JediMasterMatt
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Jun 20, 2012
- Messages
- 40
My thoughts on the subject of a camera for dark rides:
I went from D700 to a D800e and have been tempted to even pick up a D3s for dark ride work; but, after spending some time going back to the drawing boards on the topic of extreme dark ride photography - I've come to the understanding that the most important part of getting great results are not in the "high ISO" part; but, actually lean more towards the native dynamic range part of the sensor you are using.
What is important is to understand how the sensor functions in terms of native sensitivity versus gain being applied to the sensor. All digital sensors have a point where the only improvement in sensitivity comes from applying more processing to the sensor and not from any increase in actual sensitivity. The compromise with this approach is where the dynamic range of the sensor drops significantly. The problem of this is that exposure is calculated with this boost factored in. So, if you use ISOs beyond the point of maximum dynamic range, you run into all sorts of potential from clipping a color channel's highlights. You can use some methods of combating this like using UniWB and exposure comp; but, it still a risk.
Too test this theory, I researched into the maximum dymanic range of my D800e before digital processing kicks in. For the my camera, this point was 1600 ISO. Beyond this, the camera is using 1600 with more digital processing tacked on. I used this method exclusively on my last trip to Disneyland and was blown away by the results when I started working on the RAW images. The idea is you take the RAW photos and then boost the exposure in the post production process. The real advantages were easy to see using this method as it allowed for reduced noise and much better dynamic range.
Instead of using 6400 - 12800 and running the risk of clipping highlights, I was able to get many more keepers with sticking with ISO 1600.
The only negative to this approach seem to be:
- the time needed to edit them in post; but, since you are asking about buying a specialized camera for dark rides, I doubt that you were planning on shooting JPEGs.
- some loss of the ability to see a deeper black point than say 12800 ISO. The ISO 1600 boosted post production photos may have lost a touch of detail in that extreme borderline absolute black compared to an extreme ISO. In playing around with this over time, I think it's more indicative of the editing software being used vs the actual ability to extract detail from the RAW file.
So, with this in mind - I would look into getting a camera with the maximum dynamic range possible that uses the camera system you will want to stick with over the long haul. If dark ride photography is your sole interest, I would look into Canon as they've got the f/1.2 that Nikon is lacking. The lenses you will be purchasing are going to be with you for as long as you plan on taking pictures. The body is disposable and will be obsolete before you know it.
Another thought to consider is that there is some truth to the whole more MP is harder to hand hold theory. My 36mp 800e shows ride motion much more than my 12mp 700 ever did. I've had to increase my shutter speeds on dark rides to compensate.
Along that line of thought, if you are shooting dark rides - you will be taking lots of pictures to get a few great keepers out of the mix as time is so precious while riding. More megapixels means more storage concerns and more horsepower and time to go through post production on them. This the reason why the thought of a 12mp D3s is still intriguing to me.
BTW - I do plan on getting my actual photos online again at some point. I'll definately put some of the boosted dark ride photos up.
I went from D700 to a D800e and have been tempted to even pick up a D3s for dark ride work; but, after spending some time going back to the drawing boards on the topic of extreme dark ride photography - I've come to the understanding that the most important part of getting great results are not in the "high ISO" part; but, actually lean more towards the native dynamic range part of the sensor you are using.
What is important is to understand how the sensor functions in terms of native sensitivity versus gain being applied to the sensor. All digital sensors have a point where the only improvement in sensitivity comes from applying more processing to the sensor and not from any increase in actual sensitivity. The compromise with this approach is where the dynamic range of the sensor drops significantly. The problem of this is that exposure is calculated with this boost factored in. So, if you use ISOs beyond the point of maximum dynamic range, you run into all sorts of potential from clipping a color channel's highlights. You can use some methods of combating this like using UniWB and exposure comp; but, it still a risk.
Too test this theory, I researched into the maximum dymanic range of my D800e before digital processing kicks in. For the my camera, this point was 1600 ISO. Beyond this, the camera is using 1600 with more digital processing tacked on. I used this method exclusively on my last trip to Disneyland and was blown away by the results when I started working on the RAW images. The idea is you take the RAW photos and then boost the exposure in the post production process. The real advantages were easy to see using this method as it allowed for reduced noise and much better dynamic range.
Instead of using 6400 - 12800 and running the risk of clipping highlights, I was able to get many more keepers with sticking with ISO 1600.
The only negative to this approach seem to be:
- the time needed to edit them in post; but, since you are asking about buying a specialized camera for dark rides, I doubt that you were planning on shooting JPEGs.
- some loss of the ability to see a deeper black point than say 12800 ISO. The ISO 1600 boosted post production photos may have lost a touch of detail in that extreme borderline absolute black compared to an extreme ISO. In playing around with this over time, I think it's more indicative of the editing software being used vs the actual ability to extract detail from the RAW file.
So, with this in mind - I would look into getting a camera with the maximum dynamic range possible that uses the camera system you will want to stick with over the long haul. If dark ride photography is your sole interest, I would look into Canon as they've got the f/1.2 that Nikon is lacking. The lenses you will be purchasing are going to be with you for as long as you plan on taking pictures. The body is disposable and will be obsolete before you know it.
Another thought to consider is that there is some truth to the whole more MP is harder to hand hold theory. My 36mp 800e shows ride motion much more than my 12mp 700 ever did. I've had to increase my shutter speeds on dark rides to compensate.
Along that line of thought, if you are shooting dark rides - you will be taking lots of pictures to get a few great keepers out of the mix as time is so precious while riding. More megapixels means more storage concerns and more horsepower and time to go through post production on them. This the reason why the thought of a 12mp D3s is still intriguing to me.
BTW - I do plan on getting my actual photos online again at some point. I'll definately put some of the boosted dark ride photos up.
