Just got a D3200! Help a new user get the right settings for maternity photos?

[BurnIn]

My wife and I are very lucky - not only do we have a new child on the way, but we were given a used Nikon D3200 by family!
The only cameras I have owned up to this point have been small point-and-shoots, or just iPhones, haha.

I've been reading through the manual and the online help guide. But I can't seem to let in as much light as I want, nor get the pics as clear as I want.

I'm using a very low-budget tripod but it's working out. I am using the 2-sec or 10-sec timer (the latter for shots including me). The timer and tripod help reduce blur, but the photos still aren't super clear.

Our lighting setup uses a window letting sunlight through, and some ceiling track lights with white umbrellas over them to diffuse.

We got some decent black and white ones, but color not so much. Here is a sample of one of the worse ones. (Cropped out personal details)

How can I get
- Brighter photos
- Sharper detail
- Better color

Specific settings or general tips, anything helps. Thanks in advance!

 

[jaomul]

What lens,mode (giving what aperture and shutter speed and iso are you using)
Looks not focussed correctly and metering out. Setting info might help

 

[AceCo55]

It looks underexposed to me.

Proper exposure depends on three factors (yes I know that isn't exactly correct - but think of the audience we have).
Aperture - the size of the hole letting in light
Shutter Speed - how long the hole is open for
ISO - how sensitive the sensor is to the light (Low ISO - less sensitive but better image. High ISO (1600 plus) - more sensitive but more "noise"/"graininess)

To help can you position you and your wife in front of a large window/glass door?
If you can turn both of you at say 45 degrees to the camera.

Set your picture taking mode to Aperture. Then set your aperture to say f4.5 / f5.6 / f6.3 (you will need to experiment) The larger the f-stop number, the smaller the hole and you get more parts of your photo in focus. Lots of pros will use a very large aperture (hole) - like f1.8 / f2.8 - so that the background is creamy softly blurred.
Point your camera at say you wife's belly and focus manually so that it is dead sharp.

Set your metering mode to say centre weighted

Hold the shutter button down half-way and look in the viewfinder to see what shutter speed your camera has chosen. Make sure it is say faster than 1/125th second.
If it is around 1/30 or slower you will need to increase the ISO value.
Change it up, then test to see what shutter speed the camera has selected = more than 1/125th (1/250th would be great because it will be faster than you and your wife are likely to move)

Once you have all that, recheck your focus. Your wife must not move toward or away from the lens.
Set for 2 or 10 sec delay and then move over to your wife - making sure you don't move her closer or further away from the lens

Go back and check your photo. If it still looks a little darker than you want, turn the "exposure compensation" dial/setting up to +1
Repeat the process - again if it is still too dark, turn the exposure compensation up to +2

After that shot, MAKE SURE YOU RESET THE exposure compensation BACK TO ZERO (or all of your subsequent photos will be overexposed by that amount)

Good luck - you will need to play around with these settings. They are just starting points.
Have fun

 

[Braineack]

How can I get
1 Brighter photos
2 Sharper detail
3 Better color

1. good lighting
2. good focus/dof
3. good exposure

 

[BurnIn]

What lens,mode (giving what aperture and shutter speed and iso are you using)
Looks not focussed correctly and metering out. Setting info might help

I played with a lot of different settings. This particular shot was:
f4, Exposure program 3, Exposure Time 1/50
ISO would have been 200 I believe.

Aperture-priority auto tended to give better results than pure Manual.

Thank you.

 

[CameraClicker]

Aperture-priority auto tended to give better results than pure Manual.

Really? Manual mode with the meter centred should produce exactly the same result as Aperture mode, unless Exposure Compensation is not at zero. Exposure Compensation does not affect Manual mode, you may not even be able to get the adjustment in Manual mode.

Couple of things I don't think I saw mentioned so far:
Your sample is a little dark unless she has a really good tan. An editor will allow you to brighten the shot a little. GIMP is a pain to learn but is free and powerful. Photoshop Elements is relatively inexpensive, pretty powerful, and fairly easy to learn. Photoshop has moved to a subscription payment scheme. It has a lot of power you don't need but it is a good combination of power, ease of use, support, and is the standard for professional editing.
I can make out individual hairs and stitching in the garments, just how sharp do you want the photo to be?
Your camera has a low pass filter over the sensor. The filter's job is to make the image a little blurry, to prevent moire. Moire is that pattern that makes the host's tie jump around on the TV when the host is standing perfectly still. So, anyway, the camera adds softness, it is your job to use an editor to add the sharpness in again, while avoiding halos and moire. Usually it is the last step before saving the photo.
A quality tripod and technique matters. A dSLR has moving parts. The mirror slaps up, then a shutter opens, then a second shutter closes. All this movement causes vibration. Look in your manual to see how Mirror Lock Up works. Check how it works with the self timer and how it works with a remote release (some are wired, some wireless). You want the mirror to flip up far enough in advance that the vibration has been damped out before the shutter opens -- that's where the quality tripod comes in handy.
While the shutter is open, if the camera moves, you get blur; if the subject moves, you get blur. If the subject is too far from the plane of focus, you get blur. Aperture, focal length and distance to subject affect depth of field, or how far your subject can be from the plane of focus while still appearing acceptably sharp.
Experiment, you will probably find ISO 400 or even ISO 800 gives acceptable performance without too much noise (grain). From ISO 100 to 200 is one stop, as is from ISO 200 to 400, etc. A stop is double or half the light, depending on direction. Double shutter speed, half the light, one stop. Apertures are fractions, they only give the bottom number, so a bigger number is a smaller hole. There are lots of charts on-line that list whole, half and thirds of stops for apertures, there may be one in your manual. Decide on the aperture, then choose suitable ISO and shutter speed for the light you have. If you want your whole body in focus, f/5.6, f/8 or f/11 will probably work well. Shooting at f/4 or wider is hard when you are not looking in the viewfinder because people wobble a little and the shallow DOF will tend to not be where you want focus.
The profile pose seems most appropriate for this shot. Turning your bodies toward the camera would make the bump less obvious.

 

[Tee]

Are these images intended for personal use (i.e., only your wife and you will be looking at them) or are these something you plan on sharing on Facebook, etc?

 

[Braineack]

can you post the photo here? DB is blocked at most places of business.

 

[rodrigovilleda]

Hello and greetings you both for the Baby and for your new camera!

My advice is here: (sorry for my English, is not my native language)

Try to use not the "all open" lens aperture. This tend to make the focus unsharp for the case. Look for the sweet spot of your lens "try 2 stops upper the lowest number"

At the same time your speed shouldn't be less than your wide open lens number (for example, if your lens is 50mm your speed should not be less than 1/50)

Now try compensate your exposure scale with your ISO.

And the next is try and try and try and try ... You will make it great and great.

By the way beautiful tummy.

God bless you both.

 

[Designer]

Welcome, and congratulations! Daylight at a window should be enough light, but if the window is too small or is not allowing enough light into the room, find a larger brighter window. (sheer white curtains would be ideal) Forget the umbrellas over the track lighting, as it won't be enough light. Set the ISO higher than 200, the camera will handle it.

Use a smaller aperture than f4 (f8 or f11 or even smaller yet) to increase the DOF and get more than just your wife's arm in focus.

The color issue is caused by using mixed lighting with the track lighting, so using only daylight at the window will help a lot. Make sure the white balance is set to daylight.