Show me: your low-light *FLASHLESS* pictures

[Adz1984]

See next post.

 

[Adz1984]

Heres a few of my first ever pics.

 

[makinorlando]

I took this photo last night leaving Sea World... the moon was amazingly beautiful. It was the perfect ending scene for an October - Halloweeny time at Sea World. Soon after this pic the clouds moved over the moon which made even "spookier"! I was waiting for a witch! Not too long after this we had one heck of a storm.

 

[TwoOldPoohs]

Yay! DSL is working again!

I can't remember if I've posted these already

 

[Carolc]

Yay! DSL is working again!

I can't remember if I've posted these already
.
.
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As always, phenominal pictures! I wish I was able to take such great low light photos.

Carol

 

[pxlbarrel]

TwoOldPoohs...

Magnificent. Can you tell us what settings your camera was on for these (especially the Fantasmic....what lens, what iso, what shutters speed...????) They're amazing.

 

[TwoOldPoohs]

TwoOldPoohs...

Magnificent. Can you tell us what settings your camera was on for these (especially the Fantasmic....what lens, what iso, what shutters speed...????) They're amazing.

Thank you, pxlbarrel. I'm glad you liked them!
Here's the exif info for the Fantasmic photo, as shown in IrfanView:


Make - Canon
Model - Canon EOS 20D
ExposureTime - 1/30 seconds
FNumber - 1.80
ISOSpeedRatings - 1600
DateTimeOriginal - 2004:10:25 23:45:47
DateTimeDigitized - 2004:10:25 23:45:47
ShutterSpeedValue - 1/30 seconds
ApertureValue - F 1.80
MeteringMode - Multi-segment
Flash - Not fired, compulsory flash mode
FocalLength - 50 mm
ColorSpace - sRGB
ExposureMode - Auto
WhiteBalance - Auto
Self timer - Off
Quality - Normal
Flash mode - Not fired
Sequence mode - Continous
Focus mode - One-Shot
Image size - Large
Digital zoom - None
Contrast - Normal
Saturation - Normal
Sharpness - Normal
ISO Value - 32767 (other)
Metering mode - Evaluative
Focal length - 50 - 50 mm (1 mm)
Flash activity - Not fired
Subject Distance - 0
Image Type - Canon EOS 20D
Firmware Version - Firmware 1.0.2

The lens used was the Canon 50mm f/1.8.

I'm not sure why there are two ISO different ISO values. Does anyone know what this means?

 

[TwoOldPoohs]

As always, phenominal pictures! I wish I was able to take such great low light photos.

Carol

Thank you so much, Carol. That little 50mm f/1.8 lens is probably the best ~$80 I ever spent.

 

[Amy]

Here a couple I took yesterday with my Canon S3 IS:

And a close-up:

 

[handicap18]

Can I jump in here with a question? I'm going to WDW soon and want to get some good flashless shots of character dining interactions. Last time we went to Liberty Tree Tavern and I didn't use the flash, my son and the characters were brightly lit and the background was blacked out. I have the Dig Rebel XT - any suggestions on what settings?

Anyone care to share pictures of character dining in less than ideal lighting without a flash?

Hope it's okay that I ask a question in this thread but from the photos I've seen - you guys KNOW what you are doing.

Fabulous photos everyone - thanks for sharing!

I agree with Master Mason. If you have a digital SLR and you are interested in doing flashless/lowlight pictures then it is well worth spending the $70-120 (depending on if you use Canon or Nikon and where you purchase it) for a 50mm f/1.8 prime lens. They are very sharp lenses and produce excellent lowlight pictures (though their ideal f/stop is between f/5.6 and f/11, but still are great at f/1.8). In the situation you are talking about, you might have to step back a few extra feet to get a wider view of your subject, but if you use Master Mason's suggestions on settings you should be pretty happy with the results.

Sigma also makes a farily inexpensive 28mm f/1.8 prime lens. It goes for about $250.

You really can't go wrong with the 50mm f/1.8 though. Very highly recommended for all dSLR users.

 

[matthew_hull]

Can I jump in here with a question? I'm going to WDW soon and want to get some good flashless shots of character dining interactions. Last time we went to Liberty Tree Tavern and I didn't use the flash, my son and the characters were brightly lit and the background was blacked out. I have the Dig Rebel XT - any suggestions on what settings?

Anyone care to share pictures of character dining in less than ideal lighting without a flash?

No. All of the photos taken without a flash at the Character Dinner ended up in the trash bin. Use the flash (unless it is prohibited). The "dark background" effect is indeed unfortunate, but it beats having a handful of unusable photos. The effect can be somewhat mitigated in post-processing afterwards. First, get the shot. If you see that you are consistently getting pictures with too much flash, you can dial down the flash in the menu of your Canon, or you can wrap some White tissue paper (or toilet paper) around the flash to subdue it a bit.

If you cannot use flash, then bump up the ISO setting to as high as you can tolerate given the inherant noise. Again, post-processing can mitigate the noise reasonably well. Use proper technique: firm footing, steady hand, etcetera. If you can rest the camera on an improvised tripod -- a handbag, a doorframe -- that will help. Be realistic, though. If you are as excited as your children (and why shouldn't you be?) technique goes out the window with all other rational thought. Moving children are going to be blurred -- only the prepared poses will be sharp.

My advice: use the flash.

-- Matthew

 

[pxlbarrel]

Is there not a setting on some of the cameras that is flash but it flashes the person in question without blacking out the background. On my CANON Rebel XT, it's the little person with the star symbol. (Don't know how else to describe it.) I tried the setting out at a local lantern festival last month and it seemed to work. I also tried it out in DL in August and it worked too.

I forgot the principle of how this works...but if your camera has one of these setttings, try it out.

 

[0bli0]

...On my CANON Rebel XT, it's the little person with the star symbol.

that's generally called 'night shot' or it's sometimes called 'slow shutter'. basically the image is exposed for the ambient light - not the flash. the flash illuminates the nearby subjects and the background is illuminated by the slower shutter speed.

here are a few more from DisneySea

f2.2 - 189mm @ 1/160

handheld - sitting on my rear, elbows on knees - 1/3 second

aperture f1.4!

handheld - 2 seconds so blurry. the light swirls are the aquatopia cars spinning by

 

[Carolc]

that's generally called 'night shot' or it's sometimes called 'slow shutter'. basically the image is exposed for the ambient light - not the flash. the flash illuminates the nearby subjects and the background is illuminated by the slower shutter speed.

here are a few more from DisneySea

These are great... is that Fantasmic? Do you have a closer shot of the head of that beast?

Where were you when you took the f1.4 shot?

 

[0bli0]

i was inside the '20,000 leagues...' ride queueing area. that particular shot i was able to have quite a decent shutter speed due to the bright board behind it (and iso 800).

the show is called BraviSEAmo! it's a story about 'spirit of fire' and 'spirit of water'. i actually didn't take too many shots as i was far back (people queue for parades and shows here several hours early and i'd rather enjoy the park). so i don't really have a close up of its head. it's nowhere as enjoyable as Fantasmic

 

[handicap18]

No. All of the photos taken without a flash at the Character Dinner ended up in the trash bin. Use the flash (unless it is prohibited). The "dark background" effect is indeed unfortunate, but it beats having a handful of unusable photos. The effect can be somewhat mitigated in post-processing afterwards. First, get the shot. If you see that you are consistently getting pictures with too much flash, you can dial down the flash in the menu of your Canon, or you can wrap some White tissue paper (or toilet paper) around the flash to subdue it a bit.

If you cannot use flash, then bump up the ISO setting to as high as you can tolerate given the inherant noise. Again, post-processing can mitigate the noise reasonably well. Use proper technique: firm footing, steady hand, etcetera. If you can rest the camera on an improvised tripod -- a handbag, a doorframe -- that will help. Be realistic, though. If you are as excited as your children (and why shouldn't you be?) technique goes out the window with all other rational thought. Moving children are going to be blurred -- only the prepared poses will be sharp.

My advice: use the flash.

-- Matthew

Matthew, what kind of equipment are you using? (camera and if applicable lens)

 

[DragonSlyr]

A bit backwards...dark foreground

 

[Renysmom]

I have an Olympus E-300 and am womdering if anyone has any suggestions on how to practice night shots prior to our Xmas trip? We live in a rural area so there isn't alot of places near that i can go shoot.

Thanks

Kelly

 

[jann1033]

ooopps just realized i forgot to straighten this one so just pretend it's the waves rocking the pier

 

[pxlbarrel]

I have an Olympus E-300 and am womdering if anyone has any suggestions on how to practice night shots prior to our Xmas trip? We live in a rural area so there isn't alot of places near that i can go shoot.

Thanks

Kelly

You could practise taking photos of your home illuminated only by porch light. If you put up your Christmas tree before you leave, take photos of it in the dark...all lit up. It'll look gorgeous. Have a candlelit dinner and take photos by candlelight. Maybe take a photo of sunset or sunrise.