Nightclub / Event Photography Hobby

BIGPAWS

Been trying to get proper pics, but i am struggling.Are there any links online where i could get some pointers. I just cant get the shutter speed, apperture and iso correct manual mode.
Canon 7d . i have a nifty 50 and a relative gave me a 24-70mm. I am just a beginner / hobbiest , i know i have not nailed the basics yet.Is it worth doing a course or just keep going trying to learn from my mistakes.
Thank you for your time.

toe_knee

I presume your using a flash. Post a sample so we can see

Myksyk

Use some sort of decent bounced/diffused flash. Use in ettl if on camera. Good starting place for camera settings for indoors is manual mode, ap 2.8 - 4.0, shutter 40-80, Iso 800. Adjust as needed from there. Changing any one setting means balancing the change by adjusting at least one more. For example if you need a greater depth of field for a group and shift to say f/8 you'll need to up your iso accordingly. Each room is different but a few practice shots will allow you tweak quickly so you're in the right ballpark. Don't be afraid to adjust your flash power either using your flash compensation. The adjustments you make depend quite a lot on the kind of result you want and the room you're in.

Paulw

Learn from your mistakes. Trial and error. You will probably need a high ISO for indoor dark stuff. ISO 1600 or so. Then a fairly open aperture (f/2.8). Then see what the best shutter speed you can get.

Try using aperture priority and learn how the camera sees things, and then move from there to manual.

Splinters

The trick with event/club photography is not trying to expose your subject and background with ambient light. Use a flash instead. Leave your shutter open to 1/4 or 1/2 or even a full second (just an example, actual settings depends on the ambient light you're working with). That'll give you a nice hazy motion filled background. The have a flash with a quick flash duration and set your camera to rear curtain sync. The means during the 1/2 second shutter time your camera is allowing in light for the ambient exposure and then just before the shutter closes the flash will go off and light whoever the subject of your shot is.

That way you dont have to put your ISO up to silly levels and will capture an image that has movement and atmosphere.

ScottScott

I have the same problems. Sometimes the light change too quickly and I can't keep up with it.
For a beginner like me, using the sports mode of my Nikon d3300 it's a good idea?

frozenfrozen

the following advice is from a not very good night club photographer who did it completely out of necessity before hiring real photographers..

aperture priority

second curtain flash

highest clean iso you can go on your camera

use the 24-70, the 50 will be too cramped when a group of 15 people want a picture

be very careful walking in and out of the venue with your gear, it is very hot and humid inside and you'd be going straight out into the very cold..

put it on continuous fire and snap a few shots at a time if you're finding strobes are ruining your shots, chances are one of them will be grand. Just make sure you keep doing the same number of shots so people don't stop posing after the first flash..

I also recommend autofocus off and E ttl off, you'll be working in the same lighting conditions and space for a long time so once you have your lighting figured out you'll be taking pictures faster. Same goes with autofocus, obviously depending on setting but generally I'll be in the F/8 range, it doesn't matter how much nicer shallow dof looks, people will not be impressed if their friend standing behind the group is out of focus..

don't get in the habit of showing groups their picture after you take it, the girls will want 5 or 10 more attempts and will check it in between each time. just say you're shooting film and can't check.

It may be a controversial one but shoot in raw. Just bring a few cards. Being able to fix auto wb and tint is a life saver. Put a nice looking lut on and batch out to jpegs and people will think "you've got a great camera"

bring very minimal gear. I see people going around with bags and multiple lenses hanging off them togged out in full tog gear.. two bodies with one lens on each, no bag, cards batteries and wipes in pockets is the way to go.

automate everything for your post processing...

For nightclub stuff in my opinion it's all about taking profile pictures for these people and having the event watermark seen by that. Or better still having all the pictures from that event having a certain look. The few pictures of everyone silhouetted against the lights are OK but won't get more people in the door or anywhere as much 'exposure' as 500 people liking a good picture of their friend at the event.

Make your watermark as unobtrusive as possible otherwise people will go out of their way to crop it when using the image as their profile picture..

take all above with a pinch of salt.. and just know you'll have a lot of bad pictures until you get it figured out. If you're taking bad pictures don't show them to the people there!111!!!! they will try to eat you alive

BIGPAWS

Thank you so much to everyone for taking the time and effort to reply, really appreciated. Excellent advise which i shall take on board.
I had AF on all the time on the lens, was struggling focus with different lighting situations.

Monkey Sampan

The 24-70 will be a lot more practical on a 7D and if it's the F4 version, the IS will come in very handy.
The 2.8 is less practical for this kind of work compared to the likes of weddings and journalism where it's the best of its kind.

I use a 24-105 F4 IS on a 5D mk2 and it's perfect for event work.
Even if I smash the lens, they're very cheap to get off eBay for the quality they produce in the right hands.

Camera settings depend on the venue, but I always use manual and shoot in RAW as I like to do a good bit of colour correction,
to keep things consistent and balanced week to week. After a while you'll figure out your own presets, cutting processing time massively.

In terms of storage, a 16GB CF card will hold on average 500 RAW images for me.
So even an 8GB card that you format every week will be more than enough for a 1 hour weekly gig.

I stopped using 2nd curtain sync, the double flash eats your batteries a lot faster
and with drunk people it's impractical, as it will cause odd ghosting effects as they move about.

If possible E-TTL off, it can produce very unpredictable results compared to manual.
Rule here is get to know your flash.

IR Autofocus assist is essential to get consistently in focus images,
especially in an otherwise pitch black room.

OEM flash as they're a lot more robust.
I use Yongnuo stuff for studio type lighting, but I've had 3 die on me over the past year due to build quality issue,
where as my ancient Canon flash has taken every type of abuse and keeps working.

I use a cheap, light camera bag I got in ALDI a few years back that keeps my camera and flash safe for club work,
compared to my Peli 1450 where it normally lives, which is a case that will survive the apocalypse.


Two general rules I go by, if you can't get it in 3, you can't get it.
I'd normally take on average 3 images per couple/group to give myself a better choice when home.

Never bother showing people the images, love em' and leave em before they can even ask.
The screen is broke is a good excuse of they corner you.



* BTW, I hope you're getting some bit of money for this work, it might be a hobby to you, but that money builds up quickly.
The wear and tear on gear during event work can be extreme, so it's worth having money put aside for replacing worn out gear.

A problem down here is that the prices have been forced down by people to a fraction of what they should be getting for nightclub work.
An established pub/club can afford it.

ScottScott

Thanks frozen and Monkey!
Really great posts, a treasure trove of information!
I'll try all of your advice and I'll keep in touch.

BIGPAWS

Fantastic advise from everyone here,
The time you took to reply is really appreciated.

Thank you so much.

ED E

I've tried with a basic flash before, having no AF Assist light doomed me, you really need AF assist.

I wouldnt use a 50 on a crop body in a club as you've 80mm effective which is only going to be good for shooting the DJ/performer. Grab a 35 or lower if you want prime.

ScottScott

ED E wrote: »

I've tried with a basic flash before, having no AF Assist light doomed me, you really need AF assist.

I wouldnt use a 50 on a crop body in a club as you've 80mm effective which is only going to be good for shooting the DJ/performer. Grab a 35 or lower if you want prime.

Some great points here. Thanks for that!