Mastering Bracketing for Stunning Photos

In photography, bracketing is the technique of taking multiple shots of the same scene with different exposure settings. This is an incredibly useful tool that can help you get perfectly exposed images, especially in challenging lighting situations. Here’s why you should use bracketing and some tips to get the best results.

Why Use Bracketing?

1. Tricky Lighting Situations – Scenes with high contrast due to bright highlights and deep shadows can be difficult to meter and expose properly with a single shot. Bracketing allows you to capture multiple exposures to ensure you get one that is well-balanced.

2. HDR Photography – Bracketing is essential for high dynamic range (HDR) photography. By combining bracketed images with different exposures, you can create HDR composites with an incredible range of lightness and darkness.

3. Increased Chances of Nailing Exposure – With auto-exposure, your camera may slightly over or underexpose the image. Bracketing gives you a higher chance that at least one shot has the optimal exposure.

Tips for Great Bracketed Shots

1. Use a Tripod – Since you’re taking multiple shots, a sturdy tripod is a must to ensure perfect alignment between your bracketed frames for smooth blending in post-processing.

2. Set Bracketing on Your Camera – Most DSLRs and mirrorless cameras have auto-bracketing modes that allow you to set how many shots are taken and the exposure variance between each shot.

3. Start With the Proper Exposure – Take a properly metered shot first, then set bracketing to under and overexpose based on that reading. A typical bracketing setup is -2, 0, +2 stops.

4. Use Aperture Priority Mode – This allows you to control depth of field while the camera adjusts shutter speed for the bracketed exposures.

5. Take More Frames if Needed – If the contrast is extreme, you may need to bracket with an even wider range, like -3 to +3 stops.

6. Watch Your Histogram – Check the histogram after your bracketed burst to ensure you’ve fully covered the exposure range.

7. Shoot in RAW – RAW image files contain more data than JPEGs, giving you more flexibility with blending in post-production.

With bracketed exposures, you dramatically increase your chances of ending up with perfectly lit images, even in challenging conditions. It may add an extra step, but bracketing is a powerful tool that can take your photography to new heights.