Overexposed Images – D70

[Rob Snowhite]

I am constantly taking over exposed pictures outside (played with baby newphews in the afternoon and the indoor shots came out fine) (my point and shoot olympus takes over exposed images so i’m thinking its me :/ )

I played with two variables yesterday: shooting mode and white balance.

I re-set white balance as suggested previously, using ‘direct sunlight’ and played with the dial settings from portrait to automatic, A, P, M, etc. I took a pic of the below herons and turned the dial. The entire series was too bright.

Each image came out over exposed. Is there something else I should play with as a 3rd variable like ISO ?

I am using the original lens I got with my Nikon in 1995 and is not compatible with a DSLR, the lens does not allow me to adjust the aperature. The aperature is always set to the widest setting.
Is this the culprit?

A few examples:

[Mike Anderson]

I’d start with a compatible lens.

[Zach Matthews]

Rob –

You do need to learn how to use aperture properly, but your D70 should still be able to meter and expose correctly even with an old lens.

I would set the lens to f/11 or f/16 while shooting outside if you can’t control the aperture.

[Rob Snowhite]

Thanks for all of the input. I will 100% admit that my knowledge of my d70 sucks and I am in no way using it to its full potential and thus getting crappy results.

[Brett Colvin]

Good suggestions so far.

For daylight shots, you generally want to use the lowest possible ISO unless you intentionally want to introduce some grain to the photo.

My next suggestion (after ensuring you are using matrix metering) is just to use the exposure compensation (+/-).

[Aaron Christensen]

now its time to start lens shopping.
any suggestions?

penn camera (local dc shop), bh photo, ebay, craigslist etc?

The D70 is a very capable camera body — I bought one when they first came out.  I have enjoyed it very much and still do.  I am sure you will, too.

I am a fan of B&H photo for lenses and other equipment — honest folks and fair prices.  Personally, I have not had much success finding good deals on Craigslist but maybe maybe you will do better.  

Maybe the bigger question is “what lens do you want?”  The 24-70 kit lens that came with that body is certainly capable for every day use and maybe you can find a good deal from someone that wants to keep their D70 body as a spare but has otherwise upgraded to the newer models and lens. (I am not suggesting there is anything wrong with your camera — there is not, so don’t think you need an “upgrade” any time soon).  If you want to stay with one lens and keep the price within reason, the 18-200 is by all reports a good every day choice.

[Rob Snowhite]

I stopped by Penn Camera yesterday to sniff around. I ended up looking at the 18-200 as mentioned above.

I can get the lens new at the store with a $60 rebate. That price is better than what I have found online. Purchasing from the store also comes with a 6 year warantee.

I am hoping that a new lens will solve most of my issues. I do not plan on replacing the camera body.

I’ll let y’all know when I get the new lens and post pics here.

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