Toronto Photography Meetup Group

http://charityball.ca/gallery/

I've recently started to take my photography to the next level and learn to shoot some events. I am signed up to help shoot an event (charity ball) in a few weeks and was looking for advice. I wanted to know how one obtains pictures that are in the link I have provided at the top of this post.

Whenever I shoot events like these, I tend to shoot manual at f8, and 1/20 sec with an external flash. That results in a clear lit up image of the subject but however, leaves the background dark. If I increase the shutter length, even with the flash, the main subjects will become blurred around the edges.

How do I achieve crisp photos while maintaining a lighter background showcasing the event. Would I need to experiment with larger apertures?

thanks

Off camera flash, faster aperture.

I dont think he or she is dragging the shutter a lot since the background subjects are not distorted or extremely blurry.

f8 is way too slow for the background of a dance floor. Why not shoot wide open at 2.8 or 1.4? Adjust flash power accordingly.

Thanks Chopper, I guess I'll have to invest in a fast zoom then. I wont have the extra funds to purchase an off camera flash as I would rather spend the money getting a faster lens.

You can just use your existing flash and use a flash cord or flash trigger to get the flash off axis.
I'll bet your lens right now probably goes down to f3.5 at least. Try experimenting with that if you cant afford a new lens yet.

Otherwise, the 50mm prime 1.8 is only like $130 bux.

and higher ISO too will compensate for the extra speed a bit too.

I have the 50 prime 1.8, so I'll pull it out and play around with it. Unfortunately I'm shooting on a crop so I find it difficult sometimes to ensure everyone is in frame with the space I have behind me because the lens becomes 85mm.

In terms of getting an off axis flash. How abouts should I go positioning the flash on the subject, should I direct the flash above, below, to one side. I have never shot using an off axis flash before.

Thanks

Look at the sample photos you linked. Higher and off to the side, according to the shadows. I usually just hold it just above my head and off to my left side in my left hand while i shoot with my right hand.

Yeah, 50mm x crop factor sucks for party shooting.

Thanks for the help

Don't forget you can always rent a fast wide prime for the event as well.

I normally shoot in manual mode with the off camera flash in E-TTL or M mode and usually get good results. Depending on ambient lighting, I'll shoot in the f2.8-f4 range, ISO around 800 to 1600 and control the ambient/background light exposure via shutter speed and/or ISO. 1/20 is pretty slow and prone to motion blur esp trying to keep intoxicated people to stay still. I'll normally try and keep 1/60 for the slowest but conditions change and that's when you really need to know the capabilities of your gear. Good luck.