The truth about the Exposure slider and how to use the Alternative to make perfect contrast.

I talk a lot here about Shadow Hacking, exposing better in camera zones and beyond. But today I was to show you something that almost no one is using in Lightroom, Raw, and Capture One. Recently I made a video about the least-known secret in Photography.

Learn more about exposure and shadow in my Shadow Hackers Live class and grab some free presets From Natural HDR and Filmist.

#1 Don’t think of Exposure as a slider.

Thinking more like you’re in the darkroom gives you a more complex view of how exposure works and relates to contrast, shadows, and lights.

The exposure slider in any app is just one way, one mix of volume and tone for those pixels. When you use curves, levels, and other methods you’re just adjusting the volume of those pixels in different ways like using EQ on your stereo.

Thinking this way keeps you from always doing the same thing and will let you easily adjust for higher or lower contrast situations like we did by pushing or pulling the film.

You don’t have to buy anything, you don’t have to use my presets. Or you may use mine but then make your own variants. That’s the beauty is saving things. It lets us repeat, then refine more with time. In doing so your entire process will improve.

Make these as presets, styles, and actions like I do in my mods and packs and you nyou will be glad you did.

They are simple recipes really and not like making a Film or advanced combo. Just a simple push and pull of tone and then you can turn them up and down with amount sliders or opacity layers. It’s magic.

In the video, I showed you different photos and how the same photo can work in more than one way. Exposure is not an absolute. Once you understand shadow hacking you know that with every photo you take.

Sometimes you want light, sometimes you want dark but those shadows are hard or soft and how they create contrast matters and the way you mix your exposure and tone boost makes a big difference.

On your stereo you have volume. But you also have EQ which is just volume targeted to specific frequencies or tones. Editing photos is the same and once you really get that there are no limits.

Go have some fun – Gavin Seim

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About the Author

Glad you're here.

I'm from WA State USA and started studying photography in 97. I started work as a pro (using that word loosely because I sucked) using film at age 16. I learned fast but was not as easy to find training then. Sometimes I beat my head against the wall until I figured stuff out.

As digital dawned I went all in and got to study with masters like Ken Whitmire. In 09 I founded the Pro Photo Show podcast. I started promoting tone-focused editing. When Lightroom arrived, I started developing tools to make editing and workflow better.

20 years of study and photography around the country earned me a Master of Photography (M.Photog) from PPA. I got to see my workshops and tools featured in publications across the industry. Once I even won the prestigious HotOne award for my "EXposed" light and tone workshop.

Wanting something calmer, I moved to Mexico in 2017. It's a land of magical light. I'm here now exploring light and trying to master my weak areas. I make videos of that for my Youtube channel, sharing what I learn. I hope you'll stick around and be part of Light Hunters Tribe... Gavin

Gavin Seim

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