I dont get it

[richard_strickland]

<p>Ok so I read an article about metering for the background in portraits. I even watched a video that was attached. But here is the issue. I DONT GET IT. Im using a Nikon D7000 with ether the kit 18-55, Tamron 18-200 or nikor 50 with a Nikon SB-600 flash. So ive tried to meter for the background but how do I do this and set the flash to bring the person up in tones. Thank you very much as lighting is the newest thing for me but I enjoy learning it</p>

[SCL]

<p>IMHO you shouldn't worry about metering the background for portraits...merely ensure there is less light on the background by 1-2 stops and meter your subject for the proper skin tones adjusting exposure for the natural skin color (caucasian or other).</p>

[Matt Laur]

<p>The reason to worry about metering for the background is to avoid the Portrain-In-A-Cave effect. Left to its own devices, the camera (knowing it has a flash mounted) may just take care of lighting up your portrait subject while allowing the exposure to leave the background looking very dark.<br /><br />Here's how you deal with that: turn off the flash (or better yet, take it off the camera - you might find you actually want to use it off camera, remotely controlled by the D7000 anyway). Make sure you have Auto ISO turned off in the camera.<br /><br />Then, move your subject out of the way, and with the camera still essentially looking at the same composition, set the ISO to something appropriate (say, no higher than 400 to start), and use shutter priority, with the speed set to no faster than 1/200th. What's the camera telling you? Can it take a shot with those settings? It will want to adjust the aperture in order to control the exposure (since you're already giving it ISO and shutter speed, aperture is all it has to play with). If it likes the exposure, but is forcing you to use too wide an aperture (as in, you won't get decent depth of field because the lens is open too wide), then you need to bring in more light by slowing down the shutter. Say, to 1/60th. When you see a setting you like, change the camera's exposure from shutter priority to manual, reproducing those settings.<br /><br />Once you've got a good exposure on the background, add in the flash. Don't change the exposure on the camera! Just put the flash into manual power mode (or, if you're using it as a CLS slave, use the D7000's CLS control menu to do so), and start with it at a low power (say, 1/64th) and see what you're getting in the way of fill on your subject. Raise the power until you like what you see.</p>

[jon_shumpert2]

<p>Hi Richard. Are you asking about outdoor or indoor portraits? If you are talking about outdoor portraits, then it is important to meter the background. I usually try to photograph people in the same lighting conditions as the background, but this is not always possible. For example, if my subject is in a shaded area and the background is sunlit, I will meter for the background and use flash or a reflector to bring the exposure on he subject close to the background exposure. In the example I used, I could just meter for my subject, but the background being sunlit would cause the background to be blown out. If you are shooting outdoors on a sunny day, using iso 100 for example, the sunlit background could have an exposure of 1/100 @ f16. Your subject in the shade might be a few stops darker, lets use 1/15 @ f16. By setting you camera manually to match the background, your flash in ttl would bring the light level on your subject to around the same light level as the background. As Stephen suggested, many photographers recommend setting the flash exposure to 1-2 stops below the background exposure. With the SB-600 you can adjust the exposure compensation on the flash. I hope this is helpful. Another good place That I found useful to learn flash techniques is http://www.strobist.blogspot.com/</p>

[rodeo_joe1]

<p>Easiest way to ensure there's sufficient light on the background indoors is to bounce the flash off the ceiling or wall of the venue. This gives gentler fall-off and better overall lighting than just blasting away with the flash pointed forward from the hotshoe. But forget silly little diffuser gizmos.</p>

<p>Of course if the venue is absolutely huge and dimly-lit, then there's not much you can do unless you have a few hundred joules of flash power available. An SB-600 just ain't gonna cut it in a barn-sized situation I'm afraid.</p>