My general setup is a 24-105mm IS lens on FF body, ISO at around 3200, Av around f/4, Evaluative metering with -2 EC and the single center focus point. (Nikon's "Matrix metering" is a little less consistent than Canon's "evaluative", so if shooting Nikon I would probably go with center-weighted and about -1 EC.)
My second body is a Canon 7D (APS-C sized sensor, like your D5100) with a 70-200mm IS lens, ISO at 1600-3200, Av at f/2.8, center weighted metering with -2 EC and the single focus point. My 7D allows me to use the center point for horizontal shots and automatically senses when I go vertical and switches to one of the points near the top of the frame I have selected for portrait orientation.
With both bodies I will mix it up some and go from Aperture to Manual exposure as well as from Evaluative to Center weighted metering. Learning your camera's controls well enough to do this on the fly without even pulling your eye off of the viewfinder is paramount!
Canon 5DII, EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS @ 55mm, Aperture Priority, 1/160 sec, f/4, Evaluative metering,
Canon 5DII, EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS @ 55mm, Aperture Priority, 1/160 sec, f/4, Evaluative metering, -1 1/3 EC, ISO 2000. Exposure increased 0.5 stops in post. At this slower Tv, timing his arm at the top of its motion was the only way to freeze it.
Canon 7D, EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS II @ 200mm, Aperture Priority, 1/1600 sec, f/2.8, Center-Weighted Avg., -2 EC, ISO 3200, Exposure increased 0.3 stops in post. I could have gotten away with a stop less ISO and Tv in this one, but even with the noise reduction (NR) needed for ISO 3200 on the 7D, you can still read the numbers and see the index marks on his watch before downsizing! Yes, it is a $2,300 lens.
From comments by the OP:
Wow, thanks for all the info. I will admit, it is a bit overwhelming, and I don't understand all of you lingo... like "tv" and a few others. Is there a way you can dumb it down for me a bit. Because I'm only work with a d5100. $500 camera and $500 lens. So can you suggest some settings to use, as I'm shooting John Mayer again next week. I have a D5100 with a Tamron 17-50mm (no stabilizing feature) lens. So I'm not dealing with $5,000 worth of camera equipment. When I say I'm new to photography, I mean new, new.
I just really badly NEED to take some good photos this next week, as I have quite a few people counting on me to come out with some GREAT photos, (lots of pressure). It will be in the same setting as before, just at a new venue (RED ROCKS) and John Mayer again. So please experts, dumb it down for me a bit, as a few things mentioned above were a bit confusing.
Tv -1 1/3 EC(Time value) is shorthand for shutter speed. The main things you can do with your current gear is shoot RAW, use a high enough ISO 2000. Exposure increased 0to keep your Tv up and time your shots with the performers movements and when the lights are at their peak intensity.5 stops Then deal with the noise from high ISO in post. At this slower Tv, timing his arm atBased on the topphotos in your photobucket gallery I don't think your problem is focus. The ones you sharpened in PS show that. You need to learn how to use post processing to bring out the best on the photos you take.
There are a lot of its motion wasthings in the only wayanswer you should be able to freeze itapply with a D5100 and Tamron 17-50.
I got a lot of great shots back a few years ago with a Rebel XTi (which I limited to about ISO 800!) and that lens, and even better shots with a 50D and that lens. The main thing is that there is no substitute for experience. The more you shoot in those situations, the better you'll get at recognizing what will and what will not work in a given situation with a given set of gear.
What setting would you recommend me to start out at???
Canon 7DStart in Aperture priority mode, EF 70-200mmISO 3200, f/2.8 L IS II @ 200mm, Aperture Prioritycenter weighted averaging, -1 1/16003 exposure compensation and see what the shutter speeds look like. Unless you really know how to time the subject's movement you need to be at 1/250 sec,. or faster if possible. If you can stop down to f/23.85 or f/4 without going under 1/250 sec., Center-Weighted Avgthen try some shots there. If you're getting Tvs better than 1/640 sec., drop your ISO 1/3 or 2/3 stop if you can wind up with your Tv still around 1/500 sec.
Save your files as -2.NEFs because you're probably going to need to increase exposure a little when you convert the RAW files to jpeg. And take a crash course in Adobe Lightroom or the Adobe Camera RAW plugin for Photoshop.
I want to get quality pictures, but will not have the time to learn photoshop or lightroom.
Then hire an experienced pro that has already learned and knows how to do this.
What if I just left exposure at 0.0 and changed the f/ & iso
accordingly? Is exposure really that big of deal to get quality
pictures? I also thought that being under exposed was a bad thing.
You are not going to get the results you want without learning how to manage light curves in post processing. Your camera's meter expects everything to be 18% grey. If the background and most of the scene is dark and you leave EC, ISO 3200, Exposure increased at 0 then what is black in the scene will be gray in your photos and the photo will be overexposed. Underexposed and slightly noisy is easier to correct than blurry because of a slow shutter speed.3 stops
What im asking, is there an "easiest way to do this" without messing with a bunch of setting on my D5100? Or is there a "standard setting" that will be good, considering you saw my pictures from the last concert, and the next concert will be almost identical, except for a different venue, same lights, same graphics, etc.
NO. There is no easy way to do what you want to do. The answer above tells you what you should do, both in terms of shooting the concert and in terms of post processing. I could have gotten awayIf you refuse to accept that, do it your way and live with a stop less ISOthe results.
The reason your photos are blurry is because they are slightly overexposed and Tvunsharpened, not because the focus is bad. When you desaturated and sharpened, the focus problem went away. The reason your camera has exposure compensation is because your eye should be capable of seeing how what is in front of you is different from an average scene that your camera is designed to meter properly.
I understand. But I really think if I use Dynamic focus, I should get better focus in general if I shoot the focus point at his face, correct? As you can see, I did a terrible job sharpening my photos, because I really had no clue what I was doing, and in doing so it looks crappy and lost a lot of color.
As to Dynamic Focus, I've already stated several times that in this onesituation you are probably better off using a single focus point and focusing on the eyes, but even withthen recomposing the noise reduction (NR)shot if needed for ISO 3200while holding the focus lock using the buttons on the 7D,back of your body. Your camera's user manual tells you can still readhow to do this.
I'm not looking for out of this world photos, I'm looking for sharp photos that I don't have to touch up in post processing, and can quickly share with John Mayer's fan base within an hour or two after the show with a few Jpegs.
What you are expecting your camera to do for you is one of the numbershardest scenarios there is in photography: Shooting subjects in motion under much less than optimal lighting in terms of color spectrum that is also very dim. Even experienced pros with top grade equipment are challenged to get such images out in only a couple of hours under such scenarios. That doesn't mean you can't get some good pictures with your D5100 and seeTamron SP 17-50mm f/2.8 Di II lens. But you can't expect the index marks on his watch before downsizing! Yes,camera to do it all for you. Even the best camera on the market is just a $2tool. Tools require knowledge,300 lens skill, and experience to be used to their potential.
