Would love some guidance on settings....

[roxysmum123]

Hello!

I'm new to photography and have only really had 2 trips to figure out my equipment, going again in a week and wondering if I can get some quick guidance....I have the basic Canon EOS Rebel T5 DSLR Camera with 18-55mm & 75-300mm lenses, wondering what you'd recommend for fireworks settings, and night time around the parks.....I've been doing alright with night time but I feel its still a little dark and shadowy. Example...I assume longer exposure time and use of tripod?


Also, in the photo below what could I have done differently to have the storm troopers in the back a little more out of focus? Thank you!

 

[mom2rtk]

If you want the Stormtroopers out of focus, you probably need a lens with a larger aperture. You could try backing up and using your zoom, but I'm thinking they are too close for that to help much.

How are you approaching your night shots now? Honestly, your kit lens is probably not going to do that well for night shots without a tripod. Once again, a larger aperture lens would be really helpful.

For fireworks, your kit lens is fine, but you need a tripod.

 

[fractal]

First photo - Tripod (or something else stable. I've used tops of trashcans for example). ISO 100 or 200, f/8 or so, adjust shutter speed for exposure. Fireworks are same concept but most choose a 5-10 second exposure or use "bulb" to control the exposure.

Second photo - move the Stormtroopers back further . Actually, the obvious answer is to use the widest aperture - or you could use a longer focal length. The troopers are pretty close behind (especially the one on the left) so there is only so much you can do unless you decide to buy a 135mm 1.8.


Have a great trip!

 

[fractal]

One more suggestion for night time - if you are set on hand held. Some cameras have a setting for that. My Sony calls it "Hand held twilight". It takes two consecutive photos then merges them in camera. I've used it on occasion and have been surprisingly pleased.

 

[roxysmum123]

If you want the Stormtroopers out of focus, you probably need a lens with a larger aperture. You could try backing up and using your zoom, but I'm thinking they are too close for that to help much.

How are you approaching your night shots now? Honestly, your kit lens is probably not going to do that well for night shots without a tripod. Once again, a larger aperture lens would be really helpful.

For fireworks, your kit lens is fine, but you need a tripod.

Tripod is in my Amazon cart now, haha, thank you! I know my lenses aren't great, but I want to get a little more exposure to what I like/dont like before I make the larger investments - hoping to borrow a friends lenses sometime to see which direction to go...I'm still not too sure what I like to shoot

First photo - Tripod (or something else stable. I've used tops of trashcans for example). ISO 100 or 200, f/8 or so, adjust shutter speed for exposure. Fireworks are same concept but most choose a 5-10 second exposure or use "bulb" to control the exposure.

Second photo - move the Stormtroopers back further . Actually, the obvious answer is to use the widest aperture - or you could use a longer focal length. The troopers are pretty close behind so there is only so much you can do unless you decide to buy a 135mm 1.8.


Have a great trip!

Those pesky storm troopers dont' listen to direction well, haha. Thanks for the settings advice, I'll be sure to use the tripod and try them out.

 

[roxysmum123]

One more suggestion for night time - if you are set on hand held. Some cameras have a setting for that. My Sony calls it "Hand held twilight". It takes two consecutive photos then merges them in camera. I've used it on occasion and have been surprisingly pleased.

I'll check for that setting, thanks!

 

[fractal]

Also - check your focus on long exposure, especially fireworks. Generally you want to focus to infinity which you may have to do manually.

 

[mom2rtk]

Tripod is in my Amazon cart now, haha, thank you! I know my lenses aren't great, but I want to get a little more exposure to what I like/dont like before I make the larger investments - hoping to borrow a friends lenses sometime to see which direction to go...I'm still not too sure what I like to shoot

Many will start with a 50mm f/1.8 prime as their first fast lens. It's only around $110 new, so affordable in terms of lenses. I'm not a huge fan of that focal length, but it's a lot of lens for that money. If you think you might be interested, try setting your kit lens to 50mm and shoot around the house and neighborhood and see what you think.

Borrowing a lens from a friend is great!

Some places rent lenses. It can be a great way to test out other lenses before committing to buying.

Are you shooting at night in auto or are you choosing your own settings?

 

[boBQuincy]

Gaston's fountain has a wide range of light, more than (most of) our sensors can capture. A longer exposure would wash out the bright areas even more. HDR is about the only answer here, to extend the range.

Stormtroopers could work with a wider aperture but the stormtroopers are kind of close together. Depth of field works as the difference of the distance between the camera and foreground vs the distance between camera and background (lens focal length has no effect on DOF). The difference in distance in this image is not much so the aperture would probably have to be wide, maybe f/1.4 would have worked for what you want.
If you have time you could take two photos: one in focus and one out of focus and merge them in software. Some cameras do this for us automagically now.

 

[fractal]

Gaston's fountain has a wide range of light, more than (most of) our sensors can capture. A longer exposure would wash out the bright areas even more. HDR is about the only answer here, to extend the range.

Stormtroopers could work with a wider aperture but the stormtroopers are kind of close together. Depth of field works as the difference of the distance between the camera and foreground vs the distance between camera and background (lens focal length has no effect on DOF). The difference in distance in this image is not much so the aperture would probably have to be wide, maybe f/1.4 would have worked for what you want.
If you have time you could take two photos: one in focus and one out of focus and merge them in software. Some cameras do this for us automagically now.

This is a single exposure shot. 13 secs, ISO 100, f/6.3 with a 50mm lens on a cropped body (Sony NEX-7).

 

[mom2rtk]

This is a single exposure shot. 13 secs, ISO 100, f/6.3 with a 50mm lens on a cropped body (Sony NEX-7).

Well done!

Did you need to adjust the highlights in post?

 

[fractal]

Well done!

Did you need to adjust the highlights in post?

I did. I believe another factor was the focal length (75mm equivalent). The distance from the lights helped defuse their intensity.

 

[roxysmum123]

Are you shooting at night in auto or are you choosing your own settings?

I've been trying to choose my own settings when possible, but maybe should try auto for a bit? Usually takes 3 or 4 shots to figure out what settings I'm looking for and even then I still don't feel like I quite know what I'm doing.

 

[mom2rtk]

I've been trying to choose my own settings when possible, but maybe should try auto for a bit? Usually takes 3 or 4 shots to figure out what settings I'm looking for and even then I still don't feel like I quite know what I'm doing.

No, choosing your own settings at night will be better. But you need a plan with it. How are you approaching it?

My own approach would be to start with the highest ISO I knew I could stomach. Then I'd go shutter priority and choose the longest speed I thought I could successfully hand hold (making sure IS is turned on if available). But you could also go aperture priority and choose the widest aperture available (knowing you'll need as much light coming into the lens as possible).

If you are at your highest ISO, widest aperture and longest shutter speed you can hand hold and still not happy with the shot, you're going to need 1) a tripod 2) a different lens (for a wider aperture) or 3) a different camera body (for higher ISO).

 

[roxysmum123]

My own approach would be to start with the highest ISO I knew I could stomach. Then I'd go shutter priority and choose the longest speed I thought I could successfully hand hold (making sure IS is turned on if available). But you could also go aperture priority and choose the widest aperture available (knowing you'll need as much light coming into the lens as possible).

I go with really high ISO and then dial it back from there as i start to see how grainy its looking. I think I need to play around more with shutter speed - honestly dont think i've ever done that before so will practice at home before we go. Thanks!

 

[manning]

Firework setting read this:

https://digital-photography-school.com/how-to-photograph-fireworks/

 

[maccagerl]

If you're familiar with photoshop elements they have a really nice blur filter that you can use on the Storm Troopers. It's easy to use and looks great!