If you’re new to cinematography, the concept of “exposure” might seem confusing at first.
What is exposure or camera exposure? Let’s tackle that.
Here’s a quick video of the simplest explanation I can think of:
Exposure definition for cinematography
Here’s my humble definition for the beginner:
What is Exposure?
Exposure is the amount of light you think your subject needs.
Exposure is about controlling light in every part of your frame.
Imagine each area of your frame like a canvas. You decide how much light each part gets. Bright areas stand out, while darker ones can add mystery or depth. The better you get at this, the closer you are to mastering exposure.
The two references to “you” in my definition is for a reason. It really depends on you all said and done. So feel empowered!
Tools like barn doors, filters, lenses, and lights help control how light hits your subject. Things like aperture, shutter speed, and ISO work inside the camera. They control how long light stays on the camera sensor.
Learning these tools gives you full control over your shots. When you master exposure, you’re shaping light like a painter. Every detail depends on you. You’re in control of what your audience sees and feels.
That’s all there is to it.
You can control exposure in many ways, but the simplest is with your camera. To know more, watch this video:
You can read the article along with the above video here:
What is “correct exposure”?
There’s no such thing!
That’s like asking what is the correct haircut, or the correct chair or the correct coffee mug.
The correct exposure is what you think you need. Remember, it’s about creating an emotion, not checking a mathematically-average box!
The correct exposure comes after you make a decision on what works for you.
You could get a “correct exposure” with a camera meter, grey card or light meter, but who knows if that will work for your scene?
Calculations are not the way to go in cinematography. If you calculate you need to eat three slices of pizza, only you know if it’s too much or too little. You have full freedom to disagree with accepted norms and calculations.
Middle grey, or camera exposure or “correct exposure” as defined by camera meters, light meters, grey cards, etc., are just starting points. It has its place. If you know where to start, you can consistently reproduce results.
That’s why you have a middle grey. You have a point from which you can repeat your look time and again. This is useful in cinematography because you have to match shots in a scene under budget and time constraints.
If you’re having practical difficulty getting shots you like, you can start by setting the exposure with what the camera meter tells you. Most people stick to it for the rest of their lives. Nothing wrong with that.
But that is just the starting point. You have to take over from that point!
What is an overexposed or underexposed image?
There is no such thing as a correct exposure, unless you think it’s correct. But once you have arrived at a decision, then you can start thinking of over or under exposure.
Anything brighter is overexposed (to you), and everything darker is underexposed (to you).
However, other people, when watching your work, might have different opinions. They might say a frame is overexposed or underexposed, but –
That is their opinion.
If you feel (feel is the only word that matters!) the exposure you have set your camera to is the result that makes you feel the best about that shot, then that’s the right exposure.
Even if an Academy-award cinematographer tells you otherwise, it doesn’t matter what they think. Maybe they would do it differently, but you might not like that. Knowing what you like is important.
Here’s the best tip I can give you:
Go with your instinct!
Maybe you might not like your choice later in the future. That’s okay!
If you never follow your instinct you’ll never improve or know what is right for you. You’ll always be second guessing yourself. That’s not the path to being a good cinematographer.
Which path you choose depends on your personality. If you study all the great photographers and cinematographers, you’ll see they are all unique in their style and technique. If they had listened or cared about what others consider overexposure, underexposure or correct exposure, they probably would be unknown today.
All I can tell you is my cinematography improved when I started caring about what I think, and not what others think.
I hope this simple explanation of exposure has helped you understand it on a gut-level. That was all I intended to accomplish.
If you feel it has helped you, please let me know!
Watch this video next:
