Conditions where the ambient (existing) light is of a low level (dark). Photographers often use additional lighting equipment or long exposures in low light conditions.
49
votes
13answers
24k views
How do I set the proper exposure for nighttime moon photos?
All my attempts to get a good shot of the full moon with my DSLR result in an overexposed circle on a black background. I've used a tripod, remote shutter release, low ISO, and long exposure, but ...
46
votes
14answers
5k views
How does one focus for landscape photos in very dark conditions?
Tonight I tried my best to take some night landscapes in the darkest of dark conditions. Hoping for an epic composition of the Milky Way and a landmark.
Of course, none of my glass could auto focus ...
35
votes
10answers
3k views
How do I tell which point-and-shoot cameras take good low light photos?
I have a Canon Powershot A710 and I previously had a previous Powershot A-series model. I love them due to the high amount of control they offer. Sadly, they both suck in low light conditions, their ...
31
votes
10answers
1k views
What are some tips for shooting in low light?
I own a Canon 450D with just the standard lens kit that comes with it (poor so won't be buy a new lens for a while) and one thing I tend to struggle with is shotting in lower light conditions, indoors ...
24
votes
6answers
2k views
Is it practical to shoot portraits by only candlelight?
Is it practical to shoot portraits in candle lights, only, provided there is no flash around? If yes, then for portrait shots, where and how should one place the candles? Are there any specific ...
23
votes
10answers
2k views
What settings should I be using to photograph fireworks?
As it's heading into firework season (with Thanksgiving, Guy Fawkes, and New Years), I've never been particularly successful at photographing fireworks. In previous years I think I've always had too ...
20
votes
7answers
5k views
What should my plan be for photographing in a nightclub setting?
I'm going to be photographing in a club setting. Imagine a foggy atmosphere, with a lighting nightmare: everything from strobe lights to colored spotlights and everything in between, both bright and ...
18
votes
4answers
683 views
How to speed up autofocus on moving subjects under low-light conditions?
Since I am usually taking pictures under low light ambient conditions I have discovered the nifty 1.4 lenses (such as the Sigma 30mm/1.4 or the Canon 50mm/1.4 or also the Canon 85mm/1.8) for my Canon ...
18
votes
3answers
2k views
Why are larger sensors better at low light?
The top answer of What point and shoots are good in low light conditions? says that (1) a fast lens/wide aperture (2) reasonable ISO 400+ handling and (3) a large sensor when put together are critical ...
18
votes
8answers
2k views
How do I focus in low light for long exposures?
I've been trying to take some long exposure shots at night with my Canon 450D. The problem I'm having is that I can't seem to get a shot in focus. The low light conditions prevent AF from working at ...
16
votes
7answers
768 views
Tips for shooting in an aquarium?
What would be your advises when taking shoot in an aquarium?
What are your preferred lenses? How do you deal with the low light? What about the aquarium glass which bring some deformation? The fact ...
16
votes
4answers
611 views
How do I achieve fireworks pictures such as the hirobamboo method?
How do I achieve the abstract effect for fireworks that is sometimes referred to as the hirobamboo method? Specifically what types of lenses would work best for this, do I start in focus or out, ...
14
votes
3answers
2k views
Is it ok to use a lens hood in low light?
I have read some of the other questions about lens hoods (for example, this one) and I hope that this is specific enough to not be considered a duplicate.
My understanding is that lens hoods block ...
12
votes
8answers
3k views
Why aren't my night shots sharp even when I shot at ISO 100 on a tripod?
I recently purchased a tripod because I really want to do some night photography. I have tried practicing with street lamps, moon shots etc with my Canon 550D and 70-200 f/4L and most of them are shot ...
12
votes
5answers
3k views
How do you make a shot look like it was taken at night?
Okay, so I was watching a movie recently, and there was a night scene. The whole valley could be seen in light, and there were some stars as well, and the actors could be seen, but it just looked like ...
12
votes
4answers
866 views
What can I expect in upgrading from built in flash to using a speedlight?
In pursuit of my low light photography passion I an considering purchasing a speed light. because I am so new to photography I am unsure of what the results will be using a speed light flash instead ...
11
votes
4answers
744 views
Is overall light gathering of a lens only dependant on aperture?
My impression is that the aperture value of a lens determines its light gathering ability, but I'm not sure I understand how it works...
When considering light gathering in telescopes, it is ...
10
votes
7answers
474 views
What are the properties of a camera that affect taking pictures in poor lighting?
I had recently bought a Nikon CoolPix L110, which was stolen a few months later. In searching for a replacement, I'd like to get something that takes better pictures in poor lighting. The zoom on ...
9
votes
7answers
293 views
What features should I look for in a DSLR to shoot live bands?
I'm trying to work out which DSLR to buy. One of my main use cases is photographing live bands in dimly lit bars. This often involves fast movement (particularly drummers) as well as low light. Which ...
9
votes
6answers
2k views
Which prime lens to get after the 18-55mm & 55-250mm?
I started out with the 18-55mm IS kit lens on my Canon EOS 550D over a year ago, and added the 55-250mm IS a couple of months back to augment my telephoto reach (based on the recommendations in one of ...
9
votes
3answers
699 views
Optimal DSLR settings for an Indoor car show?
I am quite sure a bunch of folks from this forum are going to be shooting in the 2013 Detroit Auto Show, so here goes!
I understand that optimal settings vary depending on the circumstancial lighting ...
9
votes
2answers
480 views
how to improve body scape shots?
This is the best of a series of shots taken of an athlete model. The image does no justice to the model because it lacks the peaks and valleys the model worked hard to get. there was a clear 6pack on ...
9
votes
1answer
276 views
What caused dark areas around bright light in this cityscape shot?
I know a little about cameras since doing two courses, and so I set my camera on manual setting most of the time to take shots.
I took the following shot in New York of Manhattan at night. Because of ...
8
votes
4answers
1k views
Is a 50mm f/1.8 or 50mm f/1.4 a good lens for portraits in low light?
I only have one lens right now. It's the Canon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS kit lens. I think this lens is great when the lighting conditions are right but in low light I usually have to result to flash.
...
8
votes
5answers
9k views
How should I set the Canon T2i for low-light?
I've got three lenses with my T2i - the kit lens, the Canon EF 50mm II and Canon EF 75-300mm 1:4-5.6 III. I'm going to a high school play and would like to take some stills along with some short ...
8
votes
3answers
752 views
How to take photos of children in difficult lighting?
I recently went to a one-year-old's birthday party. The event took place inside; there was some light coming through the windows from outside and there was also light from the lightbulbs in the room, ...
8
votes
3answers
736 views
Why are my city night pics more blurred than I expect, and what can I do about it?
I have a Canon 550D using a 10-20mm Sigma lens, with tripod.
I have taken some photos of my city at night, and while the shots are ok... upon zooming in just a little you can see many lights are ...
7
votes
5answers
676 views
Wide-angle flash for outdoor nights, or poorly-lit ballrooms
I am trying to think of good techniques that can capture the full vibrant scene of outdoor night or poorly-lit events at wide angles.
In my previous experiences, flash fitted with wide-angle plate or ...
7
votes
5answers
1k views
How do you white balance for a dance floor?
I was trying to take pictures of people on the dance floor at a big birthday party. With a disco ball, green laser lights, and other flashing lights of various colors, how do you get the white ...
6
votes
5answers
998 views
Would a large aperture lens help against low light subjects being blurry?
I want to get nice shots with ambient light (meaning the natural light in the room of restaurants, living room with x-mas tree lights only...) so I can catch the glow of light on people’s faces as ...
6
votes
4answers
438 views
Has low-light ISO performance really improved over the past 3-4 years?
I have a Canon 40D and I always shoot RAW. I am overall pleased with the 40D except for its low-light performance. Anything at or above ISO 800 is unusable for my taste. Just to solve this problem I ...
6
votes
3answers
384 views
Photography in Darkness
I have a Nikon d3100. I recently shot a 16th birthday party. It's my 4the or 5th party and I've noticed the young people like it very dark. So much so, looking through the lens is like having your ...
6
votes
3answers
2k views
How can I accurately focus manually on an APS-C DSLR?
My favorite portrait lens is the Nikon 50mm 1.4G. I love the light and what it is capable of. My problem with it is that on my D90 the AF is sometimes horribly slow, and in many cases (mainly low ...
6
votes
4answers
550 views
Should I prefer raising ISO or lowering the shutter speed in a low light condition?
Example:
1. A "still" object/scene.
2. Night time.
3. The only light source you have is: a tubelight on a wall.
Provided, you want sharpness all around so you won't maximize the aperture.
Flash ...
6
votes
5answers
585 views
Can you recommend any resources about dance photography?
My main focus area in photography is dance; and at that mostly social dancing.
This usually means:
spontaneous action, no way to stage anything or prepare beyond being "in the moment and very ...
6
votes
2answers
803 views
Why can't my camera autofocus in low light with a small aperture?
My question is not about "how to focus in the low light" or "how to focus a camera". The question is why the camera is unable to auto-focus in low light with high f numbers?
In these conditions, I ...
6
votes
2answers
367 views
What is the lowest level of luminous flux a camera can detect?
In the past, I've asked about taking photos of luciferase. Now I'm curious how weak of a light source I can detect. From How many photons per second is one Lumen? on Physics Stack Exchange, I can ...
6
votes
3answers
365 views
Is it possible to take silhouette photos with Nikon CoolPix S70?
Is it possible to take silhouette photos like this using my Nikon CoolPix S 70? if so please let me know how? I tried but getting blurry images :(
6
votes
1answer
263 views
Are there any consumer digital cameras with grayscale sensors?
Are there any consumer grade (i.e. not ridiculously expensive scientific equipment) digital cameras that use "grayscale" sensors instead of the prolific RGGB bayer filter? I figure that you'd get an ...
5
votes
5answers
7k views
How to Force my Nikon D5000 to take a photo in low light?
Every so often I try to take a picture in low light, usually indoors and find that my camera attempts to focus, grumbles a bit and then refuses to take the shot.
This is annoying, not least because I ...
5
votes
3answers
959 views
How do I get crisp indoor or low light images from my point and shoot?
I have a digital camera Canon PowerShot. I notice when I try to take any pictures other than a non-zoom, outdoor picture in good lighting the picture comes out blurry and grainy. I have tried a ...
5
votes
6answers
284 views
How can I capture vivid color and detail in relatively dark, indoor cafe?
The photo below was taken with a point-and-shoot camera of a cafe area I designed. I plan to return and take a better photo with my Nikon D7000.
Thanks to the skylight, the lighting in the foreground ...
5
votes
2answers
304 views
What causes these green dots in my image?
I just received a 35mm f/1.8 DX lens for my Nikon D50 for Christmas, and took some shots where the lights on the tree were the main source of illumination. Almost all of them exhibit very prominent ...
5
votes
4answers
6k views
How can I improve my exposure in low-light situations?
I am new to photography and have been struggling with low light scenarios. I have a Nikon D3100 and an SB-900 flash. Regardless of my ISO, aperture, or shutter speed settings, when I am ...
5
votes
2answers
237 views
How does fading light affect color vision?
It's well known that the cones in retina are unable to distinguish colors in dark, leaving us only the monochrome softer vision provided by rods. And personal experience tells this "switch" to ...
5
votes
2answers
317 views
Are there any tricks to make a pop-up flash suck less in low light?
I'm taking a lot of low-light indoor shots of moving subjects. I hate a the default flip-up flashes of most moderns DSLRs (in my case, a Canon 60D), but this is typically a point and shoot situation ...
5
votes
2answers
5k views
Nikon Coolpix P510 - Recommended low-light settings?
My wife was recently given a Nikon Coolpix P510 as a birthday present from her parents, primarily so we can take a - I believe the technical term is "****load" - of pictures of our new baby girl ...
5
votes
1answer
239 views
How do I stitch two star trails photos taken by different cameras?
Last night I took some star trails photos. I set the shutter speed to 30", put the camera in burst mode and used my remote shutter release (with shutter button lock) to hold down the shutter button. I ...
5
votes
1answer
539 views
How to use the safety shift custom function with a flash on a Canon 5D Mark II?
I do a lot of available light photography with f/1.2 and f/1.4 lenses. I use the "safety shift" mode (C.Fn I-6), which works great in combination with shutter priority mode (Tv). For example, I can ...
4
votes
4answers
249 views
When is it realistic to take a non-flash picture of someone outside after sunset?
This is a question from a non-photographer. I'm writing a scene for a stage play. In my scene, there's a celebrity in crisis in a park after sunset and a photographer who'd dearly like to get a ...
