Some info to share. These shots were taken at Kota Kinabalu Jetty, Sabah at around 12.00 noon. Naturally I had to struggle to avoid the bright sunny glare where details can be lost in the stark contrast or the photo might come out looking rather flat and over-exposed. I set my camera to vivid picture mode, daylight/sunny white balance and “spot” metering. With spot metering, the camera will only measure a very small area of the scene (between 1-5% of the viewfinder area). Spot metering is the most commonly used technique for photographing beach/seascape. It allows you to tell the camera which part you want to expose correctly. The camera will then automatically optimize the contrast.
E5 + ZD14-54mm
f/8 | ISO 200 | 1/250s | Suzailan Jai
E5 + ZD14-54mm
f/10 | ISO 200 | 1/1000s | Suzailan Jai
E5 + ZD14-54mm
f/11 | ISO 200 | 1/800s | Suzailan Jai
I found the optimum Aperture for photographing seascape during bright sunny day is between f/8 to f/16. The use of different Aperture creates different color contrast as seen in the above photos (note: no color adjustment were done for the above photos).
For me, the rule is simple, there is no right or wrong in photography and don’t limit yourself to rule. Till then happy shooting and have a good day from Zuikoholics.