Please Advise... Best Manual/Semi Manual Settings for Hand Held Stage Photography

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Snakedance

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I could do with some help to decide on the ideal settings for taking pictures of people being interviewed on stage. I am using a Canon 40D with a 17-85 lens.

The stage is usually slightly dark but the people have a good amount of light on them allowing for the viewers to see them clearly.

I would usually be a few metres away from them taking hand held pictures using my Canon 40D.

So far I've been using the P mode which allows me some flexibility. However sometimes pictures end up a little blurry. I am assuming that this is because the stage is slightly dark and as a result the camera is taking to long to take the photo as a result after I press the button.

What I want to know is what would be the ideal settings for hand held photography in this kind of situation so that photographs come out well exposed with no blurs and with very little noise (ideally none).

Thanks :)
 
Well, there's no such thing as the ideal settings really, especially without actually being there and seeing what the light is like. I've no experience of your camera or lens, but you're probably going to want the aperture as wide as it will go (f4 - 5.6 is it?). This will get you the faster shutter speeds needed to kill the blur.

Saying that, that lens isn't all that fast in the grand scheme of things (if I've got the max apertures correct) and even wide open you may well need to ramp up the ISO to get the shutter speeds you need. Though it's hard to say without being there. The 40d from what I've seen is pretty good at controlling noise, so don't be scared to use the higher ISOs. You'll probably get less noise if you expose correctly at a high ISO than if you underexpose and try to drag it up in pp.

If you are getting in close to your subjects, be careful of using the wide end of the lens, as you may get some very unflattering distortion. :)

I'd probably use full manual as the lights will most likely stay pretty constant, and just take a reading off someone's face at the get go.

HTH
Jamie.
 
If the light isn't great f/2.8 or faster is really needed to keep the shutter speeds fast enough to stop blur from the subject moving. I tend to shoot manual unless the lights are changing a lot. In smaller but reasonably lit venues typically I get around 1/125s @ f/2.8 ISO 800. In darker venues it might go as low as 1/100s @ f/2 ISO 1600. Last week I had great light in a small venue at shot 1/250s @ f/2.5 ISO 800.

Take a spot reading from someone's face, check the histrogram and adjust. Then stick with those settings unless the light changes or the subject is moving in and out of different lights. ISO 800 on the 40D has little noise and ISO1600 can easily be controlled as long as you make sure you don't under expose at all - if anything err towards 1/3 of a stop over and rescue in post if need be.

Another tip with the 40D is to set the focus point selection on the thumbstick then you can quickly switch between points so you always have the one closest to the subject's eye being used.
 
Are you dead set on the 17-85, or could you use (buy, beg, borrow, steal if necessary) a fast prime like the nifty fifty? Even the 85 f1.2L if you're feeling flush :p
 
I have done a few gig shots, and the best lens would be the nifty 50mm from canon, however I have bought a sigma 28-70 f2.8 all round which works well, however i usually combine it with a remote flash gun on the stage. with a light spher on it.

Mike
 
dj_myk said:
however i usually combine it with a remote flash gun on the stage. with a light spher on it.
Click to expand...

:eek: I wouldn't use any flash with stage photography

1) It spoils the lighting effects created by the lighting designer - they get very cross about that sometimes.

2) It can distract the performers and annoy the audience - even if you are shooting a dress rehearsal actors can be a funny bunch.

I'd up the ISO to at least 800, (possibly higher - live with the noise or use noise reduction software) and ensure your shutter speed is 1/60 or higher, if there is movement on stage the higher you'll need. Pxl8's idea of Spot or Partial metering on people's faces is a good tip to esure the faces are correctly exposed, the key part of the photo.
 
Thanks for all the replies, much appreciated. I've taken the advice on board and I'll see how it goes.

The last time I did stage many of the photos came out reasonable. They weren't perfect but with a bit oof tweaking in Lightroom they were acceptable. A few did come out slightly blurred because the shutter took a little longer though.

In many ways I'm still much of a beginner when it comes to the creative side of manual settings so I'm not entirely comfortable with them yet. However I'm trying to get my head around them as soon as I can.

As far as lenses go, I have three but only have one with an Image Stabalizer, the Canon 17-85, which for the most part works very well for my needs. I have thought about getting another lens with IS that goes beyond the 85 but my wallet can't afford that right now. Perhaps later in the year!
 
SimonTALM said:
I'd up the ISO to at least 800, (possibly higher - live with the noise or use noise reduction software) and ensure your shutter speed is 1/60 or higher,
Click to expand...


Some DSLRs allow for ISO speeds that come between 400 and 800. Are they worth considering? Any advantages? Are there any drawbacks to using them?
 
Snakedance said:
Some DSLRs allow for ISO speeds that come between 400 and 800. Are they worth considering? Any advantages? Are there any drawbacks to using them?
Click to expand...

Snakedance you can do that with your 40d to an extent, in fact with any digital slr, it's called exposure compensation. What you personally need to do is go off and really learn what your camera is capable of and what each of the controls actually does. No amount of money thrown at it will make up for lack of understanding.
 
That said, from your first post you mention using the 17-85, it's not really the ideal lens for that situation even with the IS. If you want to spend some money, get yourself a 50mm f1.8(or f1.4 if you're flush) many members here use a nifty fifty for shooting concerts and stage performances because it allows for much faster shutter speeds.
 
I do the photography for a local amateur dramatics group. This is the only photo I have online at the moment as I had a clearout last night but I hope this gives you some help. TBH I'd shoot in manual now rather than aperture priority...

These were the settings I used for the picture below
Camera Make: Canon
Camera Model: Canon EOS 350D DIGITAL
Image Date: 2007:11:11 22:21:52
Flash Used: No
Focal Length: 24.0mm
CCD Width: 5.14mm
Exposure Time: 0.017 s (1/60)
Aperture: f/3.2
ISO equiv: 400
Exposure Bias: -0.67
White Balance: Auto
Metering Mode: Matrix
Exposure: aperture priority (semi-auto)


20080127190016_night%20must%20fall.jpg
 
As stage lighting can have bright spot lit areas against very deep shadows I would suggest you use partial/spot metering as even the best evaluative metering systems could fall down here.
Secondly if you can’t use a tripod could you use a monopod?
 
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