I've always had a good understanding of exposure, signal-to-noise ratios and histograms before, but this is the best explanation I've ever come across. I am going to save this link and if I ever run into someone who is having a hard time understanding these things, I will refer them here. Always.....thank you, Simon!!
Great explanation of ETTR. It's worth remembering that the histogram you're looking at is calculated from the JPEG embedded in the raw file. That matters because that embedded JPEG is produced with the settings you have set for JPEGs coming straight out of the camera, so if you've got that set to 'super vibrant' or something your histogram will be lying to you. Pick settings that output a flat looking JPEG. I've experimented with color balances that get my histogram closer to what's actually in that raw data. It works, but the review picture on the back panel looks greenish. Also, if I'm in a situation where there are a few light areas in an overall dim scene I turn auto-ISO off, set the ISO fairly low so the multiplication that happens at readout doesn't blow those areas out.
The best thing to happen to my photography hobby was getting my first dslr. Finding this channel has been a very close second. Thanks for all your videos!
Wow... This was so clear. You have a gift of teaching. In 9 minutes you have given many of us more confidence in using the histogram and understanding our control over noise. Thank you!!
In 5 minutes, I learned and understood more about this then I ever knew! Your explanations, examples , and clear teaching style is simply best in class! Thanks for demystifying a complex subject!
Especially in landscape photography with no moving subjects I shoot Raw with aperture priority, expose normally (known as middle gray) and use +- 1 or 2 stops bracketing. Yes, it takes a little more work to combine and process the images but you get a lot more dynamic range on the final image and the result is very good.
I am absolutely giving this method a try this weekend on my shooting adventure! Thank you for putting in the time creating these extremely helpful videos for us!!
Your videos help so much and you do it so well to get this under ten minutes. I cannot fully express how invaluable your videos are. Thanks as ever Simon.
Seen so many videos about ETTR but never really understood ’the why’ until now. Once again you are teaching an old dog new tricks! Please keep up the great work 👏👏👏
"Will all of this make you a better photographer?" Maybe not, but it's definitely the icing on the cake, which ultimately improves the overall quality of your photos. Improving many small margins goes a long way to accumulate ones work. I'll take anything I can get, especially from you. Great informational video, Simon 😊Even though as a relatively new photographer myself, your videos can at times be a bit technical and might reqiure a few replays.
Simon is an excellent explainer! In the film era, I was amazed to see how my journo-style photos improved when I began (a) shooting most things at 1/500 or faster, and (b) learned what created a negative with less grain and better tonal range and separation. In film, the same rules apply, but it's ETTL - expose to the left, i.e. expose for the shadows and develop for the highlights. Boring tech: to get wonderful prints with a wide range of subjects on the same roll of Tri-X, expose at ISO 200 and develop in Rodinal 1:50 for 5 min at 68F with 5/30 agitation. The nice, flat neg printed beautifully on #4 paper. A secret of the film era was that high-contrast paper produces much less grain than longer film development times. Sadly, I learned this shortly before photography went digital, but what a joy it was to realize that ETTR was the same thing, only backwards. Hah! Ansel Adams is smiling in his grave.
Hi Simon, you gave great explanations and showed how to Expose To The Right. This bit was my favourite when you said, when you captured the Brighter image, you Frozen the Noise Profile of that photo, so when you Darken it again it stays at where you captured it. And including to use Exposure Compensation as well was so helpful to me. I knew about ETTR but didn't fully understand why, And I'm happy that I understood your explanation. A very important thing I learned today that will make a difference in my photography. Much appreciated Simon. 😊
I wasnt sure about using the exposure compensation as that could increase ISO whereas he mentioned the only way to get more light on your sensor was through shutter speed and aperture
Great explanation. I’m new to “photography” with an A6300 (using a real camera and not my iPhone 😆) I’ve actually been doing this after turning on zebra to see my over exposed and playing around with setting in different lighting. Watching this helped me understand what I’ve actually been doing 👌
Really nice and easy to follow lecture Simon. The only caveat I'd like to add is that most camera manufacturers don't provide raw histogram. The histogram on the display is based on the preview image, which has already some gamma (usually 2.2) applied. This means that the brightest part of the histogram is not really close to pixel saturation (where the clipping occurs). A good illustration is the kodak grey - which is 18% reflectance (so in linear color space it is at the 18% of the histogram), but because of the gamma applied it should show up around the middle of the histogram if exposed properly (46% to be precise). The only camera I know which can show the linear raw histogram is the Phase One IQ4 digital back. And it has a built in ETTR feature as well. You should be able to add roughly one more stop of light without the risk of clipping.
Hand in the Air - PROFESSOR! I have heard both sides of the story for ETTR and ETTL. Until now, I have been erroring to the left. Because those other "teachers" convinced me I could bring back the highlights from the left, but I could not reduce the ETTR. Using PS (which I suck at) to increase / reduce the total exposer seemed like I was chasing my tail. NOW that I have a PROFESSOR to explain it, it makes more sense. THANK YOU! I just want to make sure I am understanding the ETTR. With the "BLINKIES ON" regardless of the histogram, I want the picture dark enough, ever so slightly, to make sure the Blankies are not on. CORRECT? And like the other students have stated, you make things easy to understand and are easy to listen to. GREAT JOB! Been a fan for a long time.
@@simon_dentremont if you’re shooting RAW, and the blinkers are from the embedded jpeg, how much would it hurt if the blinkies showed in the brightest areas only, and only slightly at that?
Interesting. The one thing that has helped my exposure technique when transitioning to mirrorless bodies is the ability to see the histogram, which has helped me stay away from the right side of it, which results in clipping. But ETTR makes total sense, and I will try to get it closer to the edge now without hitting and causing clipping. Thanks for the tip and excellent explanation!
Thank you so much for this video! I just got my first camera and have been going out to practice, and I accidentally left my ISO too high for the light conditions when I took some nice photos. When I came home, I realized that my photos were super noisy, and initially got confused because the ISO wasn’t THAT high. However, based on your previous videos, I wondered if it was because my shutter speed was also way too high due to the high ISO. Now, from this video, I can see that my hunch was correct! :) I love how clear and well-composed the information in your videos is, it really feels like every second is a learning experience. Thank you so much for sharing the knowledge.
Feels like this video is posted just at the right time, as I was finding recent photos to turn out very noisy despite having tried other options. Extremely useful information! Definitely gonna try it next trip out and about!
This is awesome. I remember when digital SLRs first started being affordable and popular. It was recommended to under expose 1/3-2/3 stops to get deeper and richer color.
This is gold. Perfectly executed, Simon. I would like to add that this may be even more important these days (in the Northern hemisphere) as in snowy landscapes the camera has a bias towards ETTL 🙂.
Thank you for this excellent description of how to expose. This might be too complicated for some, but the response of modern sensors is linear: twice the photons in equals almost twice the signal from the sensor, plus some noise. Film was not as linear, so you not only had to avoid clipping but you couldn't deliberately underexpose or the colors and textures wouldn't have that "film" look that people expected. Also, if you do your processing in Lightroom, it is set up to do an old trick from Ansel Adams. There are sliders to set a white point and a black point. There are then sliders to allocate the dynamic range between highlights, middle tones, and shadows.
Simon, I really appreciate the way that you convey information - and that you share your vast experience with us on youtube. You have certainly helped to improve my skills, thank you!
Nice explanation. The technique requires to use either the back LCD or an EVF. This is not possible with those using OVF. The alternative is exposure bracketing, implying a lot of guesswork, or taking the image, look at the snapshot's istogram, and adjust. Both suboptimal. The third option is to get a new camera... 😅
This was fantastic, Simon. I started watching thinking you have covered this many times before, but as usual, you have added some great nuances to build on the previous topics.
Thank you for another well taught lesson. ETTR makes so much sense; I have made changes to my Canon and can hardly wait to see how the next batch of photos look.
Hi and Thank You Simon d'Entremont! When I look at photos on photographic websites, lately I've been seeing some that I think have noise artificially added. When enlarged, the noise pattern is very even, colorless, and the same intensity in the bright areas of the photo as in the dark areas.
This might be one of the best practical examples for explaining why noise is not introduced by high ISO, but from lack of light. The photo comparisons are great for that. Usually not intuitive to convey because of the ASA analogies and the typical correlation between noisy images and higher ISOs under automatic exposure.
your previous ETTR tought me a lot , after many of your video I think myself a better amateur photographer than before. thanks for sharing your tips n tricks
I learnt ETTR years ago and have always leaned that way with pretty much every shot since. I wasn’t aware quite how dramatic the difference in colour noise was though! Also, one of my favourite features of my OM1.2 is live blinkies, so you can see them even before you press the shutter. I’m sure other brands must offer it too, but it’s so useful, especially in challenging lighting conditions.
My photography journey begun about a year ago and this channel has been my best go to resource when it comes to photography concepts. I am so happy to see that the number of subscribers has nearly double since I started as a subscriber. The most complicated concepts are explained by Simon in a way that the even the slowest person will understand it.
Thank you sir! This was an excellent and highly appreciated demonstration. You've simply cleared up an area of my photography where I had been struggling with. I'm an 80 year old new photographer and you have never failed to teach this 'old dog' something new in each and every one of your lectures. Again, thank you.
My Canon 6D tends to underexpose, so this is a fantastic reminder to ETTR with way more exposure compensation than I even had before. Thanks, Simon. Excellent video. *Thank you*
RIP Michael Reichmann of Luminous Landscape. Michael was the first to write about ETTR in 2003 with a few extra articles from 2011. I have been using this technique since that time. Additionally, to my understanding, the brighter parts of the image contain more data so are able to withstand greater manipulation. I was lucky enough to have a daughter living in Toronto when he closed his gallery so I have a few of his prints plus a few books. The photographic community is much the poorer for his passing 8 years ago. Sorry to hack your video which contains excellent information, its just that Michael's writings and videos were a significant part of my journey with digital photography and any reference to his work brings back memories.
@@BobN54 It has been a long time since I read Michael's article and whether his understanding of the science behind why ETTR worked may be debated as accurate or not, the main takeaway however, in practical terms, is exactly as presented by Simon. One ends up with a "cleaner" image if you reduce brightness in post vs brightening the blacks in a darker exposure.
@@Mark-qn9xl Sure, but as I said, Simon's explanation of why that is so is right, and Michaels, which was about using more 'ADC levels' was wrong. Nothing against Michael - it's just if you want to know how and why ETTR works use Simon's video, not Michael's original article. If he wasn't going to explain how it works, Simon might as well just said it's magic. If you explain something as a teacher you should try to get it right.
@@BobN54 There is one huge difference between 2003 and 2024, which is that what factor is the main contributor to the noise. Back in 2003 the biggest factor of the image noise was the read noise coming from the readout and the ADC, not the shot noise which is today. Hence Michael's article was correct in that day and age. With the modern "iso invariant" sensors it is still correct, but because of a different reason, which was illustrated by Simon nicely.
@@tamasnemeth2161 Michael's article was never correct, not then and not now. Developments in sensor tech have not changed the basic mistake. There are no sensors, nor have there ever been, where read noise dominates shot noise except in the shadows - the question is the onset of where the shadows are. Read noise has improved over the years and so has QE (decreasing the effect of shot noise) but that doesn't change the basic principle, which is about maximising exposure and thus minimising shot noise and not providing more 'levels', given that the 'levels' are dithered by the noise in any case.
Hello Simon thank you so much! I was wondering how to get my images less noisy and better quality and here you are explaining that issue and wow here you are giving that best tips and tricks helping me understand every detail, thank you so much as always keep going you're doing great as always! 👍🏻
I started shooting film in high school in the mid-'60s and continued until I retired. Recently, after years of fighting it tooth and nail, I bought a digital camera (Nikon Zf) that gave me the feel of manual shooting back in the day of film-sort of. After watching several of your videos, this one gave me the needed epiphany. I was struggling with ISO and the histogram. I've seen the light! ETTR is the ticket! Thank you, thank you, and thank you!
For clarification purposes, allow me to explain my "wrestling" with ISO in my comment above (lest everyone takes me for a dunce). The term ASA (American Standards Association), referring to the film's "speed," was officially replaced by ISO (International Organization for Standardization) in 1974. This change was an effort to harmonize international standards for film sensitivity. The ISO system combined ASA and the German DIN (Deutsches Institut für Normung) ratings into a unified scale for better global consistency. Thanks again, Simon, for your clear and concise explanation.
Great video, Simon! I stumbled upon your channel by chance, and I’m absolutely loving every bit of it. You’re an amazing teacher, and you’ve demystified so many of the enigmas I’ve had about photography. Keep up the fantastic work!
I have been doing a little of the opposite I have been so worried about not being a to recover blown out highlights that I always under expose a little. Now I have a better idea when I should do both. Thank you.
I did an experiment following the ETTR on the gfx100s in raw. And yes the ETTER ( two stops overexposed) version has less noise as evidently comes out brighter. However, I noticed a significant drop in the dynamic range of this in post production,. Once I adjusted the ETTR version to a correct exposure, the lightroom adjustments, shadow and black handles, were maxed out before I could get the same satisfying result, as the normally exposed. If shadows are recorded too bright, it seems there is less dynamic range to pull from in the shadows.So for me, this is a give and take method.
This could be another video itself. The effects of clipping individual color channels (causing colors casts) will not necessarily cause highlight alerts.
I've been using the histogram this way for a while. Since I shoot RAW, which has more dynamic range than the JPEG used for the camera's screens, I set contrast in the shooting profile to the minimum to compensate, including in the histogram. Doesn't affect the RAW file, only the JPEG and displays. Seems to work.
Fantastic advice Simon. I use the histogram all the time when processing shots and the difference it makes is amazing. Off course taking good "clean" shots helps but sometimes in the heat of things with the camera, it is all too easy to forget and fire and rely on your own instincts to be confident you "got the shot" with how you have the camera set up when used. At least in the post process stage there may be another chance to balance the shot out, but, if the image is clipped and too far into the dark or light, well, nothing can be done but try to salvage something or hit the trusted delete button. Lesson learned... hopefully. 🙂
I am calling you “The Professor” from now on, I now understand what exposing to right means and I had no clue what colour noise was! Thank you.
That was exactly my thought too! I'll call him also Professor from now on! 😉
Thanks!
If he is the professor, who is hot sauce?
This is, by far, the simplest and best explanation of ETTR I’ve ever watched or read. Your style of teaching is simply amazing. Thank you.
Wow, thank you!
Thanks! Thats really a good explanation!
I've always had a good understanding of exposure, signal-to-noise ratios and histograms before, but this is the best explanation I've ever come across. I am going to save this link and if I ever run into someone who is having a hard time understanding these things, I will refer them here.
Always.....thank you, Simon!!
Glad it was helpful!
Great explanation of ETTR. It's worth remembering that the histogram you're looking at is calculated from the JPEG embedded in the raw file. That matters because that embedded JPEG is produced with the settings you have set for JPEGs coming straight out of the camera, so if you've got that set to 'super vibrant' or something your histogram will be lying to you. Pick settings that output a flat looking JPEG.
I've experimented with color balances that get my histogram closer to what's actually in that raw data. It works, but the review picture on the back panel looks greenish.
Also, if I'm in a situation where there are a few light areas in an overall dim scene I turn auto-ISO off, set the ISO fairly low so the multiplication that happens at readout doesn't blow those areas out.
Clearest and most informative argument for ETTR. Well done video.
Glad you found it helpful!
The best thing to happen to my photography hobby was getting my first dslr. Finding this channel has been a very close second. Thanks for all your videos!
So glad you're enjoying the content!
A camera designer for ten years, thank you for explaining this so clearly. Now I don't need to explain physics and maths.
Glad you liked it!
Wow... This was so clear. You have a gift of teaching. In 9 minutes you have given many of us more confidence in using the histogram and understanding our control over noise. Thank you!!
In 5 minutes, I learned and understood more about this then I ever knew! Your explanations, examples , and clear teaching style is simply best in class! Thanks for demystifying a complex subject!
One of the best explanations of ETTR that I've heard, thanks a lot for your time and expertise.
Glad it was helpful!
...you dig deep into every subject and gain a lot of knowledge and consequently a lot of clarity for us in the shadows...
Even if your video is not my mother language , you speak slowly, clearly and I understand you perfectly. Great tuto. Thank you. Merci
Especially in landscape photography with no moving subjects I shoot Raw with aperture priority, expose normally (known as middle gray) and use +- 1 or 2 stops bracketing. Yes, it takes a little more work to combine and process the images but you get a lot more dynamic range on the final image and the result is very good.
I am absolutely giving this method a try this weekend on my shooting adventure! Thank you for putting in the time creating these extremely helpful videos for us!!
Have fun!
Your videos help so much and you do it so well to get this under ten minutes. I cannot fully express how invaluable your videos are. Thanks as ever Simon.
You're so welcome!
Seen so many videos about ETTR but never really understood ’the why’ until now. Once again you are teaching an old dog new tricks! Please keep up the great work 👏👏👏
Happy to help!
"Will all of this make you a better photographer?" Maybe not, but it's definitely the icing on the cake, which ultimately improves the overall quality of your photos. Improving many small margins goes a long way to accumulate ones work. I'll take anything I can get, especially from you. Great informational video, Simon 😊Even though as a relatively new photographer myself, your videos can at times be a bit technical and might reqiure a few replays.
Simon is an excellent explainer! In the film era, I was amazed to see how my journo-style photos improved when I began (a) shooting most things at 1/500 or faster, and (b) learned what created a negative with less grain and better tonal range and separation. In film, the same rules apply, but it's ETTL - expose to the left, i.e. expose for the shadows and develop for the highlights. Boring tech: to get wonderful prints with a wide range of subjects on the same roll of Tri-X, expose at ISO 200 and develop in Rodinal 1:50 for 5 min at 68F with 5/30 agitation. The nice, flat neg printed beautifully on #4 paper. A secret of the film era was that high-contrast paper produces much less grain than longer film development times. Sadly, I learned this shortly before photography went digital, but what a joy it was to realize that ETTR was the same thing, only backwards. Hah! Ansel Adams is smiling in his grave.
Hi Simon, you gave great explanations and showed how to Expose To The Right. This bit was my favourite when you said, when you captured the Brighter image, you Frozen the Noise Profile of that photo, so when you Darken it again it stays at where you captured it. And including to use Exposure Compensation as well was so helpful to me. I knew about ETTR but didn't fully understand why, And I'm happy that I understood your explanation. A very important thing I learned today that will make a difference in my photography. Much appreciated Simon. 😊
Thanks Simon 😊
I wasnt sure about using the exposure compensation as that could increase ISO whereas he mentioned the only way to get more light on your sensor was through shutter speed and aperture
@j2thebee 📸👍
Man what a knowledgeable person you are. Love from Pakistan ❤❤❤❤❤❤
Great explanation.
I’m new to “photography” with an A6300 (using a real camera and not my iPhone 😆)
I’ve actually been doing this after turning on zebra to see my over exposed and playing around with setting in different lighting.
Watching this helped me understand what I’ve actually been doing 👌
Really nice and easy to follow lecture Simon. The only caveat I'd like to add is that most camera manufacturers don't provide raw histogram. The histogram on the display is based on the preview image, which has already some gamma (usually 2.2) applied. This means that the brightest part of the histogram is not really close to pixel saturation (where the clipping occurs). A good illustration is the kodak grey - which is 18% reflectance (so in linear color space it is at the 18% of the histogram), but because of the gamma applied it should show up around the middle of the histogram if exposed properly (46% to be precise). The only camera I know which can show the linear raw histogram is the Phase One IQ4 digital back. And it has a built in ETTR feature as well.
You should be able to add roughly one more stop of light without the risk of clipping.
I agree to all! we need a raw-based histogram.
Hand in the Air - PROFESSOR! I have heard both sides of the story for ETTR and ETTL. Until now, I have been erroring to the left. Because those other "teachers" convinced me I could bring back the highlights from the left, but I could not reduce the ETTR. Using PS (which I suck at) to increase / reduce the total exposer seemed like I was chasing my tail.
NOW that I have a PROFESSOR to explain it, it makes more sense. THANK YOU! I just want to make sure I am understanding the ETTR. With the "BLINKIES ON" regardless of the histogram, I want the picture dark enough, ever so slightly, to make sure the Blankies are not on. CORRECT?
And like the other students have stated, you make things easy to understand and are easy to listen to. GREAT JOB! Been a fan for a long time.
correct. no blinkies
@@simon_dentremont if you’re shooting RAW, and the blinkers are from the embedded jpeg, how much would it hurt if the blinkies showed in the brightest areas only, and only slightly at that?
WoW, that’s a great lesson learned… I had no clue on the different types of ISO…
ETTR becomes my way to go in dark / high ISO conditions…
Thanks 😊
U r so intelligent n informative. It's awesome how u always share all of your knowledge so eloquently.
I’m glad you like it!
I had heard that you should under expose by 1/3 stop, but after this, I'm not doing it anymore. Thanks for the clarification about what's going on.
Interesting. The one thing that has helped my exposure technique when transitioning to mirrorless bodies is the ability to see the histogram, which has helped me stay away from the right side of it, which results in clipping. But ETTR makes total sense, and I will try to get it closer to the edge now without hitting and causing clipping. Thanks for the tip and excellent explanation!
That’s the key, a little closer to the edge, without going over.
Now I understand the benefits. Thank you so much for the detailed explanation.
Glad it was helpful!
Thank you so much for this video! I just got my first camera and have been going out to practice, and I accidentally left my ISO too high for the light conditions when I took some nice photos. When I came home, I realized that my photos were super noisy, and initially got confused because the ISO wasn’t THAT high. However, based on your previous videos, I wondered if it was because my shutter speed was also way too high due to the high ISO. Now, from this video, I can see that my hunch was correct! :)
I love how clear and well-composed the information in your videos is, it really feels like every second is a learning experience. Thank you so much for sharing the knowledge.
Glad to hear it clicked!
Feels like this video is posted just at the right time, as I was finding recent photos to turn out very noisy despite having tried other options. Extremely useful information! Definitely gonna try it next trip out and about!
Great to hear!
This is awesome.
I remember when digital SLRs first started being affordable and popular. It was recommended to under expose 1/3-2/3 stops to get deeper and richer color.
This is gold. Perfectly executed, Simon. I would like to add that this may be even more important these days (in the Northern hemisphere) as in snowy landscapes the camera has a bias towards ETTL 🙂.
That short video gave me so much information I can’t thank you enough. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
This is the best class in ETTR that I have seen, Simon...great work. Thanks for making us better photographers.
As usual, a great explanation of a technique that few truly understand.
Many thanks!
Thank you for explaining to to use the histogram - my vague notion has been clarified and I will work within the ETTR opportunities that arise.
This is actually very interesting and clearly explained.
Outstanding information I have never heard before.
Invaluable advice! Clear and easy to understand!! Thank you. Cheers
Glad it was helpful!
Learning something new (to me) today. Happy times. Thank you, Simon.
My pleasure!
Hands down, best instructor on all things photography on YT! Thank you!
Thanks!
I've never used it on my camera, I will be using it now. Wow, thank you again
Thank you for this excellent description of how to expose. This might be too complicated for some, but the response of modern sensors is linear: twice the photons in equals almost twice the signal from the sensor, plus some noise. Film was not as linear, so you not only had to avoid clipping but you couldn't deliberately underexpose or the colors and textures wouldn't have that "film" look that people expected.
Also, if you do your processing in Lightroom, it is set up to do an old trick from Ansel Adams. There are sliders to set a white point and a black point. There are then sliders to allocate the dynamic range between highlights, middle tones, and shadows.
Simon, I really appreciate the way that you convey information - and that you share your vast experience with us on youtube. You have certainly helped to improve my skills, thank you!
I appreciate that!
Nice explanation. The technique requires to use either the back LCD or an EVF. This is not possible with those using OVF. The alternative is exposure bracketing, implying a lot of guesswork, or taking the image, look at the snapshot's istogram, and adjust. Both suboptimal. The third option is to get a new camera... 😅
With a DSLR, live view or a test shot would be the techniques to use.
Thank you a "super sharp" lesson on noise and exposures...👏👏👏
Chapeau for this very usable explanation! Thanks.
Glad you think so!
This video is gold 🏆 Big thanks for explaining the technicalities of ETTR and how to use it practically in the real world.
I'm glad you found it helpful!
The best explanation ever! You make things understandable and easy to practice! You are called "the Professor" below...I second that!!!! thank you!
Wow, thank you!
This was fantastic, Simon. I started watching thinking you have covered this many times before, but as usual, you have added some great nuances to build on the previous topics.
Many thanks!
Thank you for another well taught lesson. ETTR makes so much sense; I have made changes to my Canon and can hardly wait to see how the next batch of photos look.
I hope you're thrilled with the results!
Hi and Thank You Simon d'Entremont! When I look at photos on photographic websites, lately I've been seeing some that I think have noise artificially added. When enlarged, the noise pattern is very even, colorless, and the same intensity in the bright areas of the photo as in the dark areas.
This is a wonderful explanation. I try to do this each time but was a little "hazy" on why. Now I know. Thank you.
I'm glad it clicked!
Most excellent explanation of this. Thanks for sharing.
Glad it was helpful!
Thank you! This is by far the best video on ETTR that I have ever seen. I cannot wait to try this out.
This might be one of the best practical examples for explaining why noise is not introduced by high ISO, but from lack of light. The photo comparisons are great for that. Usually not intuitive to convey because of the ASA analogies and the typical correlation between noisy images and higher ISOs under automatic exposure.
agree!
Simon, Quite simply the best explanation of ettr I have seen. Now, not only will I be ettr’ing, but I will know why!
Thank you
Thank you Simon! It’s really helpful!
Excellent explanation! The examples shot at the same ISO were really enlightening.
I'm glad you found those helpful!
Fantastic detailed explanation Simon. Thank you for taking the the time to share.🙏
Great tips, Simon! Thanks for sharing!
Brilliant video thank you, your explanations and techniques are priceless..
You are very welcome
your previous ETTR tought me a lot , after many of your video I think myself a better amateur photographer than before. thanks for sharing your tips n tricks
Glad you’re finding my videos helpful!
@ with out your video I’m still stuck somewhere and you’re good level
I learnt ETTR years ago and have always leaned that way with pretty much every shot since. I wasn’t aware quite how dramatic the difference in colour noise was though!
Also, one of my favourite features of my OM1.2 is live blinkies, so you can see them even before you press the shutter. I’m sure other brands must offer it too, but it’s so useful, especially in challenging lighting conditions.
My photography journey begun about a year ago and this channel has been my best go to resource when it comes to photography concepts. I am so happy to see that the number of subscribers has nearly double since I started as a subscriber. The most complicated concepts are explained by Simon in a way that the even the slowest person will understand it.
Thanks for the kind words and for being part of the journey!
Great explanation. The principle is similar to the way old analog audio noise reduction systems functioned- Dolby and DBx.
It's all about managing the signal to noise ratio
Fantastic explanation, thanks for the effort you put in to these videos.
My pleasure!
Oh ding! A real lightbulb moment! Literally and metaphorically. Thank you so much Simon!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Great explanation of ETTR! You are a fantastic teacher.
Wow, thanks!
Superb explanation superb presentation, thank you for keeping the bar high
Glad it was helpful!
Outstanding tipps. Thanks soo much Simon.
My pleasure!
A very clear explanation of what ETTR means and how to do it. Thanks.
Glad you liked it
This information is pure gold!! Thanks.
I'm glad you found it helpful!
Thanks Simon, for explaining so clearly. Greatly appreciated!
Extremely valuable tip, thank you!
Thank you sir! This was an excellent and highly appreciated demonstration. You've simply cleared up an area of my photography where I had been struggling with. I'm an 80 year old new photographer and you have never failed to teach this 'old dog' something new in each and every one of your lectures. Again, thank you.
I'm glad it was helpful!
My Canon 6D tends to underexpose, so this is a fantastic reminder to ETTR with way more exposure compensation than I even had before. Thanks, Simon. Excellent video. *Thank you*
One of the most helpful and beneficial explanations I've come across. Thank you!
Practical, useable advice attached to an easy to remember acronym. 👍👍
This is, by far, the simplest and best explanation
RIP Michael Reichmann of Luminous Landscape. Michael was the first to write about ETTR in 2003 with a few extra articles from 2011. I have been using this technique since that time. Additionally, to my understanding, the brighter parts of the image contain more data so are able to withstand greater manipulation.
I was lucky enough to have a daughter living in Toronto when he closed his gallery so I have a few of his prints plus a few books. The photographic community is much the poorer for his passing 8 years ago.
Sorry to hack your video which contains excellent information, its just that Michael's writings and videos were a significant part of my journey with digital photography and any reference to his work brings back memories.
Unfortunately, Michael's understanding of why ETTR worked was completely wrong. Simon's is right.
@@BobN54 It has been a long time since I read Michael's article and whether his understanding of the science behind why ETTR worked may be debated as accurate or not, the main takeaway however, in practical terms, is exactly as presented by Simon. One ends up with a "cleaner" image if you reduce brightness in post vs brightening the blacks in a darker exposure.
@@Mark-qn9xl Sure, but as I said, Simon's explanation of why that is so is right, and Michaels, which was about using more 'ADC levels' was wrong. Nothing against Michael - it's just if you want to know how and why ETTR works use Simon's video, not Michael's original article. If he wasn't going to explain how it works, Simon might as well just said it's magic. If you explain something as a teacher you should try to get it right.
@@BobN54 There is one huge difference between 2003 and 2024, which is that what factor is the main contributor to the noise. Back in 2003 the biggest factor of the image noise was the read noise coming from the readout and the ADC, not the shot noise which is today. Hence Michael's article was correct in that day and age. With the modern "iso invariant" sensors it is still correct, but because of a different reason, which was illustrated by Simon nicely.
@@tamasnemeth2161 Michael's article was never correct, not then and not now. Developments in sensor tech have not changed the basic mistake. There are no sensors, nor have there ever been, where read noise dominates shot noise except in the shadows - the question is the onset of where the shadows are. Read noise has improved over the years and so has QE (decreasing the effect of shot noise) but that doesn't change the basic principle, which is about maximising exposure and thus minimising shot noise and not providing more 'levels', given that the 'levels' are dithered by the noise in any case.
I’m new to photography and I’m always learning something new every time I watch your videos. You’re amazing, thank you 🙌🏻👌🏻😁🙏
Your videos are so reminiscent of my engineering days! Very nice explanations Simon!
Pure gold! Thank you!
Very welcome!
Fantastic! I didn't know this trick, thank you very much 👍
Hello Simon thank you so much! I was wondering how to get my images less noisy and better quality and here you are explaining that issue and wow here you are giving that best tips and tricks helping me understand every detail, thank you so much as always keep going you're doing great as always! 👍🏻
I started shooting film in high school in the mid-'60s and continued until I retired. Recently, after years of fighting it tooth and nail, I bought a digital camera (Nikon Zf) that gave me the feel of manual shooting back in the day of film-sort of. After watching several of your videos, this one gave me the needed epiphany. I was struggling with ISO and the histogram. I've seen the light! ETTR is the ticket! Thank you, thank you, and thank you!
For clarification purposes, allow me to explain my "wrestling" with ISO in my comment above (lest everyone takes me for a dunce). The term ASA (American Standards Association), referring to the film's "speed," was officially replaced by ISO (International Organization for Standardization) in 1974. This change was an effort to harmonize international standards for film sensitivity. The ISO system combined ASA and the German DIN (Deutsches Institut für Normung) ratings into a unified scale for better global consistency. Thanks again, Simon, for your clear and concise explanation.
Great video, Simon! I stumbled upon your channel by chance, and I’m absolutely loving every bit of it. You’re an amazing teacher, and you’ve demystified so many of the enigmas I’ve had about photography. Keep up the fantastic work!
Welcome aboard!
Another magnificent video! Thanks Simon.
Many thanks!
Great explanations as always. Thank you
My pleasure!
I have been doing a little of the opposite I have been so worried about not being a to recover blown out highlights that I always under expose a little. Now I have a better idea when I should do both. Thank you.
You have such a great way of explaining these techniques. It is very much appreciated. Thank you!
You are so welcome!
I did an experiment following the ETTR on the gfx100s in raw. And yes the ETTER ( two stops overexposed) version has less noise as evidently comes out brighter. However, I noticed a significant drop in the dynamic range of this in post production,. Once I adjusted the ETTR version to a correct exposure, the lightroom adjustments, shadow and black handles, were maxed out before I could get the same satisfying result, as the normally exposed. If shadows are recorded too bright, it seems there is less dynamic range to pull from in the shadows.So for me, this is a give and take method.
Interesting. If there wasn’t any clipping, it should have had better dynamic range. Note that all colour channels won’t clip at the same time.
This could be another video itself. The effects of clipping individual color channels (causing colors casts) will not necessarily cause highlight alerts.
I've been using the histogram this way for a while. Since I shoot RAW, which has more dynamic range than the JPEG used for the camera's screens, I set contrast in the shooting profile to the minimum to compensate, including in the histogram. Doesn't affect the RAW file, only the JPEG and displays. Seems to work.
I do same and advised as much in one of my videos
That was crystal clear, just acquired new knowledge. Now I couldn’t resist to subscribe. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
Glad to have you aboard!
Wow, that makes total sense, thanks Simon, I will definitely try this out!! Great tip and perfectly explained 🙏🏻💯
Glad it was helpful!
Fantastic advice Simon. I use the histogram all the time when processing shots and the difference it makes is amazing. Off course taking good "clean" shots helps but sometimes in the heat of things with the camera, it is all too easy to forget and fire and rely on your own instincts to be confident you "got the shot" with how you have the camera set up when used. At least in the post process stage there may be another chance to balance the shot out, but, if the image is clipped and too far into the dark or light, well, nothing can be done but try to salvage something or hit the trusted delete button. Lesson learned... hopefully. 🙂
Expose to the right. That's definitely something useful I didn't know! Thanks, Simon!
must in studio, great n simple and slow changing environment.. stay on the save side in Shows, Concerts, and Theater..
Thank you again sir. Great content.