Need help with theatre photography

[t0lillie]

I am a high school teacher. Recently I was asked to photgraphy various school events, held in our auditorium, for the yearbook. I have a difficult time with the lighting. My photos are blurry, because of the shutter speed/camera shake. There is not a place for me to set up a tripod. I also have problems with shadows from the stage lighting. Recently I photographed our senior awards program and the tassels swinging from the caps blurred the shots. Can anyone help me with this lighting situation?

[Chip]

Welcome! Would you mind telling us what camera you're using? And if you're using an SLR, what lens (or lenses) do you use?

Knowing this info can help give some more targeted advice.

Thanks.

[Phantom2k4]

Maybe a monopod would be more reasonable than a tripod? They take up much less area than a tri.

Besides that a low aperture lens, with VR would also help.

[inkista]

Chances are good you need a lens with a wider max. aperture than you've got. I'd suggest getting a 50 1.8 if you're budget-strapped, a 85 f/1.8 if you're not, or a 135 f/2 if you just won the lottery.

[Chip]

Basically, the things to do are (1) get the shutter fast enough so that you can "freeze" a moving subject and (2) keep the camera still enough so that you have no camera shake causing a blurred photo.

Getting the shutter fast enough (if possible) depends on your camera - dSLR or point and shoot?

Keeping the camera stable can be done by a monopod/tripod or by some type of vibration reduction in the body or lens (but likely not both at the same time). Good camera holding technique can also work wonders.

If you let us know more about your gear, we can hopefully give some more specific advice.

[t0lillie]

Thank you for the advice. Currently this is what I have been using for equipment:
Sony Alpha 700 DSLR with a AF 70-210 lens (Minolta).

[Chip]

Thanks for the gear info.

I understand that the body of your camera has stabilization built in, which is good. That should help reduce camera shake.

To avoid the blurred tassel issue, though, you'll need a faster shutter speed. I suggest putting the camera in aperture mode and shooting as "wide open" - that is, with as low an f# - as possible. So, if you lowest F# is 4.5, set your aperture at that #. The lower the f#, the wider the aperture, and more light gets through to the sensor.

Also, I suggest bumping up the ISO to 1600 or higher if needed. 1600 is just a guess - you can go higher or lower as needed. A higher ISO makes the sensor more sensitive to light,.

With a lower f# and higher ISO, more light will be getting to the sensor. This will let you balance the exposure by setting a faster shutter speed. And a faster shutter will help stop moving subjects from being blurred.

As inkista said, getting a faster lens - one with a lower f# than your Minolta - will help quite a bit, too. But a new lens will cost you, and I don't know if that's a possibility or not.

This is a very broad-brushed explanation of what happens with exposure, and I left quite a few things out. But it might be enough to help. If not, please keep asking.

There are also some helpful tutorials on the DPS blog (click up at the top of any page to get there).

Good luck.

[t0lillie]

Thank you so much for all the good advice.