How to Shoot Professional Images in Low Light

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Low light…it can be a photographer’s nightmare. But here are some basic techniques that I use daily to overcome this obstacle. Some of this may sound mundane, but I am surprised constantly by how many photographers do not understand these basic principles.

First, let’s talk about lenses.

For those of you who do not already know this, we refer to lenses in terms of how “fast” they are. This is kind of a misnomer, but what it really means is his: how big is the aperture? The larger the aperture, the more speed you can get out of the camera…hence…how fast it is. The absolute minimum aperture for exposing images in low light should be f2.8. If you have a lens that has a smaller aperture opening than this, your ability to capture sharp images will be drastically reduced.

Most “kit lenses” are f3.5 to f5.6, and most of them lose aperture as you zoom in (the closer you zoom, the smaller the aperture becomes). This can spell certain doom in low light. So the first, and most important tip is to invest in quality lenses. Invest in lenses that are f2.8 or faster…f1.8 or 1.4 is even more preferred.

Second, let’s talk about film speed (ASA) or CCD speed (ISO).

In a nutshell, the larger the ASA or ISO 3, the “faster” that medium is at exposure. This becomes very important in low light situations. The downside is that the higher the speed, the more “noise” one can expect. As a rule of thumb, I typically use ASA/ISO 200 for sunny days outside, ASA/ISO 400 for indoors with good lighting, ASA/ISO 640 for indoors with medium light, and ASA/ISO 800 for indoors with low light conditions. I have found that anything higher than a speed of 800 produces too much noise for what I do.

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Third, let’s talk about Shutter Speed.

In low light conditions, even with a professional flash mounted, I have found that anything slower than 1/30 produces blurry images. Human movement in that time frame (both the camera operator and the subject) is just enough that the image will be blurry at 1/20, so I try to never step below 1/30. The only exceptions are when I mount the camera on a tripod and I am shooting a stationary object, not humans, unless you are trying deliberately to capture their movement, but that’s another discussion.

Fourth, let;s talk about Flash.

Rules of thumb for flash photography in low light conditions. If the ceiling of the room is low and light in color, I set the flash to TTL (through the lens), point the flash head at the ceiling and I use the diffuser. This “bounces” the light around the room and produces a really nice effect for evenly distributed lighting. In rooms where the ceiling is low, and a darker color, I do the same thing, but remove the diffuser.

In high ceiling, lightly colored rooms, I set the flash to it’s full power manual setting, point the flash head at the ceiling, and use the diffuser. The down side of this is that it will take longer to recharge the flash unit, but the payoff exceeds that I think. In the same room with darker colors, I use the manual flash, point the flash at the subject, and if the subject is close, I use the diffuser…if the subject is more than about 10 feet away, I remove it.

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Now let’s put that all together.

In low light situations, we want our lens open to it’s “fastest” aperture…preferably f2.8 or faster. The reason for this may surprise you, but, the main reason is that so you can expose the background correctly. Did you hear that? It’s right…the background.

Why do we want to do that you ask? I’ll tell you why. Anyone can get a picture of a person in a dark environment with the background completely black. That takes no skill at all. But show me the photographer that can light up the background in a dark room, and expose the subject correctly, and that is the professional.

Next, we want to make sure that we are using the right film speed (ASA 800) or CCD speed (ISO 800). Lastly, we want to make sure that our shutter is set to the right speed (1/30). Anything slower will blur. Use the flash as described above, and you will be on your way to taking better images in low light conditions. Of course these tips are not set in stone, but they do offer us a starting point that should help the user make progress. And as always, practice makes perfect!

About the author: Lee Randall Stewart is a professional wedding photographer with offices in Newport Beach, CA and Honolulu, HI. His work has been seen all over the world in numerous wedding photography editorials and magazines, and he remains one of the industry’s leading professionals. To see his Newport Beach based website, please visit http://LeeRandallStewart.com and to see his Honolulu based website, please go to http://HawaiiPhotoStudio.com