Which is the BETTER MISTAKE? Underexpose or Overexpose?

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We all make mistakes, and at times, we make photography-related mistakes - particularly exposure-related mistakes. Sometimes we underexpose; other times, we overexpose. Is one mistake better than the other? That's what I explore in this video.
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[@AnthonyMorganti]

Please help support my channel - consider purchasing my Lightroom Presets: www.anthonymorganti.com/ If you're not into presets, you can still help me help others learn photography. You can quickly offer your support here where I receive 100% of your kind gift: ko-fi.com/anthonymorganti You can change the default amount to the amount you want to donate. We all make mistakes, and at times, we make photography-related mistakes - particularly exposure-related mistakes. Sometimes we underexpose; other times, we overexpose. Is one mistake better than the other? That's what I explore in this video. ** I am an affiliate for all the other companies mentioned below, EXCEPT Affinity Photo. Please read my Code of Ethics Statement: onlinephotographytraining.com/code-of-ethics/ Anthony Morganti’s MUST HAVE applications: At least one Non-Destructive RAW Editor Lightroom - bit.ly/2zwQ0nW Luminar - bit.ly/2JUJxKw (Save with the Promo Code: morganti-neo) On1 Photo RAW - on1.sjv.io/EaGR2K (Save 20% with Promo Code: AM20) At least one FULL Editing App: Photoshop - bit.ly/2zwQ0nW Affinity Photo - affinity.serif.com/en-us/photo/ My MUST-HAVE Plugins: Topaz Gigapixel AI - bit.ly/3cDqa5J Topaz Sharpen AI - bit.ly/3cDqa5J Topaz Denoise AI - bit.ly/3cDqa5J *Save 15% on all Topaz Labs apps - use the Promo Code: AMDISC15 or instead of Topaz Denoise AI: On1 NoNoise AI - on1.sjv.io/EaGR2K (Save 20% with Promo Code: AM20 - May not work on sale product) The Best Sky Images I've Seen Available -- Ocudrone - bit.ly/3uCz6U4 *Save 10% with Discount Code: Morganti10 ** Note that all of the promo codes listed above may not work on sale products. *** I am an affiliate for all of the companies listed EXCEPT Affinity Photo and Capture One. Please read my Code of Ethics Statement: onlinephotographytraining.com/code-of-ethics/ Please follow me on Instagram: instagram.com/anthonymorganti/ Thank you!

[@kenhalal375]

Thanks for the refresher on spot metering. I don't seem to take advantage of that often enough.

[@cmichaelhaugh8517]

About what I expected, but the separation of focus and light metering is something I have never tried. Thank you!

[@zeragon7]

This was very informative. Thank you so much!

[@KenToney]

Sometimes with my bird photography I select sky and invert. This gives a better selection around wings. Lightroom needs improvement in selections IMO

[@PhilZwick]

I am surprised that you did not increase the shadows slider on the underexposed statue either instead of or along with the exposure slider. You might have gotten an even better recovery.

[@Rocodil]

Hi Anthony, very helpful insight! I am going to practice the photography settings with my camera. I will probably first use exposure compensation or shutter speed to adjust. What I discovered some month ago is that there is a difference between apps and the ability to recover overexposed areas. I found that Lightroom is much better than On1 for instance. Maybe a nice suggestion for a next video?

[@alandunbar3201]

Great tuition - Thank you😊

[@rrrosecarbinela]

I've found that using the objects tool on selected areas often helps me refine images without much trouble.

[@jlopez7596]

Thanks for the reminder as i was taught to epose for the highlights and process for the shadows and forgot that was for slide film. This example is why full frame cameras that have live view and highlight alerts makes life simpler. You learn your individual camera of what limits you push those highlights and while you stated about the grain in the shadows as long as they are not muddy it is to be expected. Thanks for a good video. Have you tried these images with the new neo hdr plugin?

[@gharawala]

very well explained

[@bobbarr2627]

I do believe that you can use both images in an HDR type program and then make your adjustments to the combined image, would save time.

[@DrJoeJoeHands]

Thank you

[@billygarrett3911]

Even tho this was 2017, welcome to my part of the world! King Neptune is one of the most photographed things in the area. If you come back to the area you need to visit Williamsburg during the fall time. Thanks again for your great videos!

[@vacanechaser]

I saw the thumbnail and was thinking you might be here for the ECSC East Coast Surfing Championship which is this weekend. Nice shot and vid on how blowout high lights are truly blowout and easier to recover the shadows..

[@brucefulton]

As a couple of other comments indicate, exposure bracketing is an obvious solution. For most situations, I shoot raw and have exposure compensation set to underexpose 1/3 or -2/3, but in high contrast situations, I'll leave exposure compensation set underexposed and shoot a 3 to 5 shot bracket at + 1 and send it to PS as an HDR merge, with edit in the final image in camera raw. This won't work well in cases where there is significant movement in the images over the timespan over the shot sequence unless you want to blur the motion as in waterfalls and surf, in which case, you achieve what you would otherwise have to drag out your ND filters. But when it works, and if you are careful in the edits not to make the hdr garish, this is a very effective technique. You can also try two exposures, one a half up and one a half down and merge. Photoshop can autoalign and this may be enough. It's all about thinking what you want before you press the shutter release. Easier said than done.

[@boatman222345]

Excellent advice for high contrast images with bright highlights. But as a general rule a tad of overexposure yields more data to work with. Soooo following the under exposure rule across the board would be a big mistake…use it only when it's absolutely necessary to maintain detail in bright highlights.

[@minimeguju6868]

Noob photographer here: wouldn’t you use bracketing in this case? Maybe difficult with hand held?

[@boatman222345]

@@minimeguju6868 Bracketing does offer a margin of error and in the old days it was wise to utilize the technique to ensure you wound up with the correct exposure. Today's cameras make getting correct exposure a good deal easier so I seldom use bracketing now. With static subjects I set the exposure, make the shot, and then check the histogram to evaluate the results. If highlights are overexposed I make the necessary corrections. A tripod is not needed unless shutter speeds are low. I think you may be confusing exposure bracketing with combining multiple images into one master image as in panoramas? In that case a tripod is required.

[@ThePNWRiderWA]

I have not bought into the the “ expose to the right. “ since the advent of mirrorless exp. Comp. , shadow and highlight detection etc. if it’s really dark I will shoot another at + a 1/3 of a stop and merge if I have to do so.

[@onlysublime]

With the new lightroom ai masks, I changed my habit. Before I would definitely under expose if it was a tricky scenario and worry about noise and color later. Now I find I'll expose so that the subject is much closer to properly exposed and then recover the sky with the ai masks. I find the final results much better and faster to get to and I can get the sky back (as long as I don't way over expose).

[@mhaar]

Thanks!

[@AnthonyMorganti]

Thanks Mark!

[@joshmcdzz6925]

For video exposure, I think it's better you overexpose but not to the point of clipping data because underexposing reveals alot of noise when you pull it up in post.. Although you can get by with underexposing if you use davinci studio ( very great noise reduction tool there )

[@danielmilham2730]

In film days we would say expose a little to the right, referring to the TTL meter, but since I’ve been shooting Digital I find that exposing a little to the left gets me much more recoverable detail.

[@paulmoadibe9321]

There's a LOT of videos on the web saying to always expose to the right (digital or not). Personally, I always try to expose the best way I can, so if i under or over exposed a little ( I mean a LITTLE), it's always easy to correct. 👍👍

[@Pablo081]

I use back-button focus, then I use my histogram and set the exposure as far to the right (ETTR) as I can. If the shadows are going to underexpose I usually will do a 2 shot bracket with one at 0 and the other at -2. I rarely need a 3 shot bracket. U usually don't worry about pushing the histogram all the way to the right because it's measuring the LCD which is a JPG representation and the RAW will always have slightly more Dynamic range.

[@alansach8437]

That's something a lot of folks don't understand, is that the histogram is of a jpeg even if you are shooting in RAW. There is always (some) more dynamic range than the histogram shows. Ideally you shoot correctly in the camera, but if you are going to be off, better slightly over than under most of the time if you are concerned with noise, though slightly under can give you more drama. But, for crying out loud! How hard is it? You have a representation of the image on the back of the camera ( assuming you have screen brightness set at 0, not plus or minus), and you have a histogram!! Nowadays you even have exposure simulation in the view finder!!! Shoot it right to begin with!

[@martineudall]

Be interesting to see what the merged brackets look like.

[@alanalain4884]

Thank you for the video, Anthony... Now, if one considers that most of the time average user won't program the back button and shutter focus override to make the back button focus work as intended with your scenario (as I believe even with back button focus assigned to focus, on Canon DSLR pressing the shutter will still override back button, if not also programmed not to focus when depressed), and so then, wouldn't it be easier for most to get familiar first with what's already on most camera for that purpose, naming here the AEL button instead (set on AEL only), simply metering on the sky with it, and then just reframing, focusing and shooting once locked? Or would the back button have other hidden advantages, as it might be confusing at first to focus with it only vs with the shutter release for who is not used to maybe?

[@gwine9087]

Well, Anthony, I understand what you were demonstrating but, If I had created that underexposed shot, I would be keeping a copy. I think that it is brilliant, accidental or not.

[@radiozelaza]

I think it will be a total gamechanger if the sensor technology advances to get the pixels react differently to overexposed highlights, but I've heard rumors about this new anti-overexposure technology for years now and nothing appeared on the market as of yet.

[@jaspergoodall3206]

Nikon Z cameras have a nice function (maybe the dslrs did too but I never owned one) it’s a highlight weighted metering, set to meter so that the highlights are always ok. I use it all the time, and in the back of the camera, yeah stuff looks dark, but so long as you’re shooting raw in processing you’ll never get a blown highlight. But I hear what you’re saying - some kind of algorithm to expose subjects and then kind of dial down highlights. That would be very cool. Like exposure bracketing but one shot.

[@jeffreypeters7826]

One thing I've done is mix sawdust into the varnish or lacquer I'm going to be using on the piece, and then use that mixture to fill any unwanted spaces, or fill over the top of screws/nails to "hide" them. It really takes the guesswork out of calculating the amount of food per guest at catered events. Ironically, if I was a woman, I'd want my name to be Wendy.

[@oscararrieta326]

I live in Virginia, I will try your recommendation next time. Can you use the presets Photoshop Raw as well?

[@garryhughes3747]

Thank you again for this! I am going back to some of those underexposed RAW files. I just bought your Lightroom presets and although I've only tried a few I managed to sort out a nicely composed but somehow not quite natural-looking Autumn woodland shot. Your preset gave it a nudge that really nailed it. Keep up the fine work!

[@alansach8437]

Depends on how much.

[@FunkOsax]

Hi Anthony. I don't know if you "have the ear" of the Adobe Lightroom Classic developers. If so, could you mention how the export dialogue box has become more challenging to use if you have more than 18 characters in the name of a custom user preset? After the latest update, the preset name box is set a lot narrower in relation to the settings, so longer names of user presets are obscured unless the whole dialogue box is maximised or over-elongated. Thanks

[@TC_Conner]

I use back button single point focus too. I didn’t know the secret about how to expose for the sky by half pressing the shutter button once you move your focus point off the subject after it is in focus. And I (mistakenly?) thought that you had to keep the back button depressed to maintain focus while recomposing and if you didn’t, you’d lose focus.

[@iandobson8846]

That would depend on whether you have removed focus activation from the shutter button too or not. Personally, on my D500 I have different focus points set up for back button (single in fact) and the shutter button, so they both are still active for focus, so this approach won't work in my case. You could just use exposure lock, exposure compensation or manual exposure. Or indeed focus lock or manual focus.

[@TC_Conner]

@@iandobson8846 Yes, I have removed it from the shutter button to back button focus.

[@vernonsza]

The trick is to overexpose THEN underexpose and merge for an HDR image. I'm kidding but this is the reason I shoot in aperture priority mode and keep the exposure comp. dial at -1/3 I do wish my Fuji had a highlight priority mode for for the metering for MOST things. Also, because of videos that you've shown on products like DXO PureRaw or DeNoise AI, I basically shrug at noise in images now.

[@34thncrenshaw]

same

[@34thncrenshaw]

thought u were serious about the hdr for a minute. lol. sometimes hdr can be good, but for the most part its abused and looks like shit

[@vernonsza]

@@34thncrenshaw The best HDR (in my opinion) is the stuff real estate photographers do. Their stuff has to look really natural. Most HDR does look like shit. I find the best strategy is to shoot as many odd images as you can (in the case of my X-Pro3, it's 9 (1 image at 0, 4 overexposed at +2/3 each and 4 underexposed at -2/3 each)). When I merge them together in LR, I toss the 9 images and keep that one raw file. Then just treat it like it's a regular image rather than what people do by overcooking it. I think this kind of thing works best in harsh lighting such as noon because you can get something a lot closer to what your eye sees.

[@34thncrenshaw]

@@vernonsza agreed

[@andrewswalls]

If you combine each of the images you will have an amazing HDR picture. I know that's what you were intended but try it and see if it works.

[@MaiElizabeth]

For that kind of photography (silhoutte), underexposed is definitely looks much cooler.

[@Vicvines]

Ideally, would you bracket and turn into HDR in Lightroom? I do 3 shot bracketed HDR because I'm not confident with a single exposure. I'm always afraid of my exposure being bad, even 7 years into photography. HDR seems to fix that for me.

[@gordonhutchinson529]

I would...

[@johnmcnairn6822]

I nearly always underexpose a tad in general...in art nude and portraits then quite a lot, I've never understood why people ETTR especially when photographing skin

[@KimHojbergJensen]

This is also what I have heard. Recently I have seen a number of youtube videos promoting "Exposure to the right". This has puzzled me a bit.

[@j.frankparnell3087]

The idea is to expose to the right without blowing out the highlights. Sometimes that means way to the right and sometimes it means barely to the right. Then you can reduce exposure in post as necessary. As he mentions in the video, the benefit is reducing noise in the shadow areas.

[@amaitra]

What about ETTR? Without clipping that is.

[@teamdata]

So, do you live in Virginia Beach? Nice tutorial.

[@mohomami9684]

Is there a way to create or save a preset in luminar AI and then apply this preset in Lightroom CC without going to “ edit in Luminar AI”?

[@pralex4477]

Then I was always wrong by intentionaly overexpose my shots fearing of noises when increasing the exposure on post

[@jamespirie2078]

I tried a night scape time laps night before I was tracking had iso down at 400 for long exposure forgot to put back to 3200 they were all black lol

[@whereisjohnnow]

I intentionally under expose(-.3, -.7, or even -1) all my sunrise/sunset shots because the sky looks overblown at +0. Looking at the display screen, cloud color looks white rather the actual color of clouds. Does this sound right or something wrong with exposure compensation?

[@chadpeterson2033]

Would be interesting to repeat this video with an image that is overexposed but not ridiculously blown out

[@trevorcarpenter6678]

I never understand how I can't pull back slightly overexposed pistures but may people are telling me I should use ETTR

[@alansach8437]

The idea of ETTR is just that, expose to the right....not overexpose. Ideally you want the histogram to just touch the right side, not smash into it. The idea is that if you extend the histogram to the right you capture more information. You can test this by looking at file size. The file will be quite a bit larger in an image exposed to the right, giving you more information to work with.

[@jorgecosta7974]

ETTR ...not ETTRRRRRRRRRRR :-)

[@34thncrenshaw]

i always under exspose just by a little

[@MrTheWaterbear]

Yup, I definitely prefer underexposing :)

[@Kevinn714]

If you have a beautiful background I’ll try to slightly under expose my subject BUT if the sun is shining bright/cloudy skies then I’ll just focus on my subject and put a fake background in photoshop LOL

[@dexon555]

Digital it’s better to under expose. With negative film, it’s better to over expose.

[@southsidekarl]

Thank you I will start to underexpose a little pit.

[@KatrineRav]

I'm wondering why you are using the exposure and contrast sliders instead of highlights, shadows, whites and blacks :) For the first image, it seems simpler to me to just lighten your shadows and blacks of the whole image, rather than having to mask it and use exposure. Is there a benefit to your way, that I'm just not aware of? :)

[@34thncrenshaw]

i think when u use exsposure it looks more natural than, highlights blacks etc, in certain circumstances

[@oldtvnut]

I would have tried a shadows adjustment first, and then get more complex if it didn't work well.

[@GreatOne0815]

That was my first question. Especially in Lightroom the highlights and shadows sliders are really good in recovering those and it's much easier than masking. I tested Exposure X7 in comparison and there you had to use the exposure slider and masking because the highlights and shadows slider were so bad.

[@BennyCFD]

Well................As long as you're not too far off and it's digital it's all going to be corrected in photoshop or light room anyway.

[@dps6198]

Neither.

[@bigshotmedia]

Why do people allways say expose to the right?

[@iandobson8846]

I believe it helps reduce noise in the shadows if you lift the exposure a little. Obviously not to the point that highlights are overexposed. This technique is a lot easier with a mirrorless camera that can display a real time histogram of course.

[@Pablo081]

@@iandobson8846 My DSLR has a real time histogram

[@Pablo081]

If you have a histogram in your camera, you can easily see where your highlights are and as long as you don't clip them in the histogram, then you'll be able to recover them comfortably in LR. What you can't do is recover blown highlights. So if you don't have a histogram, you have to go by your camera meter and point to a fairly bright spot in your composition.

[@iandobson8846]

@@Pablo081 interesting, what make and model? My Nikon D500 doesn't have it in the optical viewfinder but does have it available in Liveview.

[@Pablo081]

@@iandobson8846 I have a Canon 6DII. It doesn't have the histogram in the viewfinder, but it does in Liveview. I use the Liveview when on a tripod. When I'm hand-holding, I turn on the Liveview, set up general composition, adjust the exposure with ETTR and determine if I need to bracket, then, once the exposure is set, turn off Liveview and compose and set focus through the viewfinder. I'm so used to doing it this way that it takes very little time.

[@MaiElizabeth]

I think if you intend to do tutorial, you should at least set the interface looks bigger. Difficult to see and thus difficult to follow. Most of us are watching this on phone.

[@svtv_9615]

Ew Virginia Beach