The When and How of In-Camera Double Exposure

There’s more than one way to make double exposures. I started making them years ago with film cameras, and now of course Photoshop is there to help you out. But there’s a third way: shooting them in-camera. Within this technique, you can choose to either not use Live View for spontaneity, or to activate it for assurance (as I did in this double exposure).

The When

There must be certain elements present to make me decide to do a double exposure. I need to have something that works well with the in-camera technique: a landscape, texture, flowers, etc. It also has to make sense for the story I am documenting. I liked the idea that this big flower crown could be continued in the face, adding a foliage effect to the bride’s profile. 

The How

1. Switch to Multiple Exposure Mode, and activate Function/Control Mode to build the exposure shot by shot, as well as Additive Mode to overlay the images.

2. Shoot the first image (in this case, the bride’s silhouette), manually focusing on the focal point (here, the flower crown). 

3. Activate Live View to have the best possible result, and then shoot the second photo (I did a vertical landscape). I usually underexpose the second photo a bit, but here the settings remained the same. 

CAMERA: Canon 5D Mark III  
LENS: Zuiko 50mm f/1.4 (with adaptor)  
SHUTTER SPEED: 1/2500 sec 
SETTINGS: Multiple Exposure, Function/Control and Additive Modes 
ISO: 400

Related: 

Trending Now: What We Saw (and Loved) This Year in Wedding Photography

Bold Talent: Three Contemporaries Turning the Wedding Industry On Its Head