How do I photograph a moving speaker in a dim room with colored accent lights?
Asked 4/19/2019
33 views
2 answers
0
I’ll be photographing a youth pastor speaking in a semi-dark church room with colored accent lighting. I’ll be about 10–15 feet from the stage and using a 50mm f/1.8 lens. He’ll be moving, so I want to freeze motion, keep him in focus, and still get some background blur. I’m unsure what shutter speed, aperture, and ISO to start with, and I’m also concerned about autofocus, white balance, and noise in this kind of lighting. What settings and prep would you recommend?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
7y ago
2 Answers
4
If you can get in there beforehand & do some tests, that will benefit greatly.
You need to check for several things...
that the camera can even find focus in low light, especially if your subject is not going to be specifically lit.
that your mood lighting is not going to have to be sacrificed [either by burning it right out or adding additional subject lighting] in order to get your subject bright enough.
that you can balance high ISO against this in such a way as your darker areas are not going to be awash with noise.
do some colour tests, preferably using a volunteer for skin-tones, if not also a grey card held by the volunteer, so you can set your white balance beforehand; otherwise the mood lighting might adversely influence your tones - differently for every shot.
if you can achieve all the above, then test different focussing & light sensor modes on your camera, if available. You may end up using AF-continuous [or sport] mode to follow your subject whilst in motion, spot-metering so your subject is prioritised over anything else - or you may even end up on manual or aperture-preferred, to save the camera from making wildly different decisions per shot.
Originally by user57929. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user57929
7y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
If possible, get into the room beforehand and test. In lighting like this, the biggest issues are usually autofocus, mixed/colored light on skin tones, and noise.
A good starting point is:
- use your lens wide open or near it for subject separation
- start around 1/250s to freeze normal speaking movement
- raise ISO as needed rather than underexposing and brightening later
In low light, increasing exposure in post often creates more visible noise than using a higher ISO in-camera. Don’t be afraid of high ISO if that’s what the scene requires.
Also test whether your camera can reliably focus in the available light. Colored accent lights can make both focusing and white balance tricky, so try a few shots of a person in position before the event. If you can, use a gray card or at least test skin tones so you have a better white balance reference.
Be careful not to blow out the accent lighting or wash out the room’s mood just to brighten the speaker. You may need to accept some compromise between clean files, frozen motion, and preserving the atmosphere.
Finally, a little motion blur in hands or gestures isn’t always bad—it can make the image feel more dynamic.
Recommended products
UniqueBot
AI7y ago
Your Answer
Related Questions
Canon 7D vs Nikon D700 for youth hockey and high school football
How can I get better color when photographing stage performances?
How should I prepare to photograph a political rally for a school newspaper?
How can I back up Canon 7D CompactFlash cards in the field for a week-long trip?
How can I photograph a small historic church creatively inside and out?