Weekly Assignment: Experiment with ISO Speeds

[PWS-Staff]

It’s relatively easy to get a good exposure on a clear day when the sun is high and there is a lot of bright light to go around, but now that you know you can shoot in very dim light by raising your ISO speed, it’s time to experiment. For this assignment, try to think of some relatively (or very!) dim locations around your house or neighborhood — perhaps the interior of a church, Main Street after dark, or even a local carnival — and then crank up your ISO as far as it goes and see how creative you can get in dim light.

My assignment photo was shot at Mission San Xavier del Bac, a very old mission church (the current building was built between 1783 and 1797) just south of Tucson, Arizona. The interior of the church is very dim; the only light comes from a few incandescent lamps, a doorway, and a few small skylights. Taking pictures with a flash would destroy the atmosphere, and so the only solution was to raise my ISO up to 1600 (the highest setting on my Nikon D70s) and use the existing light. This photo of the Madonna (the religious one, not the rock star) was exposed for 1/20 second at f/4.2 using an 18-70mm Nikkor zoom lens. The camera was handheld, but I was using the back of a pew to steady my elbow and the camera. I would much prefer to use a tripod in this situation, but they’re not allowed.

From "Exposure, 2nd Ed.," by Jeff Wignall

[goldcoastgolfer]

I took this shot last night of a fire twirler at a birthday party my son was attending and to be honest, the shot itself is an accident.  I was avoiding using the flash so as not to distract the performer and my camera was an auto ISO which boosted itself up to its maximum.  It's the first time I had taken night time action shots and had been expecting a blur of lights  caused by the movement of fire on a completely black background.  Instead I snapped a very distinct form with what I think is some interesting light and relatively still fire stick.  Lesson learnt for me is sometimes I need to turn the ISO down - but I do like the way this photo came out.

Taken handheld with a Nikon D7000 with a Sigma 17-70mm lens:

Focal length: 70mm (105 in 35mm)
Exposure Time: 1/15
F Number: f/16
ISO: 6400
Exposure: +1/3
White Balance: Auto

[InspiringFotos]

That is a very good night time picture. You took this handheld, no tripod correct? I like the lighting that only the fire is lighting the person body. Most night time shots I take need a tripod otherwise I get blur from the night lights and not a clear shot.

[goldcoastgolfer]

Believe me when I say that this was 100% luck.  I'm still learning the nuances of my camera but yes, I'm afraid my old tripod was damaged by my eldest son and is probably too light weight for my new camera so I'm saving up at the moment.

The D7000 has fantastic low light capabilities and the vibration reduction systems built into today's lenses are just superb.  I've been amazed at how slow I can take some of these shots and still have them fairly sharp.

The subject was originally moving around a fair bit.  He just happened to pause momentarily when I took this shot.