Party photos (1 Viewer)

[F. Fred Palakon]

I am a pretty crap photographer with occasional access to a digital SLR (a Canon 350D). I would like to use this digital SLR to take photos of my friends and drinking buddies on evenings out. I would like these photos to be crisp, clear, and saturated.

Examples of the type of thing I'm going for is like whatever you'd see on cobrasnake or lastnightsparty or whatever. A great example on Flickr is this chap: http://www.flickr.com/photos/scottloudoun/

Despite trying to copy yer man's settings (thanks Flickr!) what I end up with is photos that are too dark, or have washed out flash faces.

Assuming I'm using the automatic flash, how far should the camera be from the subject ideally? Does the Canon 350D have different types of flash and if so which one should I be using? (I don't understand the manual)

I'm guessing the guy above has an external flash, no? Is it impossible to take this type of photo without becoming Annoying Flash Guy?

 

[taubstumm]

I am a pretty crap photographer with occasional access to a digital SLR (a Canon 350D). I would like to use this digital SLR to take photos of my friends and drinking buddies on evenings out. I would like these photos to be crisp, clear, and saturated.

Examples of the type of thing I'm going for is like whatever you'd see on cobrasnake or lastnightsparty or whatever. A great example on Flickr is this chap: http://www.flickr.com/photos/scottloudoun/

Despite trying to copy yer man's settings (thanks Flickr!) what I end up with is photos that are too dark, or have washed out flash faces.

Assuming I'm using the automatic flash, how far should the camera be from the subject ideally? Does the Canon 350D have different types of flash and if so which one should I be using? (I don't understand the manual)

I'm guessing the guy above has an external flash, no? Is it impossible to take this type of photo without becoming Annoying Flash Guy?

using flash = years learning techniques and zillions buying gear. that said, the results can be great, like what you linked to.

might be better, though, to start by not using flash, and just figuring out the physics of light a little bit. for example, take the camera with you on a night out, take a load of shots, see which ones come out well, and try to remember what light sources the good ones had. then, in future, be ready to pounce with the camera when those sorts of light sources present themselves.

for example, pubs are generally dark, but some nice pubs have lamps, which create pools of light. so you can probably take good pics in that light, you just have to spend all night waiting for the photo opportunity to present itself, which can be tedious.

or... buy a load of flash gear and become ms. flashy flash. rule of thumb - flash coming from the same source as the camera (like your average camera-mounted flash) looks shite, unless you really know what you're doing. but do you really want to be buying radio flash gizmos for these kind of photos?

 

[Goff]

Don't use the on-camera flash if you can help it. Instead, whack up the ISO to 1600 and use a lower aperture, like f/3.5. Won't be perfect and there will certainly be noise (like grain) on the pictures, but you can fix this later or just leave it cos it can look good.

If you have access to a real flash unit, then point it at the ceiling (the flash, not the camera) so you bounce the light which will give you pictures better than the ones on your man's page.

And, if you can, take a picture of something that is white and use this as your white balance setting. It'll make a huge difference.

 

[F. Fred Palakon]

Thanks dudes. I will give it a go sans flash and try to use available light sources and see how I go. Is dodgy white balance what's making my non-flash photos all orange?

 

[Goff]

Thanks dudes. I will give it a go sans flash and try to use available light sources and see how I go. Is dodgy white balance what's making my non-flash photos all orange?

More or less. That'd be the tungsten light. You can choose the tungsten setting, which will be better than auto white balance. But it's better to get a reading in the ambient light and use that. Take the pics in RAW format and you can change the white balance later using the software that comes with the Canons or any other RAW converter. Adobe Camera RAW is my weapon of choice for that sort of mallarky.

If you use a white piece of paper to get your white balance reading, you can also use that same piece of paper as an impromptu reflector to reflect more light onto people's faces.

Learning how to use a flash isn't that hard, to be honest. And, for starters, if you do use the built-in flash, try putting a bit of tissue paper over it to diffuse the light and see how you get on. Seriously.

 

[F. Fred Palakon]

Learning how to use a flash isn't that hard, to be honest.

It's beyond me at this stage I think! I was taking photos of my 8-month old niece last night and they came out like baby mugshots. One of the blogs I was reading recommended shooting only in auto for the first few months with an SLR until you learn to handle the camera and frame things properly and all. What I want to have photos of doesn't lend itself to auto at all, which means I am messing with camera science far beyond my capacity.

 

[Goff]

Use the P (Program mode) rather than auto. That way, you can choose when you want to use the flash or not, as opposed to auto choosing for you.

I'd always recommend P mode for complete beginners, or else just diving in and going full manual as THAT's the way you'll learn how to use the camera. And it's so easy to do on a Canon.

Have you tried the tissue thing with the flash? And remember, you can reduce the output of the flash as well so it'll act as a fill-in light rather than full-on flash. If you don't actually have the camera manual, download it from: http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/mg.maestro/canon350d/350D-PDF-Manual.pdf or here, if the other one isn't working, although it is at the moment.

(You have to buy the manual in the UK and Ireland if you lost it. But there ye go).

Check out the FE Lock bit and, more importantly, the Flash Exposure Compensation bit to find out how to reduce the strength of the flash. Just mess around with it and take loads of shots till you feel a bit more comfortable with it. It'll eventually click and you'll have better shots as a result. Flash Exposure compensation is great for taking well-exposed and lit portraits when you're in harsh sunlight. It'll give a bit of light to the face when it would normally be in shadow. But you can mess around with it using trial and error to give you a non mugshot feel.

If you want to try full flash, try not to get too close. Use the zoom on the lens and stand back a bit.

I know this is all a bit of a "rough and ready" guide, but it'll help you get a feel for it before you decide to delve further.