Nikon D80

[aripantaloon]

Thanks! I don't think that DH will want me to get it before this trip (we leave on May 9).

 

[cjstarr]

Unfortunately, I am a little short on time at the moment to respond to all your questions, but will offer this quick suggestion - you need to get a 50mm 1.8 prime lens. Only costs about $100. The lens you have is a great lens, but it is not designed to handle low light situations.

I will try to reply again later with more info.

Can you point me to a web site that has the 50mm 1.8 prime for $100.
Everywhere I look it is $300 and above.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

I'm probably one of those people who "shouldn't" have a DSLR because I just don't know how to use it correctly. I really want to learn more, but time is limited with taking care of my kids.

Very few people know how to use a DSLR when they get one. You learn on the job. I've been using an SLR for 20 years and a DSLR for 6. I don't think I've ever had an outing where I didn't look at my pictures and think "doh, I'm such an idiot." On the positive side, I think I've learned and improved over time.

A good place on this forum to start would be the Equipment Recommendations / Photo Techniques thread. There are a lot of threads there with contributions from lots of people on this board.

I'd love to give you a quick summary of what to do, but there really is a lot to it. You've got to spend the time trying and experimenting to really understand exposure. Still, I can try to touch on a few specifics for you.

I recently tried to get very low light shots of my FIL and my 2 girls with a birthday cake lit with 4 candles. No tripod, no flash, auto mode and they were slightly blurry. I'm guessing that had I used my tripod (I do have one, but it's not a nice portable size for Disney.), it would have been crisp.

You camera needs light to make a picture. When the lights are dim, you can get more light to your sensor in two different ways. You can make the opening in your lens bigger (lower f/stop number) or you can leave the shutter open longer (lower shutter speed). If your shutter speed is too low, the camera will move (no one is perfectly still) or your subject will move while you are taking the picture. That causes the "blur". If you hold your camera more steady, put it on a tripod, or use an image stabilizer, that helps with the problem of camera movement. It still doesn't help with the problem of subject movement.

It's also possible to get blur because of focusing errors. If you focus on the wrong thing, stuff closer or further than the thing you focused on will be blurry. The lower your f/stop number the less room you have for error. With a really low f/stop, only a very narrow range of distances from the camera is in focus. With a high f/stop number, a greater range of distances is in focus. So if you want a picture of your nearby child standing in front of a mountain and you want them both in focus, you need a high f/stop number. If you want the child in focus but the mountain blurry, you want a low f/stop number. The range of your picture that is in focus is called "depth of field" or DOF.

In addition to opening your lens wider or keeping your shutter open longer, there is one other way to get your camera to take a picture with less light. You can make the sensor more sensitive so that it needs less light to make the picture. You do this by adjusting the ISO (which controls how sensitive your camera is). The downside to higher ISO (more sensitive) settings is that the you are "rushing" your camera and so it makes more "mistakes." These mistakes come in form of little specs called noise. You want your ISO as low as possible without causing other problems. You'll learn what is high enough but not too high with experience.

The general rule of thumb is that your shutter speed should be as fast or faster than your focal length. So if you are shooting at 135mm, you should try to have a shutter speed of at least 1/135 seconds. If your shutter speed is slower, you should try to use a tripod, monopod, image stabilizer, or something to cut down on camera shake. If your subject is moving, you should try for an even higher shutter speed and forget about stabilizing your camera/lens because it won't help. (technically, the rule of thumb refers pertains to 35mm cameras, so you should multiply the focal length by 1.5x for your camera, but I don't want to start that argument again).

You need to understand that the more zoomed in you are, the harder it is to get a shot in low light. Zooming in magnifies every little movement of the camera and it magnifies the movement of the subject.

I'm assuming that a longer focal length/zoom lets in much less light, so this was the reason. Correct?

Sort of. I think that there are two problems here. First, your flash lights up things close easily but has a hard time with things far away. When you zoom in you are usually trying to capture things further away and so they are harder to see with a flash. The second problem is that your flash probably doesn't zoom as well as your lens. That means that your flash is wasting power on things that aren't in the picture.

Ideally, your camera should compensate for all of that. It should zoom the flash along with the lens and increase the power of the flash. It might have failed because the flash doesn't zoom (or doesn't zoom that much) or because it doesn't have enough power. It might also have failed because the meter got confused. An add-on flash will help with those problems, but it's not a miracle cure. Good flash photography is hard.

Good luck and don't be shy with more questions.

 

[YEKCIM]

Can you point me to a web site that has the 50mm 1.8 prime for $100.
Everywhere I look it is $300 and above.

B&H

~Y

 

[cjstarr]

B&H

~Y

I looked at B&H and didn't see one for the Sony A100.

Thanks

 

[YEKCIM]

I looked at B&H and didn't see one for the Sony A100.

Thanks

Sorry; you didn't say you were looking for a Sony lens so I assumed that you were after a Nikon. I'm not familiar with what Sony has to offer, but before going digital, I shot Maxxum film SLR, which is same lens mount. I have, among other lenses, a Maxxum 50mm f/1.7 lens, which of course, I can no longer use. I think that they are probably readily available on eBay and perhaps KEH. You may want to try one of those sources.

~Ed

 

[handicap18]

I am in need of some serious help with my Nikon D80. I know, I know READ THE MANUAL. Believe me, I have. It's just that there is so, so much going on. I'm sure that there are tons of ways to get good nightime and low-light photos, so I'm not looking for *the* way; just some good hints at how to get good exposures. I use a Nikon 18-135 zoom lens because it's versatile and I don't have to change lenses. Besides, the only other ones I have are a 35-70 and 70-210 film camera set from my old 4004.

I recently tried to get very low light shots of my FIL and my 2 girls with a birthday cake lit with 4 candles. No tripod, no flash, auto mode and they were slightly blurry. I'm guessing that had I used my tripod (I do have one, but it's not a nice portable size for Disney.), it would have been crisp.

So, what can I do to get good photos of the spectromagic parade, illuminations, fireworks, and rides like pirates and others? I understand the "no flash" aspect/rule, but what about ISO, exposure, aperature, zoom/no zoom, other settings on the camera wheel like sports or night shot?? I most likely won't have a tripod with me. The only chance is if I buy an inexpensive monopod that is extremely compact.

One other question about exposure and the zoom of the lens. I took some photos of my DD4 at her swim lesson. I zoomed in on about 1/2 of them so that she was the focus of the photos instead of the rest of the people in the pool. Auto mode with flash. The photos were dark. However, when I zoomed back out, the photos were much brighter. I'm assuming that a longer focal length/zoom lets in much less light, so this was the reason. Correct?

I'm probably one of those people who "shouldn't" have a DSLR because I just don't know how to use it correctly. I really want to learn more, but time is limited with taking care of my kids.

I greatly thank anyone who can give me some good hints about how to take these photos.

Just like other things, its all about tools. The camera body is only 1 tool. Lenses and flashes are other tools. One thing you need to learn about is aperture or f/stops. This is the pupil of camera, much like the human eye. The aperture is the hole in the lens that can be opened and closed to adjust for lighting. Not all lenses are created equal. This is why you see big dollar differences in some lenses that have the same focal length.

Most entry level/kit lenses have a variable aperture. What this means is that the largest the aperture can get changes with the focal length. You'll notice on your lens that is says 1:3.5-5.6. This is the f/stop range for the lens. So if you zoom all the way out to 18mm, the widest you can get your aperture is f/3.5. Then as you zoom towards 135mm that hole gets smaller ending at f/5.6 at 70mm to 135mm. F/5.6 is not very wide.

Here is a visual chart that shows the size of the apertures:

You can see why Steve's Girl recommended the 50mm f/1.8. f/1.8 is MUCH larger than what f/5 is (f/5 is the widest aperture at 50mm on the 18-135mm lens). Its also an inexpensive tool relative to this photography hobby of ours.

Also AUTO mode probably wont help you in low light situations even if you had a lens with a wide aperture. You need to tell the camera what you not have the camera tell you what it thinks it should be. In this case, a high ISO like 1600, a wide aperture of f/2.8 or less (probably closer to f/2) and a shutter of at least 1/50th to help avoid motion blur.

For Disney at night, you might want to consider bringing a small tripod. It wont help with Spectromagic, but will allow you to get some great long exposure shots around the parks of the non moving subjects like the Castle, Tomorrowland, SSE, the buildings around World Showcase, the Hat & ToT at DHS and if you get to AK for evening EMH then EE and the ToL are great at night.

 

[Code]

Great explanation by Mark but no real bottom line, so here it is.

You can do just fine on fireworks with what you have provided you have a tripod or other steady surface. For Spectro and dark rides, however, your current lens will not do the job as you simply won't be able to achieve adequate shutter speeds, even at your camera's highest ISO. A fast prime lens is really your only option.. 50mm f/1.8 is decent and cheap, an f/1.4 lens would be even better.

 

[aripantaloon]

Thanks Mark, Kyle, and Code (sorry, I don't know your name) for the info. I will definitely have to at least try to get DH to agree to getting a 50 mm lens before our trip. Maybe I can use the Mother's Day Gift angle? I know he wants a hammock for Father's Day, so that could be my "in."

Kyle, I see you are in Burlington. I'm not too far from you in Arlington.

I checked out the link that Mark posted and read some of those threads. I experimented a bit with my camera in my dark living room with some toys. I do need to read the manual to be a bit more familiar with the controls, but I may get the hang of some things before our trip.

 

[DizzyV6P]

I've found that taking pictures of my daughter's stuffed animals in different levels of lighting in my living helped me with my camera skills

Ditto on the suggestion on the 50mm or "nifty fifty" as some call it. It's a nice low cost lens that will do well in low light. if you want something with zoom and low light, its going to cost you over $500 so you'll have to decide what your comfortable with. Nikon's 17-55 f/2.8 is a killer lens.

 

[emmabelle]

aripantaloon,

I see a huge difference in available light when I use my really old 50mm compared to when I use my 18-135mm. Only problem is that I have the D40, so I have to do everything manually when I use my 50mm, so I've ordered the Sigma 30mm with autofocus. I can't wait for it, hopefully it will be here tomorrow!

 

[aripantaloon]

I've found that taking pictures of my daughter's stuffed animals in different levels of lighting in my living helped me with my camera skills

Ditto on the suggestion on the 50mm or "nifty fifty" as some call it. It's a nice low cost lens that will do well in low light. if you want something with zoom and low light, its going to cost you over $500 so you'll have to decide what your comfortable with. Nikon's 17-55 f/2.8 is a killer lens.

Definitely not comfortable with that number. Now I want the darn 50 mm lens. DH is completely opposite of me when it comes to photography. He grumbles every time I stop to take a picture, or, heaven forbid, ask him to stop to pose for one. Though, he LOVES looking at all the pictures I take on the computer and can't wait for a new one as his desktop or for the slideshow that is his screensaver.

aripantaloon,

I see a huge difference in available light when I use my really old 50mm compared to when I use my 18-135mm. Only problem is that I have the D40, so I have to do everything manually when I use my 50mm, so I've ordered the Sigma 30mm with autofocus. I can't wait for it, hopefully it will be here tomorrow!

emmabelle, I just had to comment since I see that your kitty is the original emmabelle. We have 2 kitties - Emma and Ariel. My screen name - aripantaloon - is after Ariel. We call her Ariel J. Pantaloon at times because she is a longhair that looks like she's wearing pantaloons from behind. The "J." is just a J. like in Michael J. Fox. Good luck with your new lens!!

 

[emmabelle]

emmabelle, I just had to comment since I see that your kitty is the original emmabelle. We have 2 kitties - Emma and Ariel. My screen name - aripantaloon - is after Ariel. We call her Ariel J. Pantaloon at times because she is a longhair that looks like she's wearing pantaloons from behind. The "J." is just a J. like in Michael J. Fox. Good luck with your new lens!!

Isn't it funny how we make up silly names for our pets.

 

[boBQuincy]

The only chance is if I buy an inexpensive monopod that is extremely compact.

http://www.polesforyou.com/
Ask for a pole that is about 3" shorter than your eye height, 5 or 6 sections, with plain ends. The result is a monopod that weighs about 3 ounces and folds to about 12".
0.380" or 0.344" diameter works well.

 

[singjenn]

I am in need of some serious help with my Nikon D80. I know, I know READ THE MANUAL. Believe me, I have. It's just that there is so, so much going on. I'm sure that there are tons of ways to get good nightime and low-light photos, so I'm not looking for *the* way; just some good hints at how to get good exposures. I use a Nikon 18-135 zoom lens because it's versatile and I don't have to change lenses. Besides, the only other ones I have are a 35-70 and 70-210 film camera set from my old 4004.

I recently tried to get very low light shots of my FIL and my 2 girls with a birthday cake lit with 4 candles. No tripod, no flash, auto mode and they were slightly blurry. I'm guessing that had I used my tripod (I do have one, but it's not a nice portable size for Disney.), it would have been crisp.

So, what can I do to get good photos of the spectromagic parade, illuminations, fireworks, and rides like pirates and others? I understand the "no flash" aspect/rule, but what about ISO, exposure, aperature, zoom/no zoom, other settings on the camera wheel like sports or night shot?? I most likely won't have a tripod with me. The only chance is if I buy an inexpensive monopod that is extremely compact.

One other question about exposure and the zoom of the lens. I took some photos of my DD4 at her swim lesson. I zoomed in on about 1/2 of them so that she was the focus of the photos instead of the rest of the people in the pool. Auto mode with flash. The photos were dark. However, when I zoomed back out, the photos were much brighter. I'm assuming that a longer focal length/zoom lets in much less light, so this was the reason. Correct?

I'm probably one of those people who "shouldn't" have a DSLR because I just don't know how to use it correctly. I really want to learn more, but time is limited with taking care of my kids.

I greatly thank anyone who can give me some good hints about how to take these photos.

Hello! I have a D80 and I really love it...BUT to me the type of lens I use helps me love it even more. I have the 50mm lens that was mentioned and I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE IT!!! For amature it can be difficult to use because of how it focuses. The cost is grat and I got mine at B&H Photo for 104. Wolf/Ritz Camera has them for around 125.

Let me give you a little tip about using your zoom. Let's say you are at a parade and you have your lens at 25mm and you set the camera settings to a look you like for that focal length. If you zoom in all the way on a parade Character, for example, you need to redo your settings. The focal length has changed so you need to change your settings. If you zoom in from 25 to 29 it won't make much of a difference. EXAMPLE: To see what I mean here is what you can do. Turn your camera on and set it on M mode. Zoom out all the way to 18mm. Make sure your aperture is as low as it will go (the front dial). Then while you watch the screen on the top of the camera, zoom in and watch the numbers in the top right corner change.

With the D80, when you use auto and no flash for the type of shot you were trying to get, it will be blurry. The shutter speed was too slow and that's why your photo came out blurred. Plus you din't use a tripod like you said

Set your camera on M mode. (I use it ALL the time). For low light shots (birthday cake scenes, the castle at night etc) try this:

ISO 100-400 SLow your shutter to about 1 sec exsposure and your aperture pretty much as low as it will go. The lowest aperture on the 18-135 lens is 3.5 so that's not too great for lowlight shots, but it will do. You can change the shutter speed and ISO until you get a combination you like.

Good luck!!!

 

[Steve's Girl]

Set your camera on M mode. (I use it ALL the time). For low light shots (birthday cake scenes, the castle at night etc) try this:

ISO 100-400 SLow your shutter to about 1 sec exsposure and your aperture pretty much as low as it will go. The lowest aperture on the 18-135 lens is 3.5 so that's not too great for lowlight shots, but it will do. You can change the shutter speed and ISO until you get a combination you like.

Good luck!!!

Personally, I don't think it is necessary to always use M mode. At WDW, I only use it for Spectro and fireworks. I find P or AV works for most other situations. The advice you are giving for low light photos will only work for a stationary object and with a tripod.

For Spectromagic, you are going to need a shutter of 1/60 or 1/90. This means turning your ISO up to about 1600. I would also recommend this for the mentioned birthday cake scene if people are in the photo. Even if your camera is on a tripod, you can still end up with blur from your subject moving.

 

[aripantaloon]

Hello! I have a D80 and I really love it...BUT to me the type of lens I use helps me love it even more. I have the 50mm lens that was mentioned and I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE IT!!! For amature it can be difficult to use because of how it focuses. The cost is grat and I got mine at B&H Photo for 104. Wolf/Ritz Camera has them for around 125.

How does it focus? I am fairly certain that I am getting one before our trip! How convenient that Mother's Day is coming up.

Thanks for the D80 help. I need to experiment with night/low light shots before we leave.

 

[aripantaloon]

Personally, I don't think it is necessary to always use M mode. At WDW, I only use it for Spectro and fireworks. I find P or AV works for most other situations. The advice you are giving for low light photos will only work for a stationary object and with a tripod.

For Spectromagic, you are going to need a shutter of 1/60 or 1/90. This means turning your ISO up to about 1600. I would also recommend this for the mentioned birthday cake scene if people are in the photo. Even if your camera is on a tripod, you can still end up with blur from your subject moving.

Thanks! In my old P&S, I usually used P mode since I thought auto didn't take great photos.

for Spectromagic, if you had the choice of a new 50 mm 1.8 lens or the 18-135 3.5-5.6 lenses, which one would you use? I'm sure that for the lighting, the 50 mm would be better, but I would be without a zoom. I suppose I could just crop since they are high res photos.

 

[Steve's Girl]

Thanks! In my old P&S, I usually used P mode since I thought auto didn't take great photos.

for Spectromagic, if you had the choice of a new 50 mm 1.8 lens or the 18-135 3.5-5.6 lenses, which one would you use? I'm sure that for the lighting, the 50 mm would be better, but I would be without a zoom. I suppose I could just crop since they are high res photos.

Definitely the 50mm. I have taken many Spectro shots with this lens and the focal length is fine.

Take some farther away:

And then others as the floats move in front of you:

With my 50mm lens, I use ISO 1600, 1/90 shutter and f1.8. I do set everything manually for this parade and leave my settings for the whole parade. I don't think your 18-135 lens will let in enough light to get any usable shots of Spectro. I find the 50mm focuses just like any other lens, but you have to be careful to focus on your subject since the DOF is so shallow. Be careful not to focus on something in front of or behind your subject. Practice a little at home and you'll be fine!

 

[singjenn]

Personally, I don't think it is necessary to always use M mode. At WDW, I only use it for Spectro and fireworks. I find P or AV works for most other situations. The advice you are giving for low light photos will only work for a stationary object and with a tripod.

For Spectromagic, you are going to need a shutter of 1/60 or 1/90. This means turning your ISO up to about 1600. I would also recommend this for the mentioned birthday cake scene if people are in the photo. Even if your camera is on a tripod, you can still end up with blur from your subject moving.

I am a wedding photographer and I have gotten so used to using M mode because of my 50mm lens. I go through soooooo many light changes that I use my controls regularly.

I actually used P mode before I got my 50mm and I guess I should have mentioned that. I just think that by using the M mode you have more control with settings and are able to change everything.