Need advice on outdoor pictures for company activity

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

My company decided to have a carnival this week, starting at 2:30pm
(Atlanta area if that makes a difference). I decided to take my camera
to take pictures. I didn't expect great results, given the time of day
(not much haze, the sky was a nice blue), but was really disappointed at
how bad the results actually were.

I used a Digital Rebel with a Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 lens. I attached a
circular polarizer and set my f-stop at 4.0, to get some but not all
background, enough to set off the pics of the people involved. I
photographed in Av mode and let the camera choose the speed. I had the
camera set on automatic white balance.

First thing I noticed upon downloading the pics to the computer was the
washed out highlights (lots of white tee shirts) and dark faces. As much
as possible, I tried to take pics when peoples faces were at least
somewhat highlghted by the sun. Pics in the sun tended to have a
reddish/purplish cast. Pics in the shade tended to have a blueish cast
(I'd have to assume because of the polarizer).

It took a lot of Photoshop work, shadow/highlight, levels, to get some
good pictures. Out of 200 pictures, I managed to get 71.

What could I have done, should I have done, to ensure better pictures?

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

Ken wrote:
> My company decided to have a carnival this week, starting at 2:30pm
> (Atlanta area if that makes a difference). I decided to take my camera
> to take pictures. I didn't expect great results, given the time of day
> (not much haze, the sky was a nice blue), but was really disappointed at
> how bad the results actually were.
>
> I used a Digital Rebel with a Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 lens. I attached a
> circular polarizer and set my f-stop at 4.0, to get some but not all
> background, enough to set off the pics of the people involved. I
> photographed in Av mode and let the camera choose the speed. I had the
> camera set on automatic white balance.
>
> First thing I noticed upon downloading the pics to the computer was the
> washed out highlights (lots of white tee shirts) and dark faces. As much
> as possible, I tried to take pics when peoples faces were at least
> somewhat highlghted by the sun. Pics in the sun tended to have a
> reddish/purplish cast. Pics in the shade tended to have a blueish cast
> (I'd have to assume because of the polarizer).
>
> It took a lot of Photoshop work, shadow/highlight, levels, to get some
> good pictures. Out of 200 pictures, I managed to get 71.
>
> What could I have done, should I have done, to ensure better pictures?

A fill flash is a must for photos of people in sunlight. The camera's manual should tell
you how to set it up.