Newbie, D80 settings for School concert

On Sun, 21 Dec 2008 19:57:53 -0800 (PST), cen wrote
in :

Hey I'm new with a D80 and somewhat limited experience, but have taken
some great photos with it. Tomorrow night is concert night in the
school auditorium and I'm think about setting it on program mode to
shoot. Flash is allowed. Wondering what other settings you'd use.

Given limited experience:
* Use a tripod or monopod if possible
* Keep flash off -- not strong enough to help, and will only be
disruptive
* Put camera in Shutter (speed) Priority mode
* To avoid shake and motion blur, set shutter speed roughly equal to
equivalent 35 mm focal length[1]; e.g., if you zoom your lens to 100 mm
(35 mm equivalent), then set a shutter speed at or near 1/100 sec
* Set ISO to Auto
Your camera should now adjust aperture and ISO to suit the lighting, and
give you pretty good shots.

Caveat: This assumes reasonably even stage lighting. When there are
tight spotlights on actors with the rest of the stage in darkness:
* Usually the best method is to spot meter on the actors. Read the
manual on how to put the camera into Spot Meter mode.
* A workable alternative is to use the first procedure above, check
exposure after a shot, adjust Exposure Compensation as needed, and
re-shoot. Re-check anytime lighting changes.

1. For equivalent 35 mm focal length, multiply actual lens focal length
by crop factor. Your D80 has a crop factor of 1.5, so actual lens focal
length of (say) 60 mm is equivalent to 35 mm focal length of 90 mm, with
a preferred minimum shutter speed of 1/90 sec.
--
Best regards,
John
[Please Note: Ads belong (only) in rec.photo.marketplace.digital]

John Navas wrote:
On Sun, 21 Dec 2008 19:57:53 -0800 (PST), cen wrote
in :

Hey I'm new with a D80 and somewhat limited experience, but have taken
some great photos with it. Tomorrow night is concert night in the
school auditorium and I'm think about setting it on program mode to
shoot. Flash is allowed. Wondering what other settings you'd use.

Given limited experience:
* Use a tripod or monopod if possible
* Keep flash off -- not strong enough to help, and will only be
disruptive
* Put camera in Shutter (speed) Priority mode
I'd go AP instead - but I always was a contrary type. See below for reason.

* To avoid shake and motion blur, set shutter speed roughly equal to
equivalent 35 mm focal length[1]; e.g., if you zoom your lens to 100 mm
(35 mm equivalent), then set a shutter speed at or near 1/100 sec
If you are on a monopod/tripod, you could drop that down by a couple of
steps, although I wouldn't go below 1/30. Depends on the scene - if the
performer is relatively static...

* Set ISO to Auto
Depends on the camera - some cameras limit their auto range. I don't
know what the D80 does, but I do know it's 800 and 1600 settings are
pretty good. So if Auto ISO doesn't use 1600, I wouldn't use it. 400
for very brightly lit shots, 800 for less well-lit shots, 1600 if the
lighting sucks.

Your camera should now adjust aperture and ISO to suit the lighting, and
give you pretty good shots.
Problem with shutter priority is that if the light is good, the camera
may end up stopping down when the better choice would be to raise the
shutter speed. If you use AP instead, you can watch the shutter speed
and adjust your shooting style accordingly. It depends on what you are
used to. If you haven't used AP or SP before, I wouldn't bother
learning now.

Caveat: This assumes reasonably even stage lighting. When there are
tight spotlights on actors with the rest of the stage in darkness:
* Usually the best method is to spot meter on the actors.
Maybe, *as long as* you don't forget you are in Spot mode... Because if
you compose with the subjects off centre, a duo with a gap between them
or a performer with a dark/light/reflective costume the image will
suffer. Again, if you haven't used Spot before, I wouldn't.

* A workable alternative is to use the first procedure above, check
exposure after a shot, adjust Exposure Compensation as needed, and
re-shoot. Re-check anytime lighting changes.
That would be my approach. Matrix metering, maybe with a slight
negative EV adjustment if the subjects look overcooked due to a dark
background.

1. For equivalent 35 mm focal length, multiply actual lens focal length
by crop factor. Your D80 has a crop factor of 1.5, so actual lens focal
length of (say) 60 mm is equivalent to 35 mm focal length of 90 mm, with
a preferred minimum shutter speed of 1/90 sec.
Again, that guide applies to handheld, so if on a tri/monopod you can
pretty safely go below that.

In article , Mark Thomas
wrote:

Hey I'm new with a D80 and somewhat limited experience, but have taken
some great photos with it. Tomorrow night is concert night in the
school auditorium and I'm think about setting it on program mode to
shoot. Flash is allowed. Wondering what other settings you'd use.

Given limited experience:
* Use a tripod or monopod if possible
* Keep flash off -- not strong enough to help, and will only be
disruptive
* Put camera in Shutter (speed) Priority mode
I'd go AP instead - but I always was a contrary type. See below for reason.

aperture priority is a much better choice.

* To avoid shake and motion blur, set shutter speed roughly equal to
equivalent 35 mm focal length[1]; e.g., if you zoom your lens to 100 mm
(35 mm equivalent), then set a shutter speed at or near 1/100 sec
If you are on a monopod/tripod, you could drop that down by a couple of
steps, although I wouldn't go below 1/30. Depends on the scene - if the
performer is relatively static...

agreed, 1/30 or 1/60 is a good start, depending on stage movement. he
said it's a concert so there probably won't be a whole lot of moving
around on stage, but a little motion blur, depending on the instrument,
might add to the mood. if handholding, go with a faster shutter speed,
depending on lens and how well he can hand hold.

* Set ISO to Auto
Depends on the camera - some cameras limit their auto range. I don't
know what the D80 does, but I do know it's 800 and 1600 settings are
pretty good. So if Auto ISO doesn't use 1600, I wouldn't use it. 400
for very brightly lit shots, 800 for less well-lit shots, 1600 if the
lighting sucks.

set the camera at iso 100 and cap the maximum iso at whatever is
considered 'too noisy.' set the shutter speed where iso starts ramping
up, as noted above.

Your camera should now adjust aperture and ISO to suit the lighting, and
give you pretty good shots.
Problem with shutter priority is that if the light is good, the camera
may end up stopping down when the better choice would be to raise the
shutter speed. If you use AP instead, you can watch the shutter speed
and adjust your shooting style accordingly. It depends on what you are
used to. If you haven't used AP or SP before, I wouldn't bother
learning now.

exactly. leave the lens wide open and the shutter will be as fast as it
can be (and in good stage light, it will be much higher than 1/30th).

1. For equivalent 35 mm focal length, multiply actual lens focal length
by crop factor. Your D80 has a crop factor of 1.5, so actual lens focal
length of (say) 60 mm is equivalent to 35 mm focal length of 90 mm, with
a preferred minimum shutter speed of 1/90 sec.
Again, that guide applies to handheld, so if on a tri/monopod you can
pretty safely go below that.

true, but you risk motion blur, depending on what's on stage, but then
again, that might be desirable.