What does “expose for the background” mean when using flash outdoors?
Asked 6/8/2015
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When photographing a person with a bright sky or open background behind them, I often hear people say to “expose for the background” and then use flash on the subject. I’m shooting in Manual mode, so I’m choosing aperture, shutter speed, and ISO myself. What does “expose for the background” actually mean in this situation? Does it mean metering the sky/background first, setting the camera so that part looks correct, and then using flash to brighten the person’s face?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
11y ago
2 Answers
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It means to set your camera to expose the sky correctly. If you are in Manual exposure mode you need to look in your viewfinder to see if the ISO/shutter speed/aperture you have selected exposes the sky properly by looking to see what the meter is telling you. Adjust the ISO/shutter speed/aperture until the exposure meter in your viewfinder says you are properly exposing when pointing towards the part of the sky that will be behind your subject in the photo. This will almost surely leave your subject underexposed. Meter your subject while the camera is still set to properly expose the sky and see how many stops your meter says your subject is underexposed. To get your subject properly exposed, leave the camera set to properly expose for the sky and then add enough fill flash to make up the difference between the bright sky and your less bright subject.
Originally by user15871. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user15871
11y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes. In this context, “expose for the background” means setting your camera’s ambient exposure so the background—often the sky—looks the way you want.
A common approach is:
- Point the camera toward the background area that will appear behind your subject.
- Set aperture, shutter speed, and ISO so that background is properly exposed (using the meter/histogram/viewfinder as needed).
- With those settings locked in, your subject will often look too dark.
- Add fill flash to raise the subject’s brightness to match the background.
So you are not focusing on the sky—you are metering/exposing for it. Focus and exposure are separate.
The reason this is done is that if you expose for the face first, the bright sky may blow out, and flash usually can’t fix an overexposed background. But if you expose the background first, flash can brighten the subject without changing the distant background much.
In short: set ambient exposure for the background, then use flash to light the person.
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