Night Party shooting questions and tips needed

rickp

<style>@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }</style> We've had a few family parties at night where I've taken out the camera and started shooting just for fun.

The next day when I download the images and start to review them I'm just not happy with the result. The main issue I have is motion blur from people moving. I know this is from a slow shutter speed.

I try and shoot at ISO800, but even with a flash I just can’t seem to get the shutter speed high enough to avoid the blur from people moving around.

All this makes me ask 2 questions:
First, what is the highest ISO you guys shoot during night shoots with people moving around. (i.e. a party)?

Second, is a little technical. I shoot a Canon 5D MkII. Any canon shooter knows that if shooting and your shutter speed blinks it can mean you’re probably under exposing the shot.
What I’ve noticed is that if I’m using a flash I can increase my shutter speed to the point that I can freeze the action at night. But this causes the shutter speed number to blink (telling me the shot is underexposed). So is it ok to ignore the blinking shutter number with a flash and get a good image?

I hope this isn’t clear as mud.

Thanks

R.

InsuredDisaster

Can't help you about the canon shutter speed, but I've set my camera to 6400 to get high shutter speeds at night. That's about the max I'll go to, but 3200 is more usable.

Again, I don't shoot canon, but what exposure mode are you in? P mode? shutter priority or aperture priority? And what exactly is your question relating to shutter speed? Is it better to get a good shot or a not so good shot? I'd say, get the good shot, and perhaps check your manual in the meantime.

rickp

I usually shoot manual. I feel like I have more control over the camera.

One of the questions was ignoring the blinking shutter speed (as in underexposed) when shooting with a flash. Its a canon settings thing.

R.

pathfinder

Go to ISO 1600 or higher.

2nd curtain synch on your flash.

Leave your shutter speed at 1/200th, flash in ETTL, and shoot in Manual mode. This will allow the flash to emit the correct exposure for a given aperture and ISO, and the flash will not fire until just before the shutter closes.

Leave High Speed Synch on your flash turned off too.

If it is very dark, you may not see any movement at all. Let flash stop the movement, not your shutter speed in this situation. If you still see movement, lower your ISO to 800, or even 400 if needed. The lower the ISO the less ambient exposure you will be catching.

ETTL is your friend in this situation. I am assuming you are shooting from less than 10 feet in a party situation, and I suspect, with on camera flash as well.

Properly exposed images from a 5DMkII at ISO 1600 should be lovely. I have lots of images shot with a 40D at ISO 1600 with flash that quite acceptable. If not, wash them with NoiseWare or a similar agent.

Photogbiker

Not a 5D shooter, but maybe expand on a couple excellent thoughts already posted.

If you are getting blur when using flash it is due to the camera working on the ambient exposure. The camera will do its best to match flash and ambient for a more pleasing photo, unfortunately this might mean a 60th shutter speed that doesn't freeze movement. As mentioned before go to 200 or 250 to freeze the motion in Manual mode and let the flash keep up. Your background will likely be dark, but the subject (if reasonably close) will be exposed properly by E-TTL flash.

This will also cause the blinking, but check the pic after shooting and make sure. Also, if you are in manual and set a shutter speed faster than the flash sync speed it would blink, I assume as a warning.

I love rear curtain sync for these situations. Maybe a bit of motion blur, but then the subject is frozen right at the end. Neat look for something like a couple on the dance floor.

InsuredDisaster

But maybe you could also get the flash off camera somehow (not sure what sort of flash setup you have) and it could be used to lighten up a bit more of the background. I do'nt like the "face in a cave" look myself.

pathfinder

Insured Disaster is suggesting something rather like this technique, perhaps

Not the only way to do off camera flash, but one that works indoors with moving people. Might use a 580exII on the camera instead of the ST-E2, or not.

There is more information on flash shooting at the link at the top of this forum - http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=70330

InsuredDisaster

Yep, something like that. I did something similar as well just a couple of weeks ago. I was in a room so the light could bounce off the walls. I gelled the flash to match the ambient, then just fired away. I think the shots are much better than on camera with that technique.

pathfinder

1/4 CTO gel perhaps?

You have to be careful there are so many compact CFLs out there now, color temps can be all over the map.

InsuredDisaster

Was that directed at me? I am not really sure. I have the Nikon gel kit.I just put onthe tungsten light gel as the room lighting was a bit orange.

pathfinder

Yes, CTO gels warm the light color like your tungsten filter.

I usually find straight CTO too orange, and use 1/2 or 1/4 strength CTO gels from one of the vendors. Very similar to what you are getting with your Nikon flash I suspect.

InsuredDisaster

pathfinder wrote: »

Yes, CTO gels warm the light color like your tungsten filter.

I usually find straight CTO too orange, and use 1/2 or 1/4 strength CTO gels from one of the vendors. Very similar to what you are getting with your Nikon flash I suspect.

Ok, I was wondering what I was missing by not having the range of CTO's. I've got an "Amber" filter which is fairly mild but I usually just use the Tungsten or Flourescent greens. I can not find more gels for the life of me here in Guangzhou. Probably at Nikon, but I figured I could find something generic somewhere.

Art Scott

InsuredDisaster wrote: »

Ok, I was wondering what I was missing by not having the range of CTO's. I've got an "Amber" filter which is fairly mild but I usually just use the Tungsten or Flourescent greens. I can not find more gels for the life of me here in Guangzhou. Probably at Nikon, but I figured I could find something generic somewhere.

Theater supply houses usually have colored gels, including CTO gels for the stage lighting.......but they normally come in a 2x3 foot sheet also.........here in the US..............

Qarik

rick are you shooting indoors or outdoors?

Anyway, your 5dmk2 can easily go to iso 3200 with good results. At night it is best to shoot in full manual and use your flash in TTL to "make up for th difference" in exposure shot to shot. So set your app to say 4 and shutter to 1/200 and iso 3200. Now meter a typical scene and chimp and change tweak iso/ap until you get 1.5 stops underexposed or so. Then your TTL flash will take care of the slop.