Nightlife Photography

cpeterson

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Hi everyone,

First post on TPF!

I'm primarily a filmmaker, but also an occasional events and film set photographer. Actually, I now work as a Nightlife photographer for a website, www.Hype1.com.

Here is the gear I use: Canon Rebel XTi with a 17-40 L-series USM lens and a 430EX flash (with Gary Fong Sphere).

I usually shoot smtg like f/4 at 1/30 of a sec; 800 iso. I find the shots are all right, but I'm wondering what I could do to give the background some more light. What settings should I use on the flash, etc?

Or just tell me: how would you photograph the nightclub/bar scene? The idea is to photograph people (in the foreground) while giving a sense of the vibe of the place.

Thanks,

Chris Peterson
www.bluesilence.ca
 
You're not left with a lot of options. ISO could be bumped up, aperture could be opened, or shutter speed could be brought down. When slow-syncing with a flash the shutter speed may be an option but the background definitely won't be sharp.

You could point a flash at the roof and kill the vibe of the place.
You could open the aperture up (if possible) which reduces the DOF
or You could up the ISO rate which introduces noise.

If it's a staged scene you may have a fighting change with low iso tripod, reasonable shutter speed and asking people to hold still, if not I'm going to say you'll need to choose your poison.
 
if you want to shoot nightlife without horrible grain, your gonna have to get something faster then F4. Even @3200 iso the F4 might be too slow.

Go with a 2.8 L youll be OK. or try to get some prime lenses, 35mm, 50mm, and the 100.
 

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