Indoor shots

mercphotomercphoto Registered Users Posts: 4,550 Major grins
edited April 29, 2005 in People
Was at my niece's first birthday this weekend, and I brought along my 20D, my 580EX and my 28-135 lens. I was hoping for better results. Most shots seemed a bit soft.

I usually shot on Tv mode at 1/100, which means the camera usually sent the lens wide open. I wasn't worried so much, as that lens is not particularly fast, so I didn't feel the DOF would be too shallow. The flash was on ETTL, often at -2/3 FEC. ISO 400, and AWB. Sometimes I engaged IS. All focus points active and AI focus mode.

The camera obviously had issues choosing a focus point, so I started going to only one focus point. It was a bit of a hassle to choose, especially when I wanted an off-center composition. But too often, with all points active, I'd get something other than the baby in focus. I also started to wonder if I was having depth of field issues, so went to full manual at f/8 and 1/125, again with ETTL. I think the results were a bit better.

When you are photographing on an APS-C sensor camera at f/5.6, at around 80-120mm, and distances from 5-10 feet, how shallow is your DOF? Could that be an issue? Anything else in technique to change?
Bill Jurasz - Mercury Photography - Cedar Park, TX
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Comments

  • mereimagemereimage Registered Users Posts: 448 Major grins
    edited April 28, 2005
    It works best in these indoor candid closeups to work with just one off center focus sight active. I have this lens and have used it indoors on a 10D and 1DM11 and found it to hunt and focus slowly in low light though its a great walk around/ travel lens. I have kept to f2.8 or faster lenses for indoors work just to allow better AF even if I'm using flash. I'll look forward to reading others suggestions since I do most of my indoors shots in available light and shoot wide open- though I do use occ. fill flash- but not particularly confident using it. Someone here may be able to point us to flash tutorials. ///Mereimage
  • pathfinderpathfinder Super Moderators Posts: 14,708 moderator
    edited April 29, 2005
    mereimage wrote:
    It works best in these indoor candid closeups to work with just one off center focus sight active. I have this lens and have used it indoors on a 10D and 1DM11 and found it to hunt and focus slowly in low light though its a great walk around/ travel lens. I have kept to f2.8 or faster lenses for indoors work just to allow better AF even if I'm using flash. I'll look forward to reading others suggestions since I do most of my indoors shots in available light and shoot wide open- though I do use occ. fill flash- but not particularly confident using it. Someone here may be able to point us to flash tutorials. ///Mereimage

    I agree that indoor candids almost require at least an f2.8 lens for satisfactory AF function. F1.4 is better of course. You don't have to shoot at f1.4, just AF through it.


    There is some ETTL info here http://eosdoc.com/manuals.asp?q=ETTLRx
    Pathfinder - www.pathfinder.smugmug.com

    Moderator of the Technique Forum and Finishing School on Dgrin
  • mereimagemereimage Registered Users Posts: 448 Major grins
    edited April 29, 2005
    Typical- ask Pathfinder a simple question --result -you get a text bookrolleyes1.gifroflrolleyes1.gifroflrolleyes1.gifroflrolleyes1.gifroflrolleyes1.gifroflrolleyes1.gif

    Mereimage
  • David_S85David_S85 Administrators Posts: 13,249 moderator
    edited April 29, 2005
    mercphoto wrote:
    When you are photographing on an APS-C sensor camera at f/5.6, at around 80-120mm, and distances from 5-10 feet, how shallow is your DOF? Could that be an issue? Anything else in technique to change?
    Not much. An example is at 80mm, f/5.6, focused at 5 feet, the acceptable DOF sharpness range is only from 4.88 feet to 5.12 feet. And that's the deepest DOF. At 100mm and 120mm, it is even shallower!

    Here's a site that has a DOF calculator:
    http://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html
    My Smugmug
    "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take" - Wayne Gretzky
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