Category Archives: Middle Gray

What is Middle Gray

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Have you ever asked one of the following questions?

How can I get better looking photographs?
How can I learn to use my camera for better photographs?
How do I trust my camera meter?
What middle Gray?
How can I find middle gray?
Why are my photographs often too dark or too light?
How can I learn the zone system easily?
I have a new camera but my photos have not improved, what’s wrong?
How come my highlights are pure with with no detail?
Why are my shadows just blacked out?

Do any of these questions sound like something you have asked yourself? If so, you are in the right place and it may surprise you as to how simple and easy the answer to all of them really is. In fact I wrote a book about the topic titled Finding Middle Gray (and then some) and I’ll talk about that later, but let’s get back to the questions above.

I hear questions like these every week as I meet people in our photography gallery and they all have something in common; Middle Gray.

Before I tell you more about what middle gray actually is, let me share with you a common conversation I have with photographers.

When someone asks me why their photographs are consistently too dark or light I ask them if they know how to use their meter. More precisely I ask them if they know how their camera meter thinks. Usually the answer is either “no” or “how my meter thinks? What do you mean?” At this point in the conversation I talk about middle gray and ask if they have ever heard of it. The reason I ask? Well, Middle Gray is the most important element of how a camera meter (or hand meter) works. If you know about middle gray then you will know how your meter thinks and will easily be able to use it for quality results time and time again. And, it’s easy to learn!

Without an understanding of middle gray you will unfortunately be in the dark about your exposures and will always be fully dependent on your Auto exposure settings with little or no control.

Middle Gray

Middle Gray

So, what is Middle Gray?

One, Middle gray is an important tone found in every scene you photograph.

Two, Middle gray is one of the most important lessons in exposure you will ever learn to get good looking photographs. Any decent photography school teaches the middle gray lesson very early on.

Is Middle Gray easy to learn?

YES. It’s very easy, so much so I’m surprised that most camera manuals don’t include it.

Can I use middle gray with my older film camera too?

You bet, in fact the concept of middle gray has been around for quite some time. It works with digital, film, color or black and white and with any kind of camera.

This eBook, Finding Middle Gray (and then some) will explain in easy non-tech language what middle gray is and how to use it when taking photographs. You’ll be talking great exposed photographs in no time.

This eBook also explains what the histogram on your digital camera is and how it works together with middle gray. These two things, middle and the histogram, are the most important lessons you can learn if you want to grow out of Auto Exposure only photography.

Read this 60 page book and you will be rewarded with better exposures and photograhs. You will be able to pull better quality images out of your camera and discover what it can really do.

This little book is very empowering to photographers who have had trouble getting good results. Those days will be gone, and you’ll work with confidence!



Metering For Better Photos

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Metering Light for Better Photos

For portraits, landscapes, street photography, or any type of photography Digital, Film, Color or Black & White. I included easy reading chapters on some new light metering features found in the newest cameras like Live Preview which shows a real time histogram before you take the shot. A very useful tool. I added an easy to understand section on Histograms as well. These new features work great with traditional metering with your camera and you’re gonna love being in control for a change!

Check out all the newer posts on this book and all the benefits you’ll gain from reading it.

Here’s an image I took while in Pine Island using the methods I teach in Finding Middle Gray.
It’s from my Black Dirt Series.

Black Dirt Series by John Strazza

Photo taken with standard digital camera using simple techniqes

Taken with a Olympus EP-1 Digital Pen camera. I used the live histogram while metering.

Understanding Middle Gray

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What is Middle Gray?

Simple. If you think of a photograph in terms of the lightest white to the deepest black then middle gray would be in the middle of those two extremes.  Duhhh right?   What is important to know is this – that your camera (your camera’s meter to be more precise) “sees” middle gray.  It wants to average all the light it sees in a scene and give you the most usable setting to get a “correct” exposure.   This is THE premise of all the exposure modes your camera has – averaging the light and determining the correct setting so your picture will not be too light or dark. Today’s cameras do a fine job of it too – and they are becoming more complex every year, but the basic idea is the same.  Finding Middle Gray!

Here’s a new image that has great dynamic range and great details in the high and low ends.

Black Dirt Series by John Strazza

Photo taken with digital camera with methods I teach in Finding Middle Gray

So why does any of this matter to me?

Well, if YOU know how to find middle gray, you will start to have some control over what’s going on.  And at the very least, not get overly light or dark images leaving you with usable photographs.  It will also help you understand why some of your images do not work as they are supposed to when using some of the auto modes on your camera.

Here’s an example.  You are walking in the city taking in the sights and the sun is bright. You see a building that you just love and it’s mostly in the shade but the sun is reflecting very bright in one window pane.  You point your camera to this lovely scene and your camera meter sees mostly shadow and one small extremely bright beam of light.  Your camera tries to average the two together but may have delivered an exposure that looks too dark in the shadows of the  building and a beam of light that looks darker than you saw in real life.   Why?   Because the “average” middle gray that your camera was creating by averaging these two extremes of shadow and light beam “placed” the exposure in favor of the beam of light leaving the shadows in the dark – no pun intended.    The beam of light overpowered the average scale, so to speak, and threw off the balance.  Yes some cameras are getting better with these types of scenes but if you understand what’s going on, you can take control

This image above was taken with a new Olympus EP-1 and a 17mm lens using some newer techniques including Live View and live histograms mentioned in my “And Then Some” post.  The image was converted to black and white and processed for this particular portfolio to have a  slight vignette for a more dramatic result.  It’s part of a series called the black dirt series.

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