Photo Tips & Techniqes!

Ask the guy standing next to you that has taught photo for the last few decades, what settings he is using.

Works for me. ;)
 
If shooting digital, shoot in RAW and get a good photo editing program (I use Lightroom). Before I did this I was always frustrated, after I did this, a whole new world of happiness and contentment with the images I was ending up with opened up.
 
Shooting evening concerts. This is something I do fairly frequently and I'm working out how to get the best results. I can do a steady hand hold, but the performers keep moving anyway. next digital camera will definitely have better high ISO response than my current does. Underexposing a couple of stops with the stage lighting to keep from burning out highlights and keep shutter speeds up and then pulling up in post processing works, but hardly ideal.
 
As a rule of thumb your slowest shutter speed setting should be equal to or no less than the focal length of your lens for hand held shots. Example: A 200mm focal length lens should be no less than 1/200 sec. or it's nearest faster shutter speed setting.
 
Pioneer Vato;n7229 said:
As a rule of thumb your slowest shutter speed setting should be equal to or no less than the focal length of your lens for hand held shots. Example: A 200mm focal length lens should be no less than 1/200 sec. or it's nearest faster shutter speed setting.

Indeed, though with moving performers that only works down to a point. One of the reasons I'm happy that my next digital (whichever it ends up being) will have good results up to 6400 or even 12800 ISO. The D200 starts to look marginal by 800 and anything beyond is hardly worthwhile. Really nice camera in so many ways, but high ISO isn't a forte.

The stage lighting was unusually dim at this particular event so it was much more of a challenge than I've normally encountered in such situations. I shot some with the 70-210 f3.5 (equivalent to approx. 315mm on DX) at 1/60th/sec and got nice sharp backgrounds but blurred performers. In the end I finally went to shooting two stops under and pulled things up in post-op. Thank goodness there is quite a bit of detail in the shadow areas of a digital image!

BTW the lens I was using, my old Tamron SP 70-210 f3.5 is the only one of my film zooms that looks really good on digital. Still sharp as all get-out and no colour fringing. All of the others look very good on film, but fall down when presented with a digital sensor.
 
Pioneer Vato;n7331 said:
Tip: Never try to take a selfie with a buffalo or a rattlesnake! (Sorry, couldn't resist)

I seem to recall a whole lot of shots with snakes.... I suspect that rhinos and Great Whites aren't such a good idea, either.
 
When photographing audio gear with highly reflective surfaces (like silver faceplates) and using flash do not shoot head on but rather at an angle so that your flash is reflected away from the camera. This lessens glaring hot spots or blown out highlights.
 
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