shooting bird portraits in thick fog

[Jeff Nadler]

Wondering what everyone's technique might be for improving detail and contrast. If shooting Raw, I can in PS, raise contrast and curves to make a very dull photo improve, not to perfection.

What I am really pondering is if this might be one time to consider, not shooting Raw, but jpg where one can use Pciture Styles or something to boost contrast at capture. Have not tried it yet but may next foggy day.


I recall Artie having a newsletter where he mentioned bringing out nice detail in a very foggy situation. I'll have to reread that one.

[Axel Hildebrandt]

I remember that Fabs posted a gannet image made in thick fog a few weeks ago. She got an immense amount of details out of that image. Definitely worth checking out.

[Amy DeStefanis]

In the Nikon D80, at least, it's possible to shoot at higher contrast in the camera. You go into the Optimize image menu, and can choose Normal, Softer, Vivid (saturates colors), More Vivid, Portrait, Custom, and B/W. If you go into Custom, then you can select Image sharpening, Tone compensation (Auto, Normal, Less conrast, Medium, Medium high, More contrast).....

Of course, I hadn't realized this before I shot the Heron and Hawk dueling it out over the fish on a foggy day. BUT, with RAW, it's possible to edit these camera settings in Nikon's Capture NX software after the fact.

Not sure what you are shooting, but I hope this helps....

Amy D.

[Alfred Forns]

Jeff would not even consider First off all you will be throwing information away with the jpeg compression

You can do all the things the camera does but better Would only recommend jpeg for people with no PS skills If you are trying for the best quality One thing I have done is sharpening in camera for the jpeg It will affect the way it looks on your little screen but won't affect the raw file

[Fabs Forns]

Jeff, check out this one:

http://birdphotographers.net/forums/showthread.php?t=2093

The Black slider is your best friend ;)

[Jim Poor]

In Lightroom raising the blacks does a lot for those misty looking images.

[Phil Colla]

In RAW I raise the exposure until I get the "highlights" (such as they are) up to the point where I like them, then slide the black point to the right until the contrast looks reasonably good. From that point I may adjust curves, levels, saturation, all in RAW so there is as much info in the low-contrast data as possible. I find that for images that are really low in contrast, where I have to move the levels black point slider quite a ways, I also find that saturation needs to be lowered a bit. This was shot in heavy fog a few days ago and got this exact treatment, and ended up working due to the soft ligthing in the fog:

http://www.oceanlight.com/spotlight.php?img=20404

was shot in the same lighting conditions as this:

http://www.oceanlight.com/spotlight.php?img=20418

You probably know this but I need to remind myself each time I have one of these foggy shots that the underlying data in the image is very low contrast, there are relatively few distinct brightness and color values (even at 12 or 14 bit). Sliding the black point just spreads them out but after that adjustment there still remain a relatively few distinct values, so that the image is susceptible to posterization if we work the pixels too much.

Its tought to make such an image "perfection" due largely to the low contrast in the underlying data and, for this reason -- the relative few distinct values of color and density -- in a low contrast fog image, I will always choose to work on the image in RAW. JPEG just makes the problem of posterization worse (my opinion only).

[Judd Patterson]

I definitely agree that you should continue to take image in RAW as you'll retain the most flexibility as you post-process. Especially as you apply extreme contrast adjustments you are going to want 16-bit and not 8-bit images to work with. Also, don't overlook the usefulness of letting the fog work to add mood and atmosphere to your photographs...especially if you can work a little environment in as well.

[Cheryl Flory]

What a great site! Everyone is so open with their suggestions and techniques! I am amazed with the lack of the attitude of "guarding one's secrets"!

On the other side of this fog question, how can you get a good fog picture and maintain the foggy aspect without it just looking poorly exposed? Especially with white birds such as swans or egrets in the picture?

thanks!
Cheryl

[Ed Okie]

Jeff, fog is a nightmare to deal with if "sharp and crisp as ever" is your (wishful) thinking. The amount of fog is critical; sometimes when it's overwhelming - staying home is the best answer. Otherwise, shift your thinking to the other side of the fence and use fog as a creative tool... and accept what the outcome is going to be despite enhancements that are possible - note I said "ehancements" and did not use the word "corrections." Underlying problem: the camera/lens will not penetrate fog and render it invisible. Period. The greater the distance the worse the affect.
Take the reverse approach: when foggy, shoot closer, limit your camera-to-subject distance. Sometimes that might only be 10-15'. On-site judgment is the partial answer. But whatever you do it's not going to be sharp & crisp as it is during normal days.

[Cheryl Flory]

Could the higher moisture in a foggy situation be bad for the lens or camera body?

[Axel Hildebrandt]

What a great site! Everyone is so open with their suggestions and techniques! I am amazed with the lack of the attitude of "guarding one's secrets"!

On the other side of this fog question, how can you get a good fog picture and maintain the foggy aspect without it just looking poorly exposed? Especially with white birds such as swans or egrets in the picture?

thanks!
Cheryl

You could raise the black slider to the point of your liking to keep the foggy appearance.

[Axel Hildebrandt]

Could the higher moisture in a foggy situation be bad for the lens or camera body?

I don't think so but make sure the glass itself doesn't get foggy. I only remove the lens cap for making images to prevent that.