What lens to use on my T3 for the darker rides?

mousehockey37

mousehockey37

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I've got the lenses for outside, now I'm looking for the ones that will work for me inside.

I've got a Canon T3 and I'm looking for something that's going to get me great pictures on rides like the Haunted Mansion and Pirates where it's mainly pretty dark.

I was looking at a 40mm pancake, but I'm not sure, so I figured I'd ask here and see what you guys/gals have to say!
 
ddbowdoin

ddbowdoin

Well-Known Member
Canon 50 f1.2

It's not going to happen, maybe on some scenes in Pirates with say a 1.4 but remember wide open means shallow DOF and a smaller focus area. That's a bad combination when pairing it up with the ISO abilities of a cropped sensor.
 
NowInc

NowInc

Well-Known Member
Not IMPOSSIBLE, but also not easy. Pump up your ISO to something like 3200 (but expect noise). Fast glass will help, but as said above...you'll be dealing with soft focus. You'll take 100 shots and end up with maybe 5 that arent blurry. Crop sensors don't yield nicely to such dark rides (mansion and pirates are the hardest).
 
T

thomas998

Well-Known Member
ddbowdoin said:
Canon 50 f1.2

It's not going to happen, maybe on some scenes in Pirates with say a 1.4 but remember wide open means shallow DOF and a smaller focus area. That's a bad combination when pairing it up with the ISO abilities of a cropped sensor.
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Spot on. I took a 1.2 lens thinking that I would finally get some decent shots, but the DOF was my undoing. I think out of maybe 100 shots I might have had 2 or 3 keepers... thank god it was a chip and not film.

Although I continue to experiment trying to get a decent shot on a dark ride, I've pretty much accepted that it isn't going to happen unless I speed a ton of money and then I would have to ask myself, was it worth it... something you might consider asking your self... why are you trying to get a photo on a dark ride? Will it change anything in your life, if not then I would suggest not even focusing on trying to get the ultimate dark ride photo... it is a bit like chasing Moby Dick.
 
ddbowdoin

ddbowdoin

Well-Known Member
thomas998 said:
Spot on. I took a 1.2 lens thinking that I would finally get some decent shots, but the DOF was my undoing. I think out of maybe 100 shots I might have had 2 or 3 keepers... thank god it was a chip and not film.

Although I continue to experiment trying to get a decent shot on a dark ride, I've pretty much accepted that it isn't going to happen unless I speed a ton of money and then I would have to ask myself, was it worth it... something you might consider asking your self... why are you trying to get a photo on a dark ride? Will it change anything in your life, if not then I would suggest not even focusing on trying to get the ultimate dark ride photo... it is a bit like chasing Moby Dick.
Click to expand...
Well said! People don't realize that stopping down equates sharpness. You can't always shoot wide open.
 
PhotoDave219

PhotoDave219

Well-Known Member
mousehockey37 said:
I've got the lenses for outside, now I'm looking for the ones that will work for me inside.

I've got a Canon T3 and I'm looking for something that's going to get me great pictures on rides like the Haunted Mansion and Pirates where it's mainly pretty dark.

I was looking at a 40mm pancake, but I'm not sure, so I figured I'd ask here and see what you guys/gals have to say!
Click to expand...

Anything that is f/1.8 or faster mixed with a high ISO
 
T

thomas998

Well-Known Member
ddbowdoin said:
I agree but the difference between 2.8 and 1.4 (1.2) can mean one eye tack sharp and the other off. It's crazy
Click to expand...

Yep... you can't really use a 1.2 wide open for a portrait shot because you can never get the person's entire face to be sharp... straight on you can make the eye sharp but the nose or ears will be fuzzed the DOF is much more shallow than most people expect it to be.
 

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