As I mentioned in my post last week about my reception lighting techniques, I had one more tip I wanted to share on that subject. Though, I’ve kind of already alluded to it my post about back button focusing.
If you’ve ever taken photos in a dark room and struggled to get your lens to focus properly (using autofocus, of course), then you know just how frustrating it can be. There’s nothing like watching the perfect moment slip away as your lens painstakingly tries to focus on your subject. Or worse, you set yourself up for the best angle to get “the shot,” and as you press your shutter (or back button) to focus, the focus goes crazy and you end up with a nicely composed photo of blurry blobs. I feel your pain. I’ve been there.
So instead of fighting with my camera to focus, this is what I do when it’s just too dark for my lens. First, I set my aperture to f/4 or something close to that and I find a light or something that my lens can lock on, and I stand about 4-5 feet away (closer or farther, depending on how near I expect to be by my subject). I lock my focus on the object by using the back button, and viola–I’ve got my focus. Then I head out to the dance floor, hold my camera above my head, and fire away. I periodically reset my focus throughout the night, just depending on how far away I’m working from my subject. And if there’s plenty of light to where focus isn’t an issue, then I just shoot as I normally do.
Here’s some photos to show you what I get:
This technique also works well for cake cutting shots and such.
by mary
mary - Sorry for my poor explanation! Basically I lock my focal length and proceed to take many photos without changing it. Because the aperture is f/4 or higher (number, that is), the depth of field isn’t too narrow, so my focal length doesn’t have to be exact.
Becca - I dont get it at all, but im totally impressed 🙂
Laura - Mary – I just wanted to “thanks” and I’ve LOVED all of your photography tips. In fact, some of them I’m saving for a night to just sit down and practice on my camera. So, thanks for taking the time to share your wisdom. I appreciate it!