Hey everyone
I was wondering if someone could help me or explain stuff to me. So I'm new at photography & trying to figure things out. Right now I'm shooting in manual mode (and enjoying it when there is good lighting) but I'm having a difficult time figuring it out when the lighting isn't so good.
So....this is what I know (or think I know..lol)
- The darker it is, the higher the ISO is (day light outside 100 - dark setting inside at 1600)
- By increasing my shutter speed, the faster my camera shoots which determines how much light gets into the lens (so 1/30 is way slower, but lets in more light, whereas 1/1200 which is super quick, but little light comes in)
- I'm really not sure what f/stop does, to be honest. I have a 50mm that I just keep at f1.4
When shooting in darker light (ie with the lights on in the house, but dusk/dark outside) I need to have an ISO of about 800-1600 and my shutter speed is around 1/30ish. However, I find the picture are really grainy (I guess it has a lot of noise in photography lingo??) Is there a way to prevent this?? What setting do you normally shoot at when shooting in darker setting (with having the harsh pop-up flash on) Do I even have this "what I know" correct!?!
@landonsmoments I wanted to know some of this too. I am learning it by testing diff. settings/seeing results and I have bought a book...but it is a long process. @tabatsoy Thanks for the article!
You are on the right track....just remember the search bar is your friend on this site. search every word, phrase or term you can think of or you want to know about...there has most likely been a discussion about it on here at some point.
I come from the dark(room) ages of photography, where we didn't have the option to easily change ISO, so, I generally set mine low and don't use the higher ranges even though my camera will handle it. Why? Mainly because of the noise. I don't like it. I'd rather shoot slow then deal with noise (for the most part).
Since you do have a fast lens, and you say you usually use the speed, use it to your advantage. Try not to shoot much above ISO400. Take a few test shots with your camera (set a coffee mug up on the table or something similarly easy) and just see how each different ISO creates noise, then decide for yourself what it acceptable.
Shoot slower, use a tripod or lean your body against a wall, lean against a table, set camera on table ect to keep it steady. Depending on your camera you should be able to do a slow shutter sync with flash. Meaning the flash will go off but it will also do a longer exposure for more natural light (you may have to go to shutter or aperture priority rather than manual).
Also you should be able to lower the output of the flash. Check your manual. Placing a piece of tissue or using a diffuser over the flash can also help reduce the harshenss of it if you cannot angle it towards the ceiling.
F/1.4 will let in the most light (better for dark situations) but the focus is going to be very shallow. You might have the tip of the nose in focus but the eyes blurred. I try to keep portraits around f/2.8.
Your correct with your shutter speed, but 1/30 is pretty slow and tends to give the camera or subject time to move, resulting in blurred photos. I try to keep my speed at 1\100 or faster if possible
ISO grain depends a lot on your camera. I usually try to stay at 400 or below, but I have gone to 800 from time to time. I don't even bother with my 3200 setting.
If I am at these settings and it is still too dark, then I break out my flash. I have a separate flash (Yongnuo YN-560) that I use mainly as an off-camera flash (something you should look into when you feel ready).
@onarom I love the camera simulator. I spent 90$ for a class on all the Manual settings and then found the simulator. Could have saved alot of camera accessories money.
This is a great discussion! I've seen similar topics, but I wasn't far enough to understand the explanations in past discussions. The links and explanations here are so informative and the camera simulator is a ton of fun. Learning manual is challenging me more than I'd like. Maybe I just need to do as you are Karla and just try it and learn as I go.
@landonsmoments I'm glad you asked this. I'm new too, and have been practicing taking the same photo with different settings, but getting frustrated. Thank God for digital cameras to allow shoot and delete right away!!! Thanks for the links and help everyone.
aperture is the size of the "hole" that the light comes through to hit the sensor / film.
The lower the number, the bigger the hole
The higher the number, the smaller the hold
The bigger the hole - the more light hits the sensor / film which means the less time the shutter needs to be open to get a correct exposure
The smaller the hole - the less light hits the sensor so the shutter needs to be open for longer to get a correct exposure
You guys are all AMAZING!!!! I'm totally a hands on person and the advice everyone has give is in simple language (which is fabulous) PLUS is simple to try out! I'll give all your suggestions a go, and let you know how it's working out! @Weng - That's for explaining what f/stop it - it makes total sense! @Dale - Thanks so much for the advice - I'm going to try shooting some of my portraits in f2.8 & see the difference and THANK YOU SOOO Much for the camera simulator!! @Neda - Thanks for the advice on ISO....the graininess drives me nuts! I like crisp pics. as well! I'll give your suggestions a shot!
@J.A & Rain - thanks for the links! I'll give them a read! :)
@ all the newbies - hopefully that questions (and answers) helped some of you out as well. All the terminology was so confusing as first, but I think I'm slowly getting the hang of it. I'm trying to read some photography blogs and stuff to help get ideas & understand this photography world.
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THE ULTIMATE EXPOSURE COMPUTER
A GUIDE FOR NATURE PHOTOGRAPHERS
©1995-2011 Fred Parker
I find that this takes a read or two, but it helps with exposures.
I come from the dark(room) ages of photography, where we didn't have the option to easily change ISO, so, I generally set mine low and don't use the higher ranges even though my camera will handle it. Why? Mainly because of the noise. I don't like it. I'd rather shoot slow then deal with noise (for the most part).
Since you do have a fast lens, and you say you usually use the speed, use it to your advantage. Try not to shoot much above ISO400. Take a few test shots with your camera (set a coffee mug up on the table or something similarly easy) and just see how each different ISO creates noise, then decide for yourself what it acceptable.
Shoot slower, use a tripod or lean your body against a wall, lean against a table, set camera on table ect to keep it steady. Depending on your camera you should be able to do a slow shutter sync with flash. Meaning the flash will go off but it will also do a longer exposure for more natural light (you may have to go to shutter or aperture priority rather than manual).
Also you should be able to lower the output of the flash. Check your manual. Placing a piece of tissue or using a diffuser over the flash can also help reduce the harshenss of it if you cannot angle it towards the ceiling.
Your correct with your shutter speed, but 1/30 is pretty slow and tends to give the camera or subject time to move, resulting in blurred photos. I try to keep my speed at 1\100 or faster if possible
ISO grain depends a lot on your camera. I usually try to stay at 400 or below, but I have gone to 800 from time to time. I don't even bother with my 3200 setting.
If I am at these settings and it is still too dark, then I break out my flash. I have a separate flash (Yongnuo YN-560) that I use mainly as an off-camera flash (something you should look into when you feel ready).
The lower the number, the bigger the hole
The higher the number, the smaller the hold
The bigger the hole - the more light hits the sensor / film which means the less time the shutter needs to be open to get a correct exposure
The smaller the hole - the less light hits the sensor so the shutter needs to be open for longer to get a correct exposure
A good resource is "understanding exposure" http://www.amazon.co.uk/Understanding-Exposure-3rd-Photographs-Camera/dp/0817439390/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1319132866&sr=8-1
Its good to understand the various components and then learn how to adjust them for various genres - landscape, studio etc
@Weng - That's for explaining what f/stop it - it makes total sense!
@Dale - Thanks so much for the advice - I'm going to try shooting some of my portraits in f2.8 & see the difference and THANK YOU SOOO Much for the camera simulator!!
@Neda - Thanks for the advice on ISO....the graininess drives me nuts! I like crisp pics. as well! I'll give your suggestions a shot!
@J.A & Rain - thanks for the links! I'll give them a read! :)
@ all the newbies - hopefully that questions (and answers) helped some of you out as well. All the terminology was so confusing as first, but I think I'm slowly getting the hang of it. I'm trying to read some photography blogs and stuff to help get ideas & understand this photography world.