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- 7 June 2001
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Using a tripod helps too 
<img src="http://24.157.217.30/rsx_hids/12.jpg" border="2">
<img src="http://24.157.217.30/rsx_hids/12.jpg" border="2">
Night time photography
- Thread starter Trevor@VisualDynamics
- Start date
PHOEN$X said:What kind of NSX body kit is that??
Looks like that whole NSX was re-done
. Just kiding. That is a nice picture. I love taking night time photos. I will have to share some more of mine. Thanks 8000rpm!- Joined
- 7 June 2001
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PHOEN$X said:What kind of NSX body kit is that??
Thats the "I wish it were an NSX" body kit
Trevor@VisualDynamics said:Thats the "I wish it were an NSX" body kit
LOL.... If there's a group buy on that bodykit, i'm in!!!
nice photo btw... very balanced contrast & lighting. did you do much post-processing (ie. photoshop) on that photo?
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NeoNSX said:LOL.... If there's a group buy on that bodykit, i'm in!!!
nice photo btw... very balanced contrast & lighting. did you do much post-processing (ie. photoshop) on that photo?
Thanks for the complement. I didn't use photoshop to adjust the image at all...just for placing the watermark/logo on there.
Wow Trevor, no Photoshopping... that photo commands respect! Very nice. I notice the filename is 12.jpg... Do you have other photos taken from the same shoot worthy of posting?
A common misconception about night photography (at least to amateurs...not that I'm a professional or anything) is that they use flash. Then when they get their pictures back, they get so bummed because they look terrible.
TURN THE FLASH OFF. Use the light in the surroundings to illuminate your object.
With an SLR camera, this is helpful because you let the light meter inside the camera set the aperture and timing.
You can't do much with a point-and-shoot cameras though. They are just a P.O.S.
If you must use flash (when there is no light available), be certain to be in close proximity of the object in the picture.
TURN THE FLASH OFF. Use the light in the surroundings to illuminate your object.
With an SLR camera, this is helpful because you let the light meter inside the camera set the aperture and timing.
You can't do much with a point-and-shoot cameras though. They are just a P.O.S.
If you must use flash (when there is no light available), be certain to be in close proximity of the object in the picture.
There's nothing more frustrating than working with a camera that can't manually set shutter speed and aperature (and ISO setting in the digital realm). That's why I recently invested in a used Canon D60 and some high quality Canon EF lenses.
Night shots definitely require careful balance of shutter speed, aperature, and ISO to get desired results. Slow shutter speeds and small aperature can really improve the contrast and depth of field, but you NEED to use a tripod to prevent motion blur. High ISO (>400) can help you reduce the shutter speed, but by adding noise/grain to your images. Opening up the aperature reduces the depth of field...you might have to shorten your focal length to compensate. Not all lenses can open as wide, so you may need to invest in faster lenses.
Color balance at night can be infuriating as you may be shooting under multiple types of artificial light sources (white balance is very different under tungsten based lamps versus fluorescents). With film, you need to choose the right stock or filter for the job...with digital, you may be able to custom set the white level by targeting something you perceive as white. And if a subject is lit by multiple types of lights, the only way to guarantee cosistent color from each source is to throw color temperature correcting gels in front of each light.
In interiors with close subjects, bouncing an external flash off the ceiling and walls often produces more desireable results than directly pointing the flash at your subject.
I also have a lot of tricks for salvaging underexposed shots in Photoshop. Auto contrast is a great starting point...stretches the brightness levels in the image to fill the entire displayable range without affecting the color balance. Levels and curves (especially as adjustment layers) are your primary workhorses. Just remember that the more you boost levels in your image, the more noise/grain becomes visible...similar effect to switching ISO to higher values. And if you boost levels past the point where values clamp, your colors may quickly start to look unnatural.
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NeoNSX said:
I have more but who wants to see pics of boring Type Rs
akira3d said:
What do you think about the new Canon 10D? I was thinking about getting the D60 to compliment my Canon Ellan IIe, but then they released the 10D which looks just as good if not better than the D60 for around $1500. For that price I think I'll get the 10D instead, but just wanted to know if you had any experience or thoughts on the subject. Thanks.
<B>Joel</B>: a <UL>big<UL> ditto on your comments about not using Flash... i didn't even think to mention that!
<B>Akira3D</B>: is that a photo of your lenses or just a commerical photo? If so, that's a nice L series pro lens you got there! *drool* mind me asking what models you got?
<B>ChrisK</B>: IMO pretty much anything Canon is great. I've found each camera body comes down to personal preference... as the quality is consistently good. Just see what features each body has, if you'll use them & if you can afford it. Lens, on the other hand, are a different matter... ranging from cheap&nasty, to good deals & stunning, and even expensive & awesome. I want the L series 1200mm.
<B>Akira3D</B>: is that a photo of your lenses or just a commerical photo? If so, that's a nice L series pro lens you got there! *drool* mind me asking what models you got?
<B>ChrisK</B>: IMO pretty much anything Canon is great. I've found each camera body comes down to personal preference... as the quality is consistently good. Just see what features each body has, if you'll use them & if you can afford it. Lens, on the other hand, are a different matter... ranging from cheap&nasty, to good deals & stunning, and even expensive & awesome.
I want the L series 1200mm.
Well, I bought my D60 used from my boss (who decided to upgrade to the 10D)...so I guess I should have some thoughts on the matter. I'll get back to you on this over the next day or two...I haven't had a chance to talk to my boss since he started using his 10D.
If Canon had done away with the 1.6x CMOS crop on the 10D, I probably wouldn't have bought the used D60.
That's a photo of my Canon cameras (my old Rebel XS is on the left) and lenses (ironically shot with one of my Sony video cameras). From left-to-right, the lenses are: 16-35mm F2.8L USM, 28-105mm F3.5/4.5 (the only lens I've ever had on my Rebel XS), 70-200mm F2.8L IS USM. My external flash is a Speedlite 380EX (also from my Rebel XS days).
The two L series lenses are beautiful...now I just need to get some quality multicoated UV filters to protect them.
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Akira3D ... can't view those pictures. 
I love it when people talk technical! You have some serious hardware there: too bad many other readers won't appreciate this...
The 16-35mm F2.8L (w/ USM right?) is one of my dream lenses. I went to a shop making serious enquiries and when they told me the price, i had to change my mind. That is one the best wide-angle lens made by Canon.
70-200mm F2.8L IS USM ...droool, droool!!! Another one of Canon's top-models. Apparently the non-IS version has slightly faster focus, but a Stabilizer is to a camera what power-steering is to a car... once you've had it you never go back.
28-108mm??? You don't mean the 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 with USM? I've used the 28-105mm a while ago... err... to be honest, it didn't enthrall me. I found its performance was lacking and it suffered heavy flaring. But then again i guess it's okay for the price.
At the moment i only own a 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM ... it's a nice all-rounder, but pales in comparison to your L lens. Biggest drawback is it suffers from heavy flaring without a hood. Anyhow, i don't do a lot of photographing these days... need a good subject to shoot, like an NSX.
Ah, thanx Eric for sharing details of your camera models... I've REALLY enjoyed reading this post. If i lived near you i'd be offering to photograph YOUR nsx with YOUR lenses. Oh, and BTW, get some UV filters ASAP... if you get a single scratch on a lens you will regret it with every photo you shoot. thanks yet again! *big smile*
I love it when people talk technical! You have some serious hardware there: too bad many other readers won't appreciate this...
The 16-35mm F2.8L (w/ USM right?) is one of my dream lenses. I went to a shop making serious enquiries and when they told me the price, i had to change my mind. That is one the best wide-angle lens made by Canon.
70-200mm F2.8L IS USM ...droool, droool!!! Another one of Canon's top-models. Apparently the non-IS version has slightly faster focus, but a Stabilizer is to a camera what power-steering is to a car... once you've had it you never go back.
28-108mm??? You don't mean the 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 with USM? I've used the 28-105mm a while ago... err... to be honest, it didn't enthrall me. I found its performance was lacking and it suffered heavy flaring. But then again i guess it's okay for the price.At the moment i only own a 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM ... it's a nice all-rounder, but pales in comparison to your L lens. Biggest drawback is it suffers from heavy flaring without a hood. Anyhow, i don't do a lot of photographing these days... need a good subject to shoot, like an NSX.
Ah, thanx Eric for sharing details of your camera models... I've REALLY enjoyed reading this post. If i lived near you i'd be offering to photograph YOUR nsx with YOUR lenses.
Oh, and BTW, get some UV filters ASAP... if you get a single scratch on a lens you will regret it with every photo you shoot. thanks yet again! *big smile*
Yup, USM. It truly is an awesome lens...both my boss and my brother in law own it...and its wide field of view helps compensate for the crop on the D60 (of course, I can always try it on my Rebel XS).
Apparently the non-IS version has slightly faster focus, but a Stabilizer is to a camera what power-steering is to a car... once you've had it you never go back.
I figure if you're going for long fast lenses, image stabilization is a must. Heck, even a tripod doesn't guarantee rock steady pictures.
Yup, that's the one. I got it with my RebelXS many years ago (when I first thought I was going to get serious about photography) and I never really had time to experiment with the camera and discover any shortcomings of that particular lens.
The D60 gave me the excuse I was looking for to get serious about this hobby again...which is why I made the investment in serious lenses.
I think my boss uses the 28-135 as his general use lens. He also has the 100-400mm F/4.5-5.6L IS USM...which I seriously considered before settling on the 70-200.
ChrisK said:
I think the 10D looks awesome - I was looking at the D60, but the 10D looks better all around. I wish they had improved the 1.6x factor on lenses, but thep rice is hard to beat.
I'm not so picky about lenses with my 35, I use a 28-300 Vivitar Series I almost all the time.
10D vs. D60
So I got a chance to talk with my boss. Apparently, the 10D is filled with a lot of new functional nicities (7 versus 3 focus zones, higher ISO options, auto rotate for vertical shots, etc.), but, overall, the cameras feel very similar (slight edge to the 10D) and take identical quality pics.
My boss' biggest gripe is that the 10D no longer has the focus lamp, so you have to use the flash instead. What's worse, is you have to go into the menu to disable the flash if you want to use it for focus, but not actually flash.
So I got a chance to talk with my boss. Apparently, the 10D is filled with a lot of new functional nicities (7 versus 3 focus zones, higher ISO options, auto rotate for vertical shots, etc.), but, overall, the cameras feel very similar (slight edge to the 10D) and take identical quality pics.
My boss' biggest gripe is that the 10D no longer has the focus lamp, so you have to use the flash instead. What's worse, is you have to go into the menu to disable the flash if you want to use it for focus, but not actually flash.
Thanks for the info. I'm by no means a pro nor even a good amature photogrpher. I just like to use good stuff and have the potential to take good pictures
My cousin was a pro photographer though. I still have a lot to learn. Even with my Canon Ellan I took some a lot of crappy pictures and some really nice ones in Vegas on a trip that I thought could be postcards
At least with the digital I don't have to waste film.
My cousin was a pro photographer though. I still have a lot to learn. Even with my Canon Ellan I took some a lot of crappy pictures and some really nice ones in Vegas on a trip that I thought could be postcards At least with the digital I don't have to waste film.
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ChrisK... you don't have to be pro to take good photos. Just learning some basics in photography will significantly improve not only your NSX photos, but everyday portraits & 'happy snaps'. You can even take decent photos with $5 Point&Shoot cameras.
In fact i hope this thread isn't moved off-topic coz hopefully viewers are learning a few things, which will translate into even better NSX posts appearing on prime.
<B>Akira3D</B>: I am appreciating the details!!! With the dog photo, do you remember what focal length you used? 35mm? If it was any less i will be gob-smacked as there is no perspective distortion that i can see... and it's sharper than a punji stick! Was that digital? how many megapixels? (sorry for so many questions)
<B>woodywho</B>: hehe... that cat looks like the Terminator.
In fact i hope this thread isn't moved off-topic coz hopefully viewers are learning a few things, which will translate into even better NSX posts appearing on prime.
<B>Akira3D</B>: I am appreciating the details!!!
With the dog photo, do you remember what focal length you used? 35mm? If it was any less i will be gob-smacked as there is no perspective distortion that i can see... and it's sharper than a punji stick! Was that digital? how many megapixels? (sorry for so many questions)<B>woodywho</B>: hehe... that cat looks like the Terminator.