How to Get Clear Faces with a Sunny Background

albela007albela007
edited June 2013 Posted in » Canon T2i Forum
Hello Moose,

Thank you for all your time and patience helping lot of people through this forum.

I am a beginner of DSLR camera usage and I have a Canon T2i. I have a question and I'll try to explain the situation/need.

Whenever I want to take a picture of someone in the family on our patio during daytime and the background has a beautiful view of landscape/grass and a nice church with a decent architecture, the face of the subject looks so dark because of the bright background/sunlight. So, how do I get the face of the subject and the background to look good without being too bright? Is it possible?

I have the following lenses:
18-55mm that came with the camera
100-300mm
Sigma 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 DC Macro OS HSM

I'd really appreciate it if you could guide me step by step as to what settings need to be used. Currently I am avoiding taking any pictures from the balcony/patio during daylight because I always end up seeing the subject's faces so dark.

Thank you in advance.

Regards, RK

Comments

  • albela007albela007
    edited June 2013
    BTW I forgot to include that I do have an external flash Canon 270EX. Will that help?
  • PBkedPBked
    edited July 2013
    The usual way to get clear faces with backlit subjects is to use spot metering and exposure compensation. However, using these, the background tends to become overexposed. To get clear faces and backgrounds, use your 270EX to provide fill-in light. You could also rig a white sheet behind you to throw light back onto the subject's face which gives a more natural look.
    Regards, PBked
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