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Thread: Does anyone use a DSLR for test shots?

  1. #1

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    Does anyone use a DSLR for test shots?

    I drove an hour on very foggy morning. Took 4 4x5 films and don't like them much. I'm thinking of getting a cheap mirrorless camera for perfect f stops and shutter speed. Does anyone using a dslr/mirrorless for test shots? Thanks,

  2. #2
    Deardorff Sales and service
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    Re: Does anyone using a dslr for test shots?

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  3. #3
    indecent exposure cosmicexplosion's Avatar
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    Re: Does anyone using a dslr for test shots?

    i was just reading the negative by A.A and he was talking about the benifits of polaroid to check on things. even composition and the general mass of black white and grey.
    so a digital could be the new free to run polaroid, just chuck it in B+W mode and away you go.
    i have an old digital i have to retrieve from a mate, and intend to give it a crack.
    i am not sure how a 35mm translates to 8x10
    in the sense of using a light meter.
    ie
    the light meter always gives me an underexposed image if i take it literally, (810) so as i have now taken dozens of underexposed images
    i am now giving it 2-3 moe stops
    i have just done a weekend shoot
    in the suthern highlands nsw
    so will see how it goes

    ultimatly i lik eth e idea of just knowing what the hell your doing so you dont need more than you need.
    camera lens lightmeter film darkcloth
    not even sure if a loup is really needed

    AA was talking about certyain filters that even out the colours to give you a better grip on things, also sqwinting your eyes to see the general mass of shapes and tones

    a filter and a sqwuint is cheeper than a camera.
    A
    through a glass darkly...

  4. #4

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    Re: Does anyone using a dslr for test shots?

    I've tried this before in the pre-digital era, in the days before I understood how to use (or even owned) a light meter. I had just got my first Hasselblad and was using my Nikon F100 for the meter. It isn't very reliable and I learned that even the best in-camera evaluative metering isn't a better judge of exposure than your brain and a spot meter. Fog is one of my favorites too, although it and can also make it pretty tough to meter a scene properly.

    Either way, you would be well advised to practice with your meter and learn to expose your film based on how you want the individual image to look. You will always be able to do better using your brain and a good spotmeter than any in-camera meter that is unable to think, or judge which areas of the scene should receive what exposure. Even if you're not a strict zone system user, you should still follow the "expose for the shadows, develop for the highlights" rule of thumb, as a fairly reliable way to get a full range negative with all necessary tones preserved for printing.

    BTW - The above remarks are most applicable to conventional black and white film that you are processing yourself. Color negative film is a little more sensitive to exposure and color transparency is critically so. It still doesn't negate the fact that the photographer with a good spot meter who is knowledgeable and practiced in his craft will almost always outwit the built-in automated exposure system in any camera.

    The exception to all this is the studio photographer using strobes and working with film. In that case, using a digital camera as a "Polaroid" test to verify lighting ratios and effects and to judge exposure is common practice. Just make sure if you plan to use this method, your digital camera has a hotshoe, or some other means to sync to the power pack or strobe heads.

  5. #5
    Lachlan 717
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    Re: Does anyone using a dslr for test shots?

    You probably won't be comparing the same dynamic range when you use digital capture. This will cause you some issues.

    One useful feature on digitals, though, is the Highlight view (the one that flashes when you blow the highlights). This can be used to work out the brightest parts of a scene, allowing you to work out your development compensation regime/Zone System. This, of course, is predicated on your use of such a regime...
    Lachlan.

    You miss 100% of the shots you never take. -- Wayne Gretzky

  6. #6

    Re: Does anyone using a dslr for test shots?

    I use Viewfinder Pro on my iPhone to pre-visualize what lens to use. Then I use Lightmeter on the phone if I need a spot meter. Other than that, my D800 stays home, I can shoot film in my sleep....

  7. #7
    John Olsen
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    Re: Does anyone using a dslr for test shots?

    I bought a Nikon D90, mostly for this purpose. The main problem is the interpretation of the LCD image. It's way too bright for whatever ISO you've set. I have set the display at a -1 intensity and it still is too bright. About another 1/2 stop of light is required for a good film exposure compared to the D90. With experience you can make this adaptation, just as you would have with Polaroid test images in the good old days.

    An additional problem can come from evaluating to LCD brightness in either too dark, or too bright an area. If you look at the LCD out in full sunlight, you'll end up grossly overexposing your film. Likewise, if your shooting environment is dark, the LCD will seem really bright and you'll choose film exposures that are badly underexposed.

    Overall, the digital camera is a great tool for quick proofing of exposures. In studio shots I don't even bother with using a flash meter, because the D90 will walk me in to a good exposure so quickly. But experiment with LCD evaluation a lot before depending on it to guide your film exposures..

  8. #8
    Kris Lockyear
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    Re: Does anyone using a dslr for test shots?

    Quote Originally Posted by John Olsen View Post
    I bought a Nikon D90, mostly for this purpose. The main problem is the interpretation of the LCD image. It's way too bright for whatever ISO you've set. I have set the display at a -1 intensity and it still is too bright. About another 1/2 stop of light is required for a good film exposure compared to the D90. With experience you can make this adaptation, just as you would have with Polaroid test images in the good old days.

    An additional problem can come from evaluating to LCD brightness in either too dark, or too bright an area. If you look at the LCD out in full sunlight, you'll end up grossly overexposing your film. Likewise, if your shooting environment is dark, the LCD will seem really bright and you'll choose film exposures that are badly underexposed.

    Overall, the digital camera is a great tool for quick proofing of exposures. In studio shots I don't even bother with using a flash meter, because the D90 will walk me in to a good exposure so quickly. But experiment with LCD evaluation a lot before depending on it to guide your film exposures..
    Don't attempt to assess the quality of a digital exposure using the LCD image, it will just be misleading. Use the histogram function to see the range of tones and whether or not some pixels are blown or not. One problem with using digital as a preview format for film is the linear response curve of a digital sensor compared to the S-shaped curve for film. In essence, we get more information in the "tails". Having said that, the dynamic range of digital sensors is improving rapidly these days.

    HTH, Kris.

  9. #9
    indecent exposure cosmicexplosion's Avatar
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    Re: Does anyone using a dslr for test shots?

    Quote Originally Posted by Kodachrome25 View Post
    I use Viewfinder Pro on my iPhone to pre-visualize what lens to use. Then I use Lightmeter on the phone if I need a spot meter. Other than that, my D800 stays home, I can shoot film in my sleep....

    great answers , i have been thinking about this my self, but i like this attitude of kodachrome, as he clearly has it nailed, which is where you want to be, an i mean when you think about it, you usually only need to make a choice of a range of 2-3 f/stops.

    then again, its only 5 numbers to win the lotto.

    surely being a pro, is just a case of hazarding an educated guess?

    and that the key is experience?

    so like Jimmi hendrix said "Are you experienced?"
    through a glass darkly...

  10. #10

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    Re: Does anyone using a dslr for test shots?

    I use a point & shoot digicam or, more frequently, viewfinder pro on the iPhone, but honestly I use those tools more to keep track of what I've shot than to really act as a preview. A DSLR is a bit bulky to use just for tests in my opinion (or at least for the way I travel and pack). And without movements, at least if you use them for architectural and urban work for example, a digicam offers a rough approximation at best. And personally I think the best way to learn how your film will render a scene is by shooting more film and getting more experience. But then I learned on film, so I'm biased.

    I think a DSLR or other system camera would be most useful for complex lighting setups and studio work. I still use fuji instant film in those situations, but I may start bringing a dslr instead.

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