Multiple Exposure - Straight Images

Multiple Exposure - Image Bank

Multiple Exposure - Definition

In photography, a multiple exposure is the superimposition of two or more exposures to create a single image. It is sometimes referred to as double exposure, which is when there are specifically two exposures made into one image. These can be made using in camera settings that impose a set amount of images together or through overlaying images in Photoshop.

Here is an example of a double/ multiple exposure image. You can clearly see that there are two exposures that make up this image; an exposure of the man and an exposure of the city, which have been imposed together to create the image. This was likely made using an in camera setting that imposes multiple images together.

Multiple Exposure - Technique

Some Cameras have a built in setting that can create multiple exposure images within the camera. To access this, you need go into your main settings and find a setting titled multiple exposure. You can choose how many exposure you would like to use for your final image, which is usually 2 or 3. You will want to turn auto gain off, as this while brighten your images.
If you want to take a high key multiple exposure portrait, you will need to turn your camera's metering mode into spot metering, and then set your shooting mode to aperture priority mode. When taking your image, you make your focus point in the middle then take a picture of your subject on a completely white background. You then up your exposure compensation by 2 stop and take a photo of what you want to overlay onto the portrait. If you don't have multiple exposure settings on your camera you will need to overlay the images on Photoshop.

To create a multiple exposure image on Photoshop, firstly, you open the two images. Next, you need to drag the image of your subject on top of the image of your background. You then change the overlay settings to screen. You can now flatten your finished edit.