Digital Camera News, Reviews and Tips
In this short video, Damien Lovegrove explains how to take low light portraits and retain good exposure and tonal range.
In the first shot, Damien uses a tripod and dials in manual exposure compensation to get the tonal range spot on. In the second shot, Damien uses a monopod and multiple light sources, including a rim light to add depth and separation.
There are times when you have to use a flash when shooting a wedding or portrait session. For example, if you are shooting outside and the sun has gone down completely, or if you are shooting inside with dim overhead lighting, a flash is a necessity. But whenever I can avoid it, I prefer taking advantage of natural light, even if it is waning in the half hour after sunset.
To get the most out of your camera, follow these guidelines: [Read more…]
Olympus has unveiled a new M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 75mm f/1.8 Micro Four Thirds lens. Due to the 2x crop factor, the new lens provides 150mm equivalent field of view, which makes for a long portrait lens or a niche low-light event or sports lens.
The Olympus 75mm f/1.8 lens retails for $899.99 and should be available later in Summer 2012. Check availability at B&H Photo.
More details in the press release below. [Read more…]
Check out the above short from some Canon C300 action at ISO 10,000 and using the moon as the key light.
Yeah, there’s noise, but its not the nasty stuff we get out of the 5D Mark II at higher ISOs. Now, if I only had $16k for the C300…
[via No Film School]
Nikon D3s – ISO 3200 – f/2.8 – 1/1000s
One of the three components of exposure of photographs is the sensitivity of your image sensor or film inside your camera. This measure of sensitivity is expressed as ISO speed – and it’s kind of a big deal when your light is less than ideal. [Read more…]
I’ve been digging into Lightroom 3 for a couple of days now. I’m a big fan of the improvements – happy to see my video files, love the tethered shooting capability, as well as the improved speed. Last night, however, I decided to dig up some of my photos from the Canon 1D Mark IV and Nikon D3s ISO comparisons and take a closer look at the improved noise control that we’ve all heard so much about.
While I experienced a taste of what was to come in the Lightroom 3 beta, I was not prepared for the magnitude of improvement that I saw in the images as I wiped my Lightroom 2 adjustments and made new adjustments in Lightroom 3’s noise control panel.
I could go on and on about it, but you really need to see for yourself. [Read more…]
ISO 6400 – HDR Composite of 9 Bracketed Images
I’ve just been getting to know the Nikon D3S a bit, but I brought it along with me on a quick trip to NYC to visit my good friends at B&H Photo. I had some time to kill last night and I couldn’t resist a walk down to Times Square with the D3S to see what the high ISO handling looked like in a real world environment. [Read more…]
Here’s one of my more recent Knoxville photography night shots. A shot of the Henley Street Bridge with Christmas lights all lit up. I’ve really been enjoying night exposures over the past several months. You can see a few more here.
So what do you need to take photos at night? A good tripod is a must have, along with a remote shutter release (or set the timer). Most of all, you need patience. Night shots are different. Exposures are much longer. The shot above was a 30 second exposure at f/20. Also consider reading a bit of the Night Photography Blog and some recent recommendations of books on the subject.
Most importantly . . . have fun:
