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I'd rather overexpose the sky if it means that my composition of interest isn't too dark to see anything. # # # #
in reply to Neil E. Hodges

If shooting JPGs that is maybe a good advice. I am shooting RAW and use some Programs (Lightroom and DxO PhotoLab5) for developing my shots. Know your camera gives hints how much to raise the deeps and lower the lights .
If nothings is overexposed, i can recover the sky and the darker foreground.
And some software can lower the HighIso noise. Real good.

But that works mostly in RAW.
in reply to dieter_wilhelm

I do also have the RAWs, but haven't played around with them in years. Since I'm on Linux, the software options are a bit limited.
in reply to Neil E. Hodges

But also possible.... Darktable can do it (as i was told...)
in reply to dieter_wilhelm

The last time I used Darktable, everything was either too dark or too grey.
in reply to Neil E. Hodges

Ok. I had practise years for dev a raw so to speak (Nikons CaptureNX..) What to do and when for what....There are books which described the usual workflow with a given program. That is my way to learn that. All other wo have two monitors, can use youtube....
in reply to Neil E. Hodges

Monitor is calibrated? Load a grayscale picture "full black to full white" and check if it displayed "all visible" on your monitor with your picture program.
(Had that with an colleague who had "too bright pics". Next week he had a new monitor...)
in reply to dieter_wilhelm

I was comparing the JPEG from my camera to the image resulting from processing the RAW on the same monitor, so it's all relative.
in reply to dieter_wilhelm

I found some good videos, but I still didn't find the right tool for increasing the contrast and saturation of the trees to my liking, when the bright cloudy sky caused the photo to be underexposed by the camera.
in reply to Neil E. Hodges

When i have a similar shot. Filter down (masked sky in LR CC) the sky. Means sky and tree have 3fstop between. Then raise the global exposure and raise some deeps. Usual sky is like before but trees and deeps are lighter then. Well saturation is also to consider....