How to use exposure bracketing

Exposure bracketing is a technique to help deal with poor or uncertain lighting by taking multiple pictures of the same scene at incremented exposure settings. Upon processing the photographs you will be able to choose the print that has the best exposure. This is a great way to learn and familiarize yourself with the effects of adjusting exposure settings on your camera.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Camera with adjustable shutter and aperture

1. Begin by assessing the amount of light present and adjust your shutter speed a step lower (slower) than what you feel the correct one will be.
2. Now adjust your aperture. Choose a higher setting (f/5.6 to f/16) if you feel there is enough light or choose a middle to lower setting (f/4 to f/1.8) if there is not much light.
3. Take a picture at this setting.
4. Next, adjust your shutter speed one step up and take a picture.
5. Make note of each setting you choose for reference when the prints are made.
6. Repeat step four until you have taken 3 or 4 pictures of the scene at different settings each.
7. Now you can process your film and choose which photograph out of the line up has best captured the lighting and make note of the exposure setting your chose for future reference.

Tips & Warnings

• Keeping notes of your exposure settings and their effects will help you learn relatively what each setting does in poor lighting, thus allowing you to use the method less and get the right shot the first time.
• Using the bracketing technique can be costly and wasteful. Overuse of bracketing eventually gets expensive, as more film needs to be purchased to capture all of the necessary shots.