the shutter.

It'll be one big experiment, only you know what you'd like to see. :thumbs:

M mode will give you all the control btw... well worth experimenting and fine tuning your knowledge as to what! makes what! happen...Copy the readings you get in P mode to start yourself off..
 
You may need to set the white balance for daylight otherwise the auto WB may try to compensate for the red glow in the sky.
I also have no idea how to do that on your kit as I am another Nikon user. See we can be helpful - sometimes!
 
hehe ..what else can we add...

CC, you want to try and avoid highlights (burnt out areas) ... which you may have spotted are less on the new shots (Cos cannon meters know) ...you can use the histogram feature on your rear screen to spot the over peaked highlights within your shots.(on the right H/S of the cannon graph I think) . Nikons have a highlight sceen too, which flashe/blinks the blown areas... I think yours has this too..
 
Thanks for your thoughts and ideas. Will get out and have a play and I'll let you know how it goes.
 
DonnaM said:
You may need to set the white balance for daylight otherwise the auto WB may try to compensate for the red glow in the sky.
I also have no idea how to do that on your kit as I am another Nikon user. See we can be helpful - sometimes!
Click to expand...

I would suggest that the "cloudy" setting if there is one will give a more pleasing result and more colourful sky.

Don't even know if your camera has that setting and if it does how to get to it because I too am a Nikon user.
 
Oh,I should think a good camera like the 450d will have cloudy,I won,t shoot in any WB but cloudy for sunsets.
Shoot manual as Forbiddenbiker says, set the Apt to around f/11 and play with the shutter speed ,then keep looking at you,re screen till happy.
 
I tend to use aperture priority mode, set it to f/8, activate auto-bracketing +/- 1 stop or more and have just started using Cokin P graduated neutral density filters.

Using the above, I shot this yesterday:

 
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