How to take casual photos with a soft/dark background?

[innamorarobyn]

I've got a Nikon D40 and I'm trying to figure out how to take photos at night that have the soft/dark background but the people/object in focus is crisp and light but with a soft night glow. I've attached a couple pics so you can better understand what I'm talking about. If you guys could help me that would be great! You can just tell me the settings or if you have a tutorial that'd be wonderful!


Imageshack - night3c.jpg

Imageshack - night2g.jpg

Imageshack - nightt.jpg

 

[chammer]

you should take a look at this video (and pretty much all of his as he's brilliant) as it seems its exactly what you're looking for (the 2nd photo of the shoot more specifically):

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZ8PGxL6urg&feature=channel[/ame]

he does it during the day time, but you can adjust for night time if you prefer.

i've been watching them more and more lately to pick up on some tips and tricks now that i have a 2nd flash.

 

[IgsEMT]

general rule - darks u UNDER, lights you OVER expose there's more to it but its a start.

 

[myfotoguy]

Do you have a speedlight? Remote trigger like the video will do it. But if you don't have all that radio triggering gear, you could still get close I think with a single speedlight mounted on your D40.

Set the speedlight to be zoomed all the way out, this will help to focus the flash beam. You might also try wrapping something around the flash head (like a black piece of constrcution paper or craft paper) to helf focus the light.

If you background is showing up, try setting the camera to a higher f stop and lower ISO. That helps darken the background while the flash lights your subject.