Wannabe Photographer

[drizgirl]

For the Balloons my settings were ISO 500 F5.0 1/5.

Definitely a step in the right direction! Did you use the monopod? As someone else pointed out, that's really not stable enough for longer exposures like this. If I had my choice, I would prefer to see this shot done on a tripod with the aperture stopped down just a bit more. Most lenses have sort of a sweet spot where they are sharpest, maybe around f/8? I think this is a far better image. I agree the flames are overexposed but overall a much better shot. The one thing I noticed is that the focus seems just a bit soft, but maybe a smaller aperture would help with that. Or maybe using a tripod would help.

Also, even if you don't plan to buy an editing program right now, I would suggest shooting in RAW or RAW + Jpeg so you'll have the files to mess with later when you do get better software.

You asked about RoL. I think you have no choice there. You're going to have to shoot with the 1.8 at a fairly high ISO. Shooting movement in low light really requires a fast lens.

 

[Zipadeelady]

@fractal I have a Sony A6000 question.

I recorded my daughter singing on my camera. When I take out the SD card and put it in the computer it doesn't show up but it does when the SD card is in the camera. How do I transfer it to the computer?

 

[fractal]

@fractal I have a Sony A6000 question.

I recorded my daughter singing on my camera. When I take out the SD card and put it in the computer it doesn't show up but it does when the SD card is in the camera. How do I transfer it to the computer?

It's in there - somewhere.

The videos will not be in the same file as the photos. They will be in a different file, then sub-file.

 

[Zipadeelady]

It's in there - somewhere.

The videos will not be in the same file as the photos. They will be in a different file, then sub-file.

I panicked. There was a folder with many folders and I thought I checked them all but I must not have. Thanks Again!

*glad you got your bands!!!

 

[Zipadeelady]

10" F14 ISO 100 This one is my favorite of them all

30" F20 ISO 100

15" F14 ISO 100 I really like this one too but I can't seem to dim the light of the movie theatre

5" F14 iso 100

What can I do better @fractal @thomas998 or anyone else that has input.
I didn't play with my ISO at all. My biggest problem was getting the movie theatre in focus and not so bright. Any input is appreciated.
I also don't know how to properly explain my shutter speed so I'm not sure what the " stands for.

 

[fractal]

10" F14 ISO 100 This one is my favorite of them all
View attachment 223997 View attachment 223990
30" F20 ISO 100
View attachment 223991
15" F14 ISO 100 I really like this one too but I can't seem to dim the light of the movie theatre
View attachment 223992 View attachment 223993
5" F14 iso 100
View attachment 223994 What can I do better @fractal @thomas998 or anyone else that has input.
I didn't play with my ISO at all. My biggest problem was getting the movie theatre in focus and not so bright. Any input is appreciated.
I also don't know how to properly explain my shutter speed so I'm not sure what the " stands for.

Really great shots! You can "expose for" the theatre light like in the last shot. If you are shooting in Jpeg, turn on the HDR or DRO setting which will bring out the shadows a bit more. Normally, you are supposed to expose for the brightest object in your frame (commonly called "expose to the right" or ETTR which refers to your histogram) so as not to "blow out" your highlights. What I mean by "exposing to" is to make sure the brightest object in your frame is properly exposed (not over or under). The sensor in your camera is very capable, meaning that the parts of the frame that seems "dark" like the shadows will still contain a lot of information (especially in a RAW file) that can be drawn out when editing your photo. "Blown out" highlights however are harder to recover.

The " signifies "seconds". Did you use a tripod?

 

[Zipadeelady]

Really great shots! You can "expose for" the theatre light like in the last shot. If you are shooting in Jpeg, turn on the HDR or DRO setting which will bring out the shadows a bit more. Normally, you are supposed to expose for the brightest object in your frame (commonly called "expose to the right" or ETTR which refers to your histogram) so as not to "blow out" your highlights. What I mean by "exposing to" is to make sure the brightest object in your frame is properly exposed (not over or under). The sensor in your camera is very capable, meaning that the parts of the frame that seems "dark" like the shadows will still contain a lot of information (especially in a RAW file) that can be drawn out when editing your photo. "Blown out" highlights however are harder to recover.

The " signifies "seconds". Did you use a tripod?

Thanks for explaining. I'll try again to better shot!

I also did the "Fractal" and used garbage cans and a cement wall. I only have a mono pod at this time. Which I now realized is almost worthless because I know i wouldn't be able to hold it completely still.

 

[Jahona]

Thanks for explaining. I'll try again to better shot!

I also did the "Fractal" and used garbage cans and a cement wall. I only have a mono pod at this time. Which I now realized is almost worthless because I know i wouldn't be able to hold it completely still.

A mono pod is just fine for most situations to supplement a tripod. But when you're holding the shutter open for multiple seconds it's not as stable as a tripod.
Here is a good article with tips on how to hold a mono pod for better results.
http://www.photographymad.com/pages/view/how-to-hold-a-monopod

 

[wdwmagic]

It has been mentioned in this thread a few times, but for those difficult lighting situations, you will do yourself a huge favor by shooting in RAW and not JPG. Then get the image into Lightroom, and you can do a lot to improve many of the problems you listed - such as reducing highlights and boosting shadow detail.

RAW is much better in all scenarios, but especially in those difficult conditions.

 

[Zipadeelady]

A mono pod is just fine for most situations to supplement a tripod. But when you're holding the shutter open for multiple seconds it's not as stable as a tripod.
Here is a good article with tips on how to hold a mono pod for better results.
http://www.photographymad.com/pages/view/how-to-hold-a-monopod

Thank you for the link!!

It has been mentioned in this thread a few times, but for those difficult lighting situations, you will do yourself a huge favor by shooting in RAW and not JPG. Then get the image into Lightroom, and you can do a lot to improve many of the problems you listed - such as reducing highlights and boosting shadow detail.

RAW is much better in all scenarios, but especially in those difficult conditions.

I have to admit, I haven't even tried to shoot RAW. I'm still trying to figure things out. We'll be heading to Disney in a month so I guess I'd better start trying to figure out how to do that too.

 

[wdwmagic]

Thank you for the link!!


I have to admit, I haven't even tried to shoot RAW. I'm still trying to figure things out. We'll be heading to Disney in a month so I guess I'd better start trying to figure out how too.

RAW and Adobe Lightroom are your best photographic friends.

 

[Zipadeelady]

RAW and Adobe Lightroom are your best photographic friends.

I'll try to remember that.

 

[drizgirl]

I have to admit, I haven't even tried to shoot RAW. I'm still trying to figure things out. We'll be heading to Disney in a month so I guess I'd better start trying to figure out how to do that too.

You probably can set your camera to capture RAW + Jpeg. Do that for now. You'll have access to the Jpegs right away that you're used to working with. Later, when you get Lightroom (which you WILL want) you'll wish you had those RAW images. RAW format captures a lot more information and gives you great latitude to make adjustments after the fact. I've been working with some old Jpegs lately and the difference in what you can (and can't) do is amazing.

 

[Zipadeelady]

You probably can set your camera to capture RAW + Jpeg. Do that for now. You'll have access to the Jpegs right away that you're used to working with. Later, when you get Lightroom (which you WILL want) you'll wish you had those RAW images. RAW format captures a lot more information and gives you great latitude to make adjustments after the fact. I've been working with some old Jpegs lately and the difference in what you can (and can't) do is amazing.

You have me all excited. I can't wait to get home and look at my settings after work. I know it has been mentioned in the past but I honestly forgot all about it with everything being so new, I feel like it's taking awhile to understand it all. You explained it very well. Thanks

 

[WallyWorld]

Been watching this thread and loving it. It inspired me to leave Canon and buy an a6000. So glad I did....having a great time. Thanks to all who have taken the time to share.

I have/used Lightroom previously and found a similar product (for FREE) that does much of the same (I never went too deep into LR but LOVED the results) Cature One 10 (for Sony).....the express version is free, or, after a month, pro is $50. Really liked LR but it was expensive and moving towards monthly subscription pricing versus simple purchase.

 

[Zipadeelady]

Been watching this thread and loving it. It inspired me to leave Canon and buy an a6000. So glad I did....having a great time. Thanks to all who have taken the time to share.

I have/used Lightroom previously and found a similar product (for FREE) that does much of the same (I never went too deep into LR but LOVED the results) Cature One 10 (for Sony).....the express version is free, or, after a month, pro is $50. Really liked LR but it was expensive and moving towards monthly subscription pricing versus simple purchase.

I'm so glad this thread helped you also. I got the A6000 with no previous experience and still have a long ways to go. I have been shooting in raw & Jpeg as others have suggested but I haven't gone to LR. Someone told me about paint.net but I was clueless when I hopped on and tried to figure it out.

 

[Jahona]

I have/used Lightroom previously and found a similar product (for FREE) that does much of the same (I never went too deep into LR but LOVED the results) Cature One 10 (for Sony).....the express version is free, or, after a month, pro is $50. Really liked LR but it was expensive and moving towards monthly subscription pricing versus simple purchase.

I use capture one at work for all of the medium format raw files we get. It's $300 if you aren't purchasing with the Sony discount. It's a great program to handle and process raw files. Lightroom has a few more features and bundled with photoshop is where the value is at. If you get into a lot of retouching then there's nothing you can't really do with the Lightroom photoshop bundle.

 

[WallyWorld]

They make it a little confusing.....

https://www.phaseone.com/en/Download-Sony.aspx

The express just for Sony is free....you get Pro for 30 days, and if you don't upgrade to Pro (for Sony...$50) it stays express and free.

The multiple camera version is $300....as I understand it. Trust me, I got caught up in this thread and having been having a great time learning. One of the greatest thing about the a6000 (and all Sony mirrorless) is, due to the popularity, there are a LOT of youtube videos on any subject to help.

Still learning....but I am trying the Capture One for free.....I really never used the "heavy duty" LR stuff and from what I did use, I found in Capture one for Sony

 

[thomas998]

I'm so glad this thread helped you also. I got the A6000 with no previous experience and still have a long ways to go. I have been shooting in raw & Jpeg as others have suggested but I haven't gone to LR. Someone told me about paint.net but I was clueless when I hopped on and tried to figure it out.

I'm assuming your using the kit lens with the a6000... If that is what you used on the photos of the theater I would suggest you bump the ISO up you should be able to do very well on the a6000 until about 1600.... You can also open your lens a bit F14 for a night shot is a bit extreme in that scene... I would suggest a higher ISO and lower F stop will let you get away from the mutli-second shots which will almost always suffer from some vibration induced blur or even if you mount your camera to a mythical immovable object will have blur in the leaves and other things in the shot that the wind will just naturally move.

But as another has set shoot raw.... With the Sony you have capture one so start using it. In your theater shots I would have purposefully under exposed the shot so I didn't lose the detail in the lights and then use capture one to boost the exposure... then using the color editor you can adjust the brightness and saturation of the bright bits of the sign so they don't overpower things.... but start playing with RAW files and the capture one and you'll soon find that the camera can do a lot of things you never thought it could so long as your willing to spend a little time tweaking the results.

 

[Zipadeelady]

I'm assuming your using the kit lens with the a6000... If that is what you used on the photos of the theater I would suggest you bump the ISO up you should be able to do very well on the a6000 until about 1600.... You can also open your lens a bit F14 for a night shot is a bit extreme in that scene... I would suggest a higher ISO and lower F stop will let you get away from the mutli-second shots which will almost always suffer from some vibration induced blur or even if you mount your camera to a mythical immovable object will have blur in the leaves and other things in the shot that the wind will just naturally move.

But as another has set shoot raw.... With the Sony you have capture one so start using it. In your theater shots I would have purposefully under exposed the shot so I didn't lose the detail in the lights and then use capture one to boost the exposure... then using the color editor you can adjust the brightness and saturation of the bright bits of the sign so they don't overpower things.... but start playing with RAW files and the capture one and you'll soon find that the camera can do a lot of things you never thought it could so long as your willing to spend a little time tweaking the results.

Thank You for this! I found your opinion very helpful here. I never thought about the vibration when doing mutli shots. And to be honest I've been afraid to up my ISO and i think it's affected some of my shots. I will definitely play with capture one soon. I haven't done as much as I would like with my camera, my excuse is August through October is so busy in our family so I'm looking forward to this winter so I can do more with it.

I do have a question maybe you can answer. (I don't have my camera with me so I can't verify and I keep forgetting to look) I'm pretty sure I was shooting in JPEG & RAW during my Disney vacation but when I put my SD card in the computer and pull up a pic it says ARW. Is it raw? I don't know what ARW could mean.