drivebyshooter
04-09-2007, 09:22 AM
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/driver_ng_bayan/266944200/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/119/266944200_101c4fb471.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="imaginary friend" /></a>
I took this in August 2006 at a small party at my friend's place. I used a Canon 350d with the kit lens. Prior to this shot, I was trying to shoot with (very little) available light - so my ISO was maxed out at 1600.
Eventually, I gave up and decided to try playing with my flashlight instead. The idea of drawing a stick figure in the air popped in my head. I set the camera on a chair, pressed the shutter release, and started drawing.
My settings?
Tv @ 20 seconds: I needed time to draw the stick figure. I decided to just let the camera decide on the aperture.
ISO 1600: my camera was having trouble focusing in the dark, so I wanted to aperture to be as small as possible. This way, I could set the the timer and not worry about focus.
2nd curtain sync: I wanted to be seen in the shot - I just waited in the frame until the flash popped.
timer: This was a self-portrait, after all.
I tried again after setting the camera to manual mode and stopping down the aperture and ISO a few notches. The thing is, I couldn't get the figure right after that. I ended up keeping only this first shot.
As for post, all I did was crop the sides away in PS.
I want to try a similar shot soon with props, a cleaner (or darker) background, off-camera flash, and an actual tripod.
What do you think?
I took this in August 2006 at a small party at my friend's place. I used a Canon 350d with the kit lens. Prior to this shot, I was trying to shoot with (very little) available light - so my ISO was maxed out at 1600.
Eventually, I gave up and decided to try playing with my flashlight instead. The idea of drawing a stick figure in the air popped in my head. I set the camera on a chair, pressed the shutter release, and started drawing.
My settings?
Tv @ 20 seconds: I needed time to draw the stick figure. I decided to just let the camera decide on the aperture.
ISO 1600: my camera was having trouble focusing in the dark, so I wanted to aperture to be as small as possible. This way, I could set the the timer and not worry about focus.
2nd curtain sync: I wanted to be seen in the shot - I just waited in the frame until the flash popped.
timer: This was a self-portrait, after all.
I tried again after setting the camera to manual mode and stopping down the aperture and ISO a few notches. The thing is, I couldn't get the figure right after that. I ended up keeping only this first shot.
As for post, all I did was crop the sides away in PS.
I want to try a similar shot soon with props, a cleaner (or darker) background, off-camera flash, and an actual tripod.
What do you think?