Ideas for getting sharp pictures during Thanksgiving and Christmas gatherings

[virginiajenkins]

I am looking for Ideas on how to get sharp pictures over Thanksgiving and Christmas gatherings. There is usually so much activity going on that I don’t have time to change the settings and get the perfect picture without missing the moment. Just wondering if any one has any ideas on what setting I should set my camera so that I will not have to change it to much and still be getting good sharp pictures.

[Ezra Morley]

Well, we would need a little bit more of a specific idea of what you’re talking about. I’m assuming you mean primarily indoor photography? Could you share what camera you plan on using? It could make a big difference whether it’s a DSLR or a P&S (point-and-shoot) camera.

Sharp pictures start with having the focus correct. Lighting tends to be really bad indoors, and auto-focus systems don’t usually do too well in low-light, so it’s imperative to check your pictures and make sure that you’re getting them in focus. Something to remember is that auto-focus works by detecting contrast, so always try to put your auto-focus point over an area with contrast. Maybe a black tie on a white shirt, or maybe just the contrast of dark eyes on a light face. An easy way to confuse the auto-focus sensor is to point the camera at something that is all the same color, with no contrast. The sensor has no way of knowing if the camera is properly focused or not, especially in low-light situations, so try to remember to keep your focus point over an area with some good contrast. If you have to, you can focus, then recompose to get the composition that you want.

Another factor in “blurry” holiday pictures is motion blur, which is also related to the general poor lighting conditions indoors. Keep your aperture low, and increase your ISO till you have a reasonable shutter speed. If there’s lot’s of action you’ll need at least 1/100 shutter speed, if not more! Set your camera mode to ‘Aperture Priority’ and select the lowest aperture possible, then experiment with the ISO speed till you get a proper shutter speed. Again, keep an eye on your pictures as you take them, if you see motion blur, crank up the ISO a stop or two! It’s much better to have a grainy picture than a blurry one. (That’s just my opinion, of course…)

Another option of course is to use flash. I generally try to avoid using the on-board flash, as it creates quite harsh “straight-on” lighting, and the fall-off tends to create a very dark/black background. Ideally, you’d have a house with white ceilings, and you’d bounce a slave flash off of the ceiling (or even the wall) for softer indirect lighting.

[James Staddon]

Excellent question!

And excellent thoughts on focus and minimum shutter speed @buddingphotographer!

Does your camera have Auto ISO? The easiest method is possible if you do. Set your camera to M mode, set the ISO to Auto, set the shutter speed to somewhere around 1/100, set the aperture to as wide as it can get (usually between f/5.6 to f/1.8 depending on the lens), and then start shooting away! Tweak the shutter speed according to the situation if desired.

If not, than you’ll have to do it like @buddingphotographer mentioned above, using Av mode. Shooting indoors, I would set the aperture to go as wide as it can go, and then set the ISO to “as high as necessary while as low as possible.” Depending on the room, I start somewhere at 800 or 1600. The shutter speed will fluctuate depending on where you point the camera, but in general I would recommend keeping an eye on it to make sure it’s it hovers between 1/50 and 1/100 of a second most of the time. (Though this is dependent on the lens you’re using). If your shutter speed is consistently slower than that, then it means you’ll have to knock your ISO higher . . . or grab a flash. 🙂

• This reply was modified 53 years, 9 months ago by .

[virginiajenkins]

Thank you so much for your comments. I will be using a Nikon DSLR indoors most of the time. The main reason I was asking is because both places that I will be taking pictures at are very weird lighting and low ceilings. I was just looking on my camera and did not see that I have auto ISO unless I just missed it. I do agree with you on that I would prefer grain over blur:) The only kind of flash that I have would be a build-in (still working on getting a better one) would that still work or should I just not use the flash?

[Ezra Morley]

If you’re using a modern DSLR, you don’t have to worry about ISO nearly as much as you would if you were shooting with a little P&S with a 1/2.3-inch sensor. I used to have an old Canon Powershot S3 that had visible noise at anything over ISO 100!

Here’s some reading material from Nikon itself on Auto ISO.

There’s also a post here with screenshots showing the different settings…

[James Staddon]

Using a speedlite to bounce light off the ceiling will be your best method for hassle free shooting, in my opinion.

However, if you do not have a speedlite, then you can experiement with something like the Gary Fong Puffer Plus Flash Diffuser. I’ve had folks tell me that it works pretty well, though I have not had any experience with it.

Anyone else have experience with these small diffusers?

[virginiajenkins]

Interesting…I will have to look into those diffusers. As for the Auto ISO, I did find it on my Nikon camera with the help of those articles posted earlier on that topic. I think that Auto ISO will definitely be a big help to me. I experimented last night, with the ideas you gave me, on my family and this is what I came up with.

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[Ezra Morley]

That’s great! Do you mind sharing the settings that this shot was taken at? Whatever software you use to resize the picture (Photoshop?) strips out the EXIF data so we can’t see it.

If you don’t want to spend $25.00 on a Gary Fong Diffuser, there are much cheaper options. I haven’t used it personally, but here’s something that’s basically the same for about 90% less. 3 Color Pop Up 45 degree Flash Diffuser. From the reviews, it looks like it works, which is all I would expect it to do!

[James Staddon]

Hey, that is great!

You should be able to cut the yellow cast by changing your White Balance to Tungsten too. This cheat sheet from DigitalCameraWorld.com helps to explain the difference white balance presets.

[virginiajenkins]

The picture I took was re-sized in lightroom. I took it on a 18-55 lens with it set on auto white balance, auto ISO, and f/5.6. Thank you for the cheat sheet James. I will definitely look closely into those diffusers. Thank you for suggesting them to me.

[Mr. Quebec]

I tried something today. I put a stuffed cat on a table and installed my camera on a tripod. I shot with three different lightening : without flash, with my build-in flash, and with my speedlite. I set my camera to fluorescent light too.
Here are the results : (The third picture will be on the next post.)
First one. (With a speedlite)
1/60, f/4, ISO 1600
Second one. (Without flash)
1/30, f/4, ISO 3200
Third one. (With the build-in flash)
1/60, f/4, ISO 800

• This reply was modified 53 years, 9 months ago by .

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[Mr. Quebec]

Here is the third picture.

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[James Staddon]

Wow! It’s amazing the difference between the two flashes! The flash from the speedlite, which I’m assuming you bounced off the ceiling (?), really ads a “crisp edge” that neither of the other pictures has. See how the on-camera flash is so “flat”? And though the natural light works, it still appears flat. There’s nothing more than depth of field that sets it apart from the background. I’ve always liked the effect that a speedlite can produce.

[Mr. Quebec]

The flash from the speedlite, which I’m assuming you bounced off the ceiling (?), really ads a “crisp edge” that neither of the other pictures has.

You’re right. I’ve bounced the flash behind me on the ceiling.

• This reply was modified 53 years, 9 months ago by .

[Ezra Morley]

@virginiajenkins, if you would like to include the EXIF data from exported files from Lightroom, then you can set that preference in the ‘Export’ window, see screenshot.

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