Good Camera for low light conditions

[dfchelbay]

Can anyone recommend a decent camera that takes great night time shots. We have two digital cameras that were quite costly that are absolutely terrible when taking night time pictures. We went to a great concert last week and could not take a decent photo because of lighting. Everyone around us had cameras too and I was looking at their photos after they took a pictures and many of their pictures were dark too. I've tried every option on the camera for making/taking better photos in low light conditions and they either turn out dark, or blurry. Our evening Magic Kingdom shots are dark...even Mickey's Christmas night time parade and Spectromagic...all dark.

So, what digital camera do you have that is great for low light conditions.

 

[Golf4food]

A) Good night shots almost always require a tripod. There is no way around that fact.

B) Good night shots generally also require a fast lens, which are often very expensive (they cost more to make) with few exeptions.

C) If you are trying to take pictures in the dark of objects that are also moving it just ups the complication factor that much more.

You will be hard pressed to get good night shots on most point & shoot cameras. If you want the best night shots you will almost certainly want a dSLR, tripod, and good lenses - and then you will want to know how to USE those items correctly.


What type of camera do you have now?


(Also, for the record, concerts are one of the single most difficult things to shoot well.)

 

[JC Butterfly]

While I completely agree with the above poster in how to get optimum low light shots, I absolutely LOVE my Panasonic Lumix ZS3. Retails for around $350. I followed my favorite band around the country and got FANTASTIC shots from the fifth row, decent shots from about the 12th row & some acceptable shots from about 20 rows back. (how close you are to any light source plays in).

When taking pictures at a bar/concert I was not able to get really any decent shots that didn't have some amount of blur there was just almost "no" lighting not just low.

I have some great local fireworks shots and I love that it has an unlimited burst mode so even if my first shot isn't exactly what I wanted, usually I get a good one by frame 5 or 10.

But I also agree with the previous poster that the more you use your camera(s) and understand its features the more you can work with its limitations.

 

[dfchelbay]

A) Good night shots almost always require a tripod. There is no way around that fact.

B) Good night shots generally also require a fast lens, which are often very expensive (they cost more to make) with few exeptions.

C) If you are trying to take pictures in the dark of objects that are also moving it just ups the complication factor that much more.

You will be hard pressed to get good night shots on most point & shoot cameras. If you want the best night shots you will almost certainly want a dSLR, tripod, and good lenses - and then you will want to know how to USE those items correctly.


What type of camera do you have now?


(Also, for the record, concerts are one of the single most difficult things to shoot well.)

The camera I use now is the Kodak V610 Dual Lens Schneider Kreuznach C-Variogon - 10X The zoom is amazing on this camera.

 

[dfchelbay]

While I completely agree with the above poster in how to get optimum low light shots, I absolutely LOVE my Panasonic Lumix ZS3. Retails for around $350. I followed my favorite band around the country and got FANTASTIC shots from the fifth row, decent shots from about the 12th row & some acceptable shots from about 20 rows back. (how close you are to any light source plays in).

When taking pictures at a bar/concert I was not able to get really any decent shots that didn't have some amount of blur there was just almost "no" lighting not just low.

I have some great local fireworks shots and I love that it has an unlimited burst mode so even if my first shot isn't exactly what I wanted, usually I get a good one by frame 5 or 10.

But I also agree with the previous poster that the more you use your camera(s) and understand its features the more you can work with its limitations.

Followed your favorite band...how cool. Who's the band?

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

Seconding what Golf4Food stated...if you want decent nighttime shots, you need a DSLR, a fast lens, and either a tripod or a really steady hand. The upfront cost is a lot but the longterm results of your pictures are well worth it!

 

[nd5056]

The camera I use now is the Kodak V610 Dual Lens Schneider Kreuznach C-Variogon - 10X The zoom is amazing on this camera.

Review:


"People who buy iPods are often mocked for ignoring cheaper, more capable MP3 players because they like the shiny white box and 'no need for a manual' interface. It's easy to forget sometimes that some people also buy cameras based more on their looks than their photographic capabilities, and the the EasyShare V610 certainly falls into that sector of the market. It's by no means a bad camera, it's just a camera that promises a lot more than it delivers, and one that - if judged purely on its output - is outperformed by most of its competitors.

Unusually I'm not going to talk too much about image quality here; it's not great, but the color is excellent and at the lowest ISO settings it's perfectly good enough for small (up to, say, 5x7 inches) prints or for viewing on a typical 1024x768 screen. If you're more demanding, want to produce larger prints or shoot in low light I'd suggest you turn around and walk away now. ..."

I wasn't happy until I got Nikon D40 (not the D40x) with a VR telephoto lens. Shooting RAW and using Photoshop I’m able to get somewhat decent results shooting in low light and from far away. This is cheaper the full frame DSLR cameras capable of producing better results.

It also takes you to learn the camera’s behavior in certain conditions…

.

 

[vacation_junkie]

Can anyone recommend a decent camera that takes great night time shots. We have two digital cameras that were quite costly that are absolutely terrible when taking night time pictures. We went to a great concert last week and could not take a decent photo because of lighting. Everyone around us had cameras too and I was looking at their photos after they took a pictures and many of their pictures were dark too. I've tried every option on the camera for making/taking better photos in low light conditions and they either turn out dark, or blurry. Our evening Magic Kingdom shots are dark...even Mickey's Christmas night time parade and Spectromagic...all dark.

So, what digital camera do you have that is great for low light conditions.

I went through this same thing.
i bought a SLR and couldn't really figure it out and it was so bulky.
We just bought the Canon G11..it takes amazing night pics..has a low light setting. It wasn't cheap but it was well worth the money. check it out

 

[dfchelbay]

I went through this same thing.
i bought a SLR and couldn't really figure it out and it was so bulky.
We just bought the Canon G11..it takes amazing night pics..has a low light setting. It wasn't cheap but it was well worth the money. check it out

Thanks, I'll look into this Canon. That was my concern about the SLR too. Big and bulky and always having to tote it around while at WDW.

 

[Gigi22]

I am by no means an expert photographer, but our 35 mm. packed it in last year, so I went out and purchased our first digital camera. It is an Olympus Stylus 1030SW, which appealed to me because it is waterproof and not too expensive ($350 or so). It is also fairly simple to operate, although I am still learning. There is an auto focus and there is also a menu that allows you to select settings for about a dozen different preset conditions--you need to experiment with the settings before you decide which setting you prefer. Among the preset settings are settings for fireworks, candlelight, through windows, etc.

 

[Golf4food]

Thanks, I'll look into this Canon. That was my concern about the SLR too. Big and bulky and always having to tote it around while at WDW.

Not all SLRs are big and bulky. Pentax makes a number of quite small SLRs that are very nice but not as big as some Canon or Nikon models. I would recommend the Pentax Kx as a possible entry level dSLR for you to consider.

Even a bridge camera like the Canon G series is still a glorified P&S with a few SLR-like features.

P&S cameras have small lenses and small sensors. In low light conditions they are just too small to work as well as a larger sensor and larger lens aperture on a dSLR (with the right lens). There's no way around that fact, it is just basic physics - big opening lets in more light than small opening.

 

[vacation_junkie]

Not all SLRs are big and bulky. Pentax makes a number of quite small SLRs that are very nice but not as big as some Canon or Nikon models. I would recommend the Pentax Kx as a possible entry level dSLR for you to consider.

Even a bridge camera like the Canon G series is still a glorified P&S with a few SLR-like features.

P&S cameras have small lenses and small sensors. In low light conditions they are just too small to work as well as a larger sensor and larger lens aperture on a dSLR (with the right lens). There's no way around that fact, it is just basic physics - big opening lets in more light than small opening.

Please check out the G11 specs . My sister who is a well known published photographer is the one that recommended i buy this camera after she purchased it. She uses it along with her Dslr....It has a different sensor, higher ISO then other point and shoot camera's.

 

[SandrA9810]

I have amazing shots of the Halloween parade with a Cannon Rebel. I also love the Nikon D40 which is nice, small, and compact, and is suitable for most "family" shots. I lugged a Nikon D70 around my neck working in photopass for 2yrs, so anything smaller than that feels absolutely light and compact.

I also think 90% of it is user error... you don't buy a camera to leave it on Auto. I never understood people who could buy multi thousand dollar camera like a d300 left on Auto because the person has no idea how to use it.