Best D7000 settings for photographing houses in bright sunlight ??

iceman55

Senior Member
Best D7000 settings for photographing houses in direct sunlight ??

Im a new D7000 owner (18-105mm & 55-200mm) and rather new to a higher end dslr's.Just wanted to know what settings you guys would recommend for taking pictures of houses in bright sunlight.I took some pictures the other day in auto mode with the 18-105mm zoomed to about 75mm but the pictures came out rather soft & washed out (not very crisp).I was using the lens hood but I'm not sure if that helped at all.Should I have changed to the aperture mode to allow less light in or used the exposure compensation control ?? How about a polarizer filter of some type ?? Thank you...
 
Last edited:

Marcel

Happily retired
Staff member
Super Mod
Are you talking about straight jpegs out of the camera? If so, what are your picture control settings. If you're using standard, I'd suggest giving it a little more sharpening. Or use a little sharpening in post processing. Maybe if you'd show us an example with the actual exif it would be easier to give you some advice.
 
camera comes out the box set soft ...up the sharpness to +9 and the contrast to -1 no need to go over F11 and if some of it is in shade and some in sunlight you will never get it right ...always under expose and lift in lightroom or other programme. I would use Aperture mode at F11 min shutter at 1/30 and auto iso at 100-6400 and let it get on with it for you.

30,000 shots sold on the D7000 and still going ...
 
Last edited:

iceman55

Senior Member
Here's an example...(Auto mode)

House.jpg
 

Mike150

Senior Member
Are you talking about straight jpegs out of the camera? If so, what are your picture control settings. If you're using standard, I'd suggest giving it a little more sharpening. Or use a little sharpening in post processing. Maybe if you'd show us an example with the actual exif it would be easier to give you some advice.

Marcel, I like your new photo. Reminds me of the floating head in the old Sean Connery movie Zardoz.
 

Marcel

Happily retired
Staff member
Super Mod
Here's an example...(Auto mode)

View attachment 25134

This one looks like it was taken against the sun. I clearly see signs of flare caused by the direct sunlight hitting the lens. This is to be avoided at all costs. You can use whatever is available to prevent the sun from hitting the lens. And, it would be much better to have the sun lighting your subject so you have to choose your time of day to shoot the house depending on the orientation.
 
have you got your basic exposure setting right press the +/- button and adjust to say -1/2 under is alway better than over and you then up it in lightroom or other programme
 

LouCioccio

Senior Member
Back to basics: Where is the sun-should be behind you, What the overall brightness of the subject-remember the camera is dumber than a box of rocks all it see is that brightness and gets ready for 18% grey so set the wb.
Set your meter to spot I am taking the image of the house recently built? Thats the exposure I want the house; stay away from the WA view as vertical lines will converge. You want the house straight as possible. Tripod. So the sun at your back or the best lighting of day. Tripod. Straight horizon as possible, rule of thirds, spot metering preferred of the house exposure, set the preview to show the histogram (camels hump) but you may see spikes which is the sky then adjust histogram as you change the Exposure Value EV ±.

Lou Cioccio


 
the idea of having the sun behind you is pure late 1800s when the film was so slow you needed the sun.
If its an object rather than a squinting person then if its all in the sun your camera will take the picture fine in say P mode.
If object is in the shade no problem also .
BUT if object is half in shade and half in sun you got a problem if you are trying to take an advert for a sales catalogue etc ...
 

Eye-level

Banned
The thing I don't care for when shooting with the sun directly behind you on a shot like the one asked about in the OP is the pictures tend to be flat and mathematical - read boring. I like the sun to come in on an angle and low. That is sort of typical landscape/architecture dogma. Moral...shoot it early in the morning or late in the evening instead of midday or at the very least hope for cloud cover.
 
Top