Scott Hraban wrote:.
To add insult to injury, I am not used to being able to tell fromthe display how bright the pictures are going to be yet, so theyended up being a little brighter than actually needed, so I couldhave dropped the EV down manually, but such is life..
Arrive early, take some shots to check the metering, pick settings you like. The marginal cost of 'extra' shots is very low, assuming you're not using a tiny flash card..
As for brightness, check the histogram..
My question is - what is the best way to handle this? Thinkingabout it afterwards, I wish that I had switched to shutterpriority, and forced it to take a fast enough picture (1/125 orso???) that I did not get any blur, and then salvage what I couldby post-processing to lighten, but I am just not sure if that wouldhave done it either?.
This is what I'd recommend for moving subjects. Noise is usually much more fixable/tolerable than motion blur...
Scott Hraban wrote:.
This last weekend I was shooting some pictures at a friendsgraduation, but it was indoors (MemChu, Stanford University). Beingin a church, I could (politely) use flash, and even if I could, thesubjects were too far away to do any good..
The light level was pretty low, so I used Aperature mode, and keptit as wide open as I could. Unfortunately I just bought this NikonD50 a few weeks back, and my wallet has not recovered enough to beable to afford a better than the kit lens, so the best that I coulddo was 5.6 - shooting zoomed all the way in at 55mm..
Even though I put the ISO at 1600, and kept the aperature at 5.6,the pictures had lots of motion blur. Unfortunately I forgot mytripod, so 1/3 of the pictures are fuzzy, but the other 2/3s thathave crisp backgrounds, the people were all have motion blur. I wasgetting about 1/20 of a second for most of the shots..
To add insult to injury, I am not used to being able to tell fromthe display how bright the pictures are going to be yet, so theyended up being a little brighter than actually needed, so I couldhave dropped the EV down manually, but such is life..
My question is - what is the best way to handle this? Thinkingabout it afterwards, I wish that I had switched to shutterpriority, and forced it to take a fast enough picture (1/125 orso???) that I did not get any blur, and then salvage what I couldby post-processing to lighten, but I am just not sure if that wouldhave done it either?.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated..
Thanks,Scott.
-A monopod could be helpful to keep the camera steady and is lighter/smaller than a tripod.. however, it won't freeze a moving subject..
-Perhaps you could consider to buy used lensesA 50 mm 1.8 would not cost much but would be great in low light situations. Check if the lens is compatible with your camera before buying/trying.-Use the histogram to examine the correct exposure..
JohnnyWB.
Pleeze ignore ze typo's ..
Scott Hraban wrote:.
My question is - what is the best way to handle this?.
The 50mm f/1.8 is about $100, and would have given you 3 1/3 stops wider aperture at about the same focal length you were using. Those 1/20 shots would be 1/200 instead (or you could shoot f/1.8 1/100 ISO 800, etc)..
Thinkingabout it afterwards, I wish that I had switched to shutterpriority, and forced it to take a fast enough picture (1/125 orso???) that I did not get any blur, and then salvage what I couldby post-processing to lighten, but I am just not sure if that wouldhave done it either?.
The mode you are in doesn't really matter. But you have the right idea. Intentionally underexpose and push it in post processing. Shooting raw will help a bit, too. If people aren't moving too fast 1/60 will usually be fast enough, so all you really needed to do was underexpose 1 1/3 to 1 2/3 stops..
Seen in a fortune cookie:Fear is the darkroom where negatives are developed..
With noise reduction software and so forth, I've found that you can underexpose a bit if you need to freeze motion in ambient light...
Use high ISO. Use 1/50th sec. Use monopod and shoulder brace..
Get closer. Use as wide an aperture setting as possible..
Take test shots...examine histogram...determine proper exposure settings...set manual exposure..
Process pix with a good NR program..
Charlie DavisNikon 5700 & Sony R1CATS #25PAS Scribe @ http://www.here-ugo.com/PAS_List.htmHomePage: http://www.1derful.info'I brake for pixels...'..
Thanks everyone for your help!.
The 50mm f1.8 prime Nikkor lens was high on my list - good to hear that I am on the right track there..
Many of you commented on the histogram - I have used a color histogram in GIMP for color balancing, but not in camera for light levels - anyone have a pointer to some good reading on how to read a histogram for light levels?.
Thanks,Scott..
Scott Hraban wrote:.
Thanks everyone for your help!.
The 50mm f1.8 prime Nikkor lens was high on my list - good to hearthat I am on the right track there..
Many of you commented on the histogram - I have used a colorhistogram in GIMP for color balancing, but not in camera for lightlevels - anyone have a pointer to some good reading on how to reada histogram for light levels?.
Thanks,Scott.
Http://www.nikonians.org/html/resources/guides/digital/histogram_101/.
JohnnyWB.
Pleeze ignore ze typo's ..
I have found that both my Canon 20D and 5D seem to overexpose at high ISO (1600 & 3200). So I generall compensate by two-thirds of a stop..
I have a 50mm f1.4 lens for the situation you described. As long as the subjects aren't extremely distant, the 50mm focal length should be ok (especially with a less-than-full-frame sensor). Even if the subject is quite far away, the resolution of your camera should allow you to crop and enlarge to some degree..
Just my thoughts.Respectfully,Mike SneddonMattoon, IL USA..
You already have some good answers. A couple of additional comments..
Yes. Do use Shutter Priority with a wide open aperture at ISO 1600 and push the exposure.Use RAW not JPEG (I recomend NX as a convertor/PP program)Use a monopod or tripod. You willl get nowhere without one..
I aim for 1/100th to stop slow motion action. It will not stop everything but you will get keepers..
The Sigma 24-70 f2.8 is a good used buy on Ebay. It is my standard low light lens. It may cost you not much more than a new 50mm f1.8 which is certainly an excellent value low light lens..
Chris Elliott.
*Nikon* D Eighty + Fifty - Other equipment in Profile.
Http://PlacidoD.zenfolio.com/..
Scott, your shopoting conditions were horrible and with the equipment you had with you, hopeless..
So, don't feel bad..
These conditions are why people buy more equipment, and why some equipment is very, very expensive, and why the pros get special permission to be in special places..
I don't know the church I've spent a grand total of maybe ten minutes at Stanford, after coming to Palo Aloto to takle pictures of proscuitto at a cafe downtown. I thought the school looked great, though..
The P for Program button on your camera is your friend. When iin doubt, it will help you out by compromising between aperture and shutter speed..
At 1/20, yes,. subject motion is a problem. Flash might help, but you were too far away..
A wider aperture (f4, or 3.5) would have helped, but on your lens that makes the subject even smaller..
A 50mmlens on your Nikon will be a treat for lots of peuposes, but you'd still be a long way away..
SOMETIMES THE BEST THING TO DO under this kind of circumstance is just sit down and enjoy the show. Then once your fridn/son/daughter has leanred paper in had, set up a more careflly planned, and technocally more feasible, shot out doors afterwards. A crisp, clear photo of her and her favorite professor will get framed and on a mantlepiece for decades. A fuzzy print with a tiny figure in the middle will never get displayed..
BAK..
The 50mm f1.8 prime Nikkor lens was high on my list - good to hear that I am on the right track there..
Yep. Good advice from a lot of posters..
In low light:.
1) Use highest ISO setting possible, but keep it low enough to avoid excessive noise. Some DSLRs ae better than others at high ISO..
2) Use the fastest lens possible (meaning lowest f-stop). Also, shorter focal length lens show less camera shake all other factors (i.e. shutter speed) being equal.3) Use solid technique to minimize camera shake..
Mem-Chu is pretty dark inside. Here's a low-light image of how it looked outside on Easter Eve:Nikon D200 ,Nikkor 28mm f/1.4D AF1/15s f/1.6 at 28.0mm iso800.
Image control:Zoom outZoom 100%Zoom inExpand AllOpen in new window.
Taken handheld at ISO 800, with a very fast lens (f/1.4), using a relatively short focal length (28 mm)..
Good luck!.
RB.
Http://www.pbase.com/rbfresno/profile..