Low Light Shots

mikmo

TPF Noob!
Joined
Mar 26, 2006
Messages
3
Reaction score
0
Hey,

I just discovered this place while looking for some help with a real problem I'm having... I hope you guys can help.

Basically I'm having real trouble taking low light shots trying to depict a few selected spots of light. I've attached links to a few examples of what i want so you can better understand what I mean.

I've tried low and high exposure times but both just end up extremly blurred at the light sources and with nothing else but blackness.

I can introduce artifical light if needs be but I don't want so much as to take away from luminescence of objects.

Thanks,

Mike

http://img222.imageshack.us/img222/4852/ngsandtraplg8ca.jpg

http://img222.imageshack.us/img222/3427/nggolfballlg9tn.jpg
 
Welcome to the forum.

Can you tell us more about your set up? What equipment you are using, and the settings for the shots that didn't work?

Are you using a tripod? At slower shutter speeds, it's very hard to get sharp shots if the camera is moving at all. It should be fired while on a tripod or stable surface...and also it should be fired with a remote or with the camera's timer.
 
Hey Big Mike.... guess that makes me little mike, boo :p

Anyway it's sadly not SLR, its my dad's Fuji s602... I think its a reasonably old school high end digital camera.

I don't have a tripod but I can pick one up. So you think manually set it to lower shutter speed / lowest shutter speed and set it on a tripod and that should sort it out?

Mike
 
mikmo said:
Hey Big Mike.... guess that makes me little mike, boo :p

Anyway it's sadly not SLR, its my dad's Fuji s602... I think its a reasonably old school high end digital camera.

I don't have a tripod but I can pick one up. So you think manually set it to lower shutter speed / lowest shutter speed and set it on a tripod and that should sort it out?

Mike

That will certainly help. You may not need a very long exposure, but it'll certainly be out of hand-holding times. If you can, set it in AP mode and make the aperture as narrow as it will go.
 
Rob... Loving your shots. Also noticed back stage photography at London Fashion Week! Need an intern for next year?! :thumbup:
 
mikmo said:
Rob... Loving your shots. Also noticed back stage photography at London Fashion Week! Need an intern for next year?! :thumbup:

Thanks! Milan coming up next hopefully with AAA passes. Might take a youngster with me, so watch this space.

Rob
 
i like those a lot realy cool idea and shooting with your dad's cmaera is a nice touch i have a similar situation only it is my parents asking to use my camera
 
The tripod is necessary if you are going to be using slow/long shutter speeds, and don't want blur.

Another issue is the dynamic range between the unlit landscape and the glowing objects if you are hoping to get detail in either. If you want more details in the shadows, and more details in the highlights you are going to have to add more light to the shadows without affecting the highlights. It's possible to put it at the edge of blackness where you'd see some detail, but still perceive it as very dark.

Your other option would be to combine multiple exposures using HDR or some other technique. You would shoot an image properly exposed for the highlights, and one properly exposed for the shadows, and combine them. That's a simplified description. It may require many different exposures.

Luminescent subjects are tough to photograph. Often the glow is difficult to accurately record or reproduce because of characteristics of the luminescent materials that are not possible with the normal recording or printing media/processes. I would guess that many product photographs of glowing subject matter is edited to make it look good.
 

Most reactions

Back
Top