Photography 101

[Brian G.]

I only flash them when they are being jerks.

Yeah, don't do that.

 

[JoeCamel]

I have two of those three....

Not sure if he meant lots of images when he said "lots of shots" :bolt:

 

[Octobers Fade]

Not sure if he meant lots of images when he said "lots of shots" :bolt:

patience=zeeeero

 

[Hockeyman55]

I've always just tried to catch the actors as they move into the lighting. I've never tried a flash, but I've always assumed it would kill the mood set by the lighting which is a big part of the feel of HHN photos.

Flash can be a great tool actually for HHN, I was skeptical for a while trying to use flash for the scareactors but saw photos from photographers who use flash and some where coming out so well and didn't hardly darkened out the background. My issue was just having a correct flash, guess that is what I get for going cheap over the years, lol. Just ordered one made by Flashpoint that supposed works well with the Sony line and was relatively affordable $120, that and a Gary Fong diffuser and should be good to go, plenty of time to mess around with it until next years event.

 

[Hockeyman55]

Low light lens, patience, and a lot of shots.

To add to this, a camera with better ISO sensitivity as well would help in this instance.

 

[Hockeyman55]

How about some tips for night (HHNs) shooting?
Please...
And how much editing do you do to your photos?

Another tip perhaps is trying shooting manual focus in those low light scareactor settings. I found in those situations in AF my lens kept fighting to focus, even my Sigma ART lens. I got tired of missing shots so I started shooting in manual with decent results. Having the focus peaking helps me a ton with this.

 

[s8film40]

Flash can be a great tool actually for HHN, I was skeptical for a while trying to use flash for the scareactors but saw photos from photographers who use flash and some where coming out so well and didn't hardly darkened out the background. My issue was just having a correct flash, guess that is what I get for going cheap over the years, lol. Just ordered one made by Flashpoint that supposed works well with the Sony line and was relatively affordable $120, that and a Gary Fong diffuser and should be good to go, plenty of time to mess around with it until next years event.

I love the Flashpoint line! I don't think my Streaklight 360 would make it past security though. I usually like to travel light for HHN, but I suppose a regular speedlight might not be too big of a deal to take one day to try it out.

 

[Teebin]

Found this website that manufactures inexpensive jibs and dollies for smaller cameras. I thought it was a cool and very affordable site for adding dynamics to your video shots.

Filmcity 3ft Skater Slider Camera Dolly - Cine Dollies - Sliders & Dollies

$190.00

https://www.proaim.ca/camera-cranes-jibs/camera-jibs/proaim-9ft-jib-arm-with-tripod-stand.html

$286.00

They also sell the bigger expensive rigs but I thought it was the smaller products that held the greatest values. Have a look around.

Proaim - Your Partner In Movie Making

 

[Teebin]

Trying to be artsy, I was shocked to see this ledge (left) tremble like it was a piece of styrofoam being held off to the side. Obviously an aberration of image stabilization but still. Wild. Anyone know if there is a name for the effect?

 

[BernardMesa]

Trying to be artsy, I was shocked to see this ledge (left) tremble like it was a piece of styrofoam being held off to the side. Obviously an aberration of image stabilization but still. Wild. Anyone know if there is a name for the effect?

You were free handing that (no tripod) right? And how zoomed in or close to that rock on the left were you? Movements from not holding the camera perfectly still are always going to be more noticeable with things in the foreground, and can be pretty exaggerated when zoomed in

 

[Teebin]

I was only 1 foot away from the ledge on the left and the camera was hand held. What is odd to me is that the distant area is stabilized while the ledge in the foreground was not, allowing one to actually see around the ledge as it wiggles. Perhaps I am making too much out of it.

 

[s8film40]

It is a very interesting effect. It has a very unreal look, almost like it’s superimposed over the video. I suspect it has to do with the drastic difference in movement between the foreground and background. Definitely an interesting find! Now to come up with a a creative use for it.

 

[Teebin]

Does anyone here own one of these gimbals? I would be cool hearing your thoughts. This is a well executed look at them.

 

[s8film40]

I have the Zhiyun Smooth 1. It works really well, the only issue is it seems to fight the stabilization built into the phone. I hardly ever use it, and actually was just recently thinking of trying to sell/trade it in for the Crane 2 so I can use it with my DSLR instead.

 

[Teebin]

Here is an example of someone over-saturating the color of their pictures in Lightroom or PS or similar programs. He has done this with the idea of selling them. They look like garish cartoons.

Joe's Guide to Acadia National Park - Canon Brook Trail, A. Murray Young Path, etc. Photos (1)

One example:

Terrible.

 

[s8film40]

I see this a lot in the area of photography I work in especially since HDR is a popular choice. I've actually always avoided HDR for that reason because it can very easily turn to that over processed look. The thing is when you're editing photos it's so easy to let things like this get away from you. You bump up the colors a bit and it looks great, your eyes adjust and you decide to go a little further and so on. Next thing you know you have a terrible photo that you think looks great. I've found the best thing to do is to always seek out second opinions.

 

[Teebin]

I agree that camera processed HDR can be iffy and I find that at times it renders a “muddy” looking image that requires level adjustments later on.