MNSSHP- lens, filter and setting advice

[MapleGirl]

Hello,
Can some one please give me some idea of what filter, lens and settings to use for MNSSHP? I would like to just carry 1 lens to the party. My lenses have UV filters on them. Would something else be more appropriate?

I will be shooting moving subjects in low light.


I currently have:
Sony A55 with the 18-55mm kit lens
Sony Alpha SAL35F18 A-mount Wide Angle Lens
Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG Macro Telephoto Zoom Lens

So I think I should use the wide angle lens.

How should I set the f/stop, shutter speed and ISO? I just can't seem to understand how all this works together and I feel like a total fool! Help?

 

[nbaresejr]

I dont know the specifics of the sony camera and lenses you have but i can tell you my experience from when i went to this event last year.

It was my 1st trip with a DSLR (canon t2i with 18-55 kit lens and 55-250 lens). Taking pics at night i had a difficult time. again i must stress i was just learning the camera so i may fair better the next time. I found the kit lens too slow to take pics in low light. when bumping the iso up high the pics i had were very noisy.

fireworks stuff i did on a tripod so the kit lens worked just fine for that. If i was going back to the party this year i would take my 17-50 2.8 and my 10-20mm, maybe my 50mm 1.8. You asked for 1 lens so i would say the fastest glass you have for pics dusk or night time. Earlier in the day anything will work fine for outdoor photos.

 

[nbaresejr]

I just googled you gear and 1 lens i would pick the 35mm 1.8.

as for settings with moving subjects it depends on what you want to do. motion blur? freezing the subject? alot of that is trial and error and alot of reading on photography forums (i use Photography on the Net.....this is a big canon site)

 

[Hockeyman]

I have a similar setup that you have and have battled night photography for a little while. Really the only lens I have used at night has been my Tamron 17-50 and have had decent results in the limited night pics i have taken. I havent tried my 35mm yet with this camera but since it can get to f/1.8 you may have better luck than the kit Sony lens you have. As far as settings you want to get your shutter speed to a setting your comfortably with and wont have any blurring and also keep you ISO as low as you can since you will pick up noise the higher you go. Also you can try changing it to the hand held twilight setting which takes a couple shots and processes them together to help reduce blur or even auto HDR also.

Sony A55

Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR
Rokinon 8mm Ultra Wide Angle f/3.5 Fisheye Lens
Tamron 70-300mm f/4.0 DI LD

Sony 55-200mm lens
Sony 35mm f/1.8 lens
Old Sigma 70-300mm f/4

 

[photo_chick]

The first thing I would do is take the UV filters off the lenses. Uv filters do nothing for digital images except degrade them. Some people use them for protection, but a lens hood can also do that just as well.

As far as lenses... I'd keep that fast f/1.8 lens handy. If you want night shots hand held you will need that f/1.8. If there's more light or you use a tripod the 18-55 could serve you pretty well. A lot really depends on your shooting style though.


As far as how to set things, there are many different ways to go about it. I have a minimum shutter speed approach to low light shooting. I put the camera in my shutter priority mode (Tv on my Canon, not sure what Sony's designation is). I set the shutter speed to the minimum I need to avoid both motion blur and camera shake problems (this is dependent on focal length and the situation). I set the ISO low at first and increase it until I have sufficient exposure, so I have the least noise possible. In this mode the camera picks the aperture... if it's really low light it will generally be wide open. But if I want to stop the aperture down a little I can always increase the ISO a little bit more since the camera will compensate to keep the exposure value the same.

 

[MapleGirl]

Thanks everyone. I am looking to take sharp-focus pictures. I will plan on bringing the fixed lens and play with the shutter speed and adjust the ISO per light levels.

 

[boBQuincy]

I rented a 35mm f/1.4 for MNSSHP, it worked really well for the low light scenes. We were really close to the parade and even a 28mm (on a 1.6x crop camera) would have been ok.
To me it is still a toss up whether to use Av and stick with the largest aperture (which will give the best shutter speed available but may cause blur if it is too slow) or to use Tv and stick with the slowest shutter speed possible for hand holding (knowing that some images will be underexposed and may need processing). Both modes seem to work well under some situations.

 

[Experiment_626]

The first thing I would do is take the UV filters off the lenses. Uv filters do nothing for digital images except degrade them. Some people use them for protection, but a lens hood can also do that just as well.

Agreed. High-quality UV filters do exist, but most people don't have those. If you do have one, you'll know it by the price you paid!

And if what you have is a typical cheap UV filter like I used to have, let this image (and the story I relate at the link on Flickr) serve as a warning as to what can go wrong -- and it is exactly the conditions you'll find at MNSSHP that can make such cheap filters utterly fail and ruin your images, like so:


Don't use cheap UV filters -- Exhibit A! by Scott S. Baxter, on Flickr

Let that be a warning ...

SSB

 

[MapleGirl]

Thank you for the insight on UV filters. I will look into using my hood instead for protection.

Any thoughts on a circular polarizer for daytime pics? I've heard that are good for WDW in bright sunlight and accentuate a nice blue sky. Here is the one I am looking at:
http://www.amazon.com/Tiffen-Circul...TF8&coliid=I2LLEVZEPUZGKK&colid=2P52ZVYH9H4WN

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Any thoughts on a circular polarizer for daytime pics? I've heard that are good for WDW in bright sunlight and accentuate a nice blue sky. Here is the one I am looking at:
http://www.amazon.com/Tiffen-Circul...TF8&coliid=I2LLEVZEPUZGKK&colid=2P52ZVYH9H4WN

That's a little controversial.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2931162&referrerid=70088

Do what suits you most.

 

[photo_chick]

Any thoughts on a circular polarizer for daytime pics? I've heard that are good for WDW in bright sunlight and accentuate a nice blue sky. Here is the one I am looking at:
http://www.amazon.com/Tiffen-Circul...TF8&coliid=I2LLEVZEPUZGKK&colid=2P52ZVYH9H4WN

Polarizers block reflected light so on certain days they will make the sky more blue (it depends on atmospheric conditions). They also can help cut the glare from glasses, windows, on water, etc... so it's a useful filter to have in your bag. But not something you'd leave on the camera all day when shooting. You use it when you need it.

The one you linked to... most likely that one is going to have a negative impact on the sharpness of your image and maybe chromatic aberration and contrast. which is fine if you know what to expect, but that does frustrate some people. Good filters can easily cost as much as entry level lenses. Really good filters will often cost more than that. The good thing is you only need to buy one filter (the size of your largest lens) and use step rings to fit it on your other lenses.

 

[nbaresejr]

I love using my CPL. I purchased a hoya HD CPL and it was expensive. Its a pretty slim filter and i purchased it to fit my biggest diameter lens (77mm). I have step down rings to fit anything else i need.

1 think to remember when using a CPL. If you have a lens that the front element moves when focusing it makes the CPL much harder to use. This filter can rotate and you can vary the effect of the polarization. If the element spins when focusing it can change the level.

 

[NateNLogansDad]

Hello,
Can some one please give me some idea of what filter, lens and settings to use for MNSSHP? I would like to just carry 1 lens to the party. My lenses have UV filters on them. Would something else be more appropriate?

I will be shooting moving subjects in low light.


I currently have:
Sony A55 with the 18-55mm kit lens
Sony Alpha SAL35F18 A-mount Wide Angle Lens
Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG Macro Telephoto Zoom Lens

So I think I should use the wide angle lens.

How should I set the f/stop, shutter speed and ISO? I just can't seem to understand how all this works together and I feel like a total fool! Help?

I went to the MNSSHP last year with my Nikon D5100 which has right around the same noise as your Sony using the same ISO settings.

What I did or would have done differently.....
For the Fireworks, I like using the wider lens. 18mm is a favorite focal length but if you find your spot ahead of time and really want to keep some gear in your room, 35mm should work also...just make sure that when you back up, you don't start acquiring too many obstructions (lamp posts, distracting balloons, tree branches.) Pop down your Tripod, Set your camera to manual mode, ISO to 100 or 200, shutter to 4 seconds, and Aperture to F9 or F11. Focus on the castle than switch it to manual focus so it doesn't focus for each shot (don't forget to switch it back to auto when you're done with the fireworks!)

For the Villian's Mix and Mingle in front of the castle, if you want to stick to the 35mm, you need to be there VERY early for a spot right in front of the stage. I used my longer lens because we were back past the Partners Statue but even at 250mm with my best aperture being 5.6 I was still able to get some decent shots.

For the parade, I used my 50mm 1.8 but your 35mm should be just as good, if not better. Find a spot early that has 1/2 decent lighting. The second parade is usually less crowded. Use the ISO around 3200 and shutter speed around 1/30 or 1/45. Use burst mode for snapping pictures. Snap at least 5 shots for every one you want to keep. I took about 20 of the Headless Horseman and got 2 out of it that I liked.

Here's how they came out....
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2849032&page=14
Granted, not as good as some of the pros here, but not too bad for someone who doesn't know what he's doing

 

[BigGreen73]

1st, hello to a fellower New Englander and A55 owner. I too have a trip this Sept and it will be my first using my A55. I have been putting the A55 through the tests for a year now getting the in's and out's to know what's the best settings for certain situations.

Just a couple of questions. How many batteries do you have and what firnware version is your A55?

If you don't have at least two batteries, I would recommend getting a second one. There were many days in June during my vacation in Va. that I used both. I just picked up a third to be safe.

If the firmware is not version 2.0, just search sony a55 firmware update online and the instructions will walk you through how to check and how to update. It's easy and worth it. Just the added picture effects are fun to shoot with.

Now with what you have:

Sony A55 with the 18-55mm kit lens - This is an okay walk around lens. Will need flash to get decent pics indoors and does not have good low light capabilities.

Sony Alpha SAL35F18 A-mount Wide Angle Lens - Great indoors without flash and does a good job in lowlight situations. Won't have to crank up the ISO w/ this one.

Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG Macro Telephoto Zoom Lens - Zoom lens, not good for low light.

If you have an opportunity to get another lens, here are two that I use all the time. They are a little pricey but not too bad.

Sony SAL18250 Alpha DT 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 - great walk around lens, this cover pretty much all siatuations.

Sony 16-50mm f/2.8 Standard Zoom Lens - great wide angle walk around. If you are not planning to use a lot of zoom. This is the lens. Great indoors and in low light. Good quality, fast and silent focus.

As for settings to use, that is a lot of trial and error. But with the A55, you can get usable prints and pics up to ISO 3200.

For those low light moving pics, you'll need the fastest shutter speed that you can handhold without blur. Best way to to this is to use shutter priority (S) and set the speed there. You can set the ISO to Auto and let the camera do the rest. You should shoot for a shutter speed of 1/60 or higher. Prefereably higher than that for the moving subject.

The handheld twilight mode on the camera is greta for stationary subjects but uses a lot of battery life.

for filters:

UV filters are not needed. Just another piece of glass that light has to go through. Use the lens hood. But when using the hood and trying to use flash, be mindful of unwanted shadows that may appear. If you want to use flash with a hood, look into getting an external flash if you do not have one.

Pol filters can be used. Just do your research and you should be able to find a decent one without breaking the bank. Bring it with you but use sparringly. You would hate to forget it's there when trying to take a low light shot.

If you are looking to bring out the colors when taking picks, try shooting in Vivid or landscape. Those two really bring out colors and emphasize those blue skys and greens. Or if you have the Ver 2.0 firmware, the POP scene modes really brings out the colors.

Well, that was longer than I though it would be. Hope it helps. Feel free to ask more questions. Love my A55!!