Starting point settings please

O'Rork · Mar 23, 2014

I'm wanting to make an artsy image of an audio amplifier, large, glowing, vacuum power tube. The tubes/valves have a lovely blue gas glow within them. I want to catch that in spades. Anybody BTDT? I would like some ball park, starting settings to get me closer to the desired results. This will be shot with a D600.

table1349 · Mar 23, 2014

I'm going to be honest here. The starting points you need are going to have to be determined by you. There is no magic formula for amplifier, or flowers, or dark gymnasiums. Your camera has a meter, you have to learn to use it. You lens has varying apertures, you have to learn the difference between what you get with a wide open aperture and a stopped down aperture. Your camera has varying shutter speeds. You have to learn when you can use a slow shutter speed and when you need a faster shutter speed. Your camera has varying ISO. You have to learn when to make compromises in ISO to achieve the look you want. And finally you have to learn about light and how to combine all of the above together to get the shot you want. Photography is an enter twined set of compromises based on all of the above. Like everything else that is difficult, or even easy for that matter, you have to study the elements of the task, practice and learn. Even the sunny 16 rule isn't actually a rule, but a pretty good guide. At that it is based on a know set of circumstances. This isn't the answer you were looking for, but it is the way it is unless you can provide us with exact details of the circumstances you are working with.

charlie76 · Mar 23, 2014

Shoot it with all the settings you think may work...and a few you think wont. It's a digital camera..Evers shots are free

Designer · Mar 23, 2014

It sounds like a fun project. I agree, just shoot lots. Pick the best one(s) and work on those.

weepete · Mar 23, 2014

What gryphonslair says is entirley correct and worth paying attension to.

As a starting point I'd set my camera up on a tripod, AV mode with my chosen apeture, ISO 100, 2 sec timer and meter to get a correct exposure and take a shot. Then I'd review it and see if it's what I wanted (probably it won't be) and using the ec gradually underexposed it in steps until it was near what I wanted.

O'Rork · Mar 23, 2014

Thanks for the reply. Recovering from neck surgery makes waking hours most uncomfortable. Shooting with available light in a dark setting with the subject being the light source, is a new one for me. That said, any "ball park" settings, IE: sensor reactivity, orifice splash or trickle, would save me from some grueling experimentation time. This isn't such an easy task for the metering system as say, shooting a candle in the dark. The glow is much softer than that and the meter doesn't know "set for artsy exposure". As I stated, anybody who has BTDT please chime in.

gryphonslair99 said:
I'm going to be honest here. The starting points you need are going to have to be determined by you. There is no magic formula for amplifier, or flowers, or dark gymnasiums. Your camera has a meter, you have to learn to use it. You lens has varying apertures, you have to learn the difference between what you get with a wide open aperture and a stopped down aperture. Your camera has varying shutter speeds. You have to learn when you can use a slow shutter speed and when you need a faster shutter speed. Your camera has varying ISO. You have to learn when to make compromises in ISO to achieve the look you want. And finally you have to learn about light and how to combine all of the above together to get the shot you want. Photography is an enter twined set of compromises based on all of the above. Like everything else that is difficult, or even easy for that matter, you have to study the elements of the task, practice and learn. Even the sunny 16 rule isn't actually a rule, but a pretty good guide. At that it is based on a know set of circumstances. This isn't the answer you were looking for, but it is the way it is unless you can provide us with exact details of the circumstances you are working with.

Railphotog · Mar 23, 2014

I'm always curious when I see posts like this. Assuming you're using a digital camera, use on of its best benefits - try and see what works! Set up your gear, guess at a setting and shoot. If the image is too dark, increase the length of the shutter speed or open the aperture. Same if its too light, speed up the shutter or close down the aperture. That's what the rear LCD screen is for - to preview!

SCraig · Mar 23, 2014

The only ballpark setting I could recommend would be those that your camera recommends when it meters the scene. Take a meter reading, underexpose by a couple of stops, review the shot, adjust as necessary. Honestly nobody can give you a recommendation any more accurate than the meter in your camera.

weepete · Mar 23, 2014

Well you could use the zone method to try and cut out some experimental shots but really the only way to do it will be to take multiple shots and see. As you said your camera doesn't have an artsy mode for shooting blue light off amplifiers.

So another method would be to turrn on your spot metering mode, switch the camera to manual and meter off the blue glow and decide where you want that to be in the exposure zones.

Trever1t · Mar 23, 2014

Learn the exposure triangle, seriously it's pretty darn easy

Overread · Mar 23, 2014

Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson
The Digital Photography Book series (books 1-4) by Scot Kelby

^^ good reading material that should start to ground you in how to shoot and give you some basic starting points for common subjects.

As for your specific situation:
Set the camera to manual mode
Put the camera on a tripod
Enable the shutter timer
Set the ISO to 100
Set the aperture to the widest setting
Set the shutter speed based upon the meter reading (ergo keep selecting slower and slower shutter speeds until the meter needle is middled on the scale).

Take the shot - review it and decide what needs changing.
If you want more exposure (brightness) consider a slower shutter speed - or you can raise the ISO - if you want more depth of field use a smaller aperture (Bigger f number).

Note that there is every chance that you might find that the exposure that works for the machine and surroundings gives you a bad exposure on the light tubes; and that when you've go the tubes right the surrounding elements are wrong. If this is the case take two shots - one for the surroundings and one for the tube then you can blend them together in editing.

Derrel · Mar 23, 2014

I "think" maybe you wish to shoot a slow-speed exposure at a smallish f/stop, in order to get decent depth of field, and have the "glow" appear to emanate from the tube, but also have some "light" on things, which might best be done by a low-ISO shot (for the absolute richest color and widest dynamic range the D600 can capture), so say start with the composition selected, camera on a tripod of course, dark room to keep the background DARK and un-lighted.

Say f/11 at 5 to 10 seconds, and at some time during the time exposure, fire a hand-held flash angled downward, so as to keep the flash away from the background, and maybe 1/32 power and fired through a couple layers of toilet paper as a diffuser.

How long the exposure needs to be is of course, determined by just how bright the glow actually "is". The flash exposure is determined by the ISO, which we'll keep at BASE ISO, 100, and the f/stop, and the distance to the subject matter. To keep the glow looking like "glow", you want the flash exposure to be "under" by around 3 to 5 EV, so the surrounding area is dimly lighted.

It's possible that the glow itself will provide all of the light needed, and that NO flash exposure will be desired. I cannot answer that, but you can, since it's your photo.

Again...Base ISO to start, smallish f/stop, tripod, verrrrry dimly-lighted room so that the background is DARK, and so that the glow can be seen more-easily and clearly against a dark backdrop, and that it will stand out nicely.

O'Rork · Mar 23, 2014

TCampbell · Mar 23, 2014

O'Rork said:
View attachment 69238

That's a nice shot. I'm wondering why you chose to shoot it centered and symmetrical?

I'm noticing that in the foreground, the metal base shows the reflection of the glow, but the shot is positioned so that we miss most of these reflections.

I'm wondering if you might be able to bring out those reflections and fill some of the black space by shooting from an angle that reveals more reflections (so each tube is not hiding behind the tube immediately in front of it).