Histogram – how do I use it in my photo?
red arrow shows a high peak in right. You have
overexposed the image. Take it with less exposure.
For me to evolve as a photographer, I need to understand how the colors and lighting works. If you master these grounds, you can create masterpieces. The light that your camera captures, you can get the diagram to get a clear information about how you have exposed your image. Is it too light or too dark picture? Can you expose it better? The histogram is thus a tool for you to see how the picture element has captured the light. With a digital camera, you can quickly see if you have succeeded in the picture. To the left are the darkest to the right information and the brightest.
Different cameras show histograms in different ways. You can usually see it in display mode, when you look at the pictures. Many cameras have an option to show different levels of information about the image. You often have to choose the information to get up so you can see the histogram. Some cameras show the combination of RGB, other shows histogram of brightness.
If you are looking to really have a good picture of a certain subject, it is good if you check the histogram. Here you can easily determine if the image has become over-or underexposed. What you see with your eye on the small LCD screen can be misleading, but the histogram shows clearly.
What can you read out of a histogram? If you have a histogram which is scattered with a high contrast, while it is compressed in the middle so the contrast is low. You can have peaks at each end and also have a high contrast of the image. It is always so that you lose some data in very bright areas and dark areas.
If you have high peaks in the right or left side of your histogram, you should set your camera differently so that you do not lose so much information. Try to get the histogram spread evenly, but you do not lock on to the histogram. Use it only as an aid.
1st Do you have peaks at the right edge to expose a little less so you save on the light parts.
2nd Do you have peaks at the left edge as you increase exposure, so that the image is not so dark.
3rd Do you have peaks at both edges, you should reduce exposure so that you save the light parts.
4th If you really want the entire dynamic range so you should take the same image in multiple exposures and then assemble the information. It is customary to call for the use of High Dynamic Range or HDR.
Read more : Histogram in English: A Practical Guide to Interpreting RGB histogram, Working with Image histogram (Brian Auer), Cambridge in Color
