Help with Night Shots

[cjracephotos]

Hi guys,

New to the forums so go easy on me for this one...

I shot an event in Phoenix and most of the race was at night. I have a couple of questions:

First, what is the best setting for night shots?
Second, how the heck do I use the 580EX (Just bought it) I mean, what settings is best? Do I need to use the 28-300 MM lens?

I have a Canon 20d with 2 lenses.
100-400 IS
and a 28-135 IS

My victory Lane shots didn't come out as I wanted, and my night shots don't look as good as ones I have seen...

Here is a link to some that I want to mimic:
http://www.grandamerican.com/Events/Gallery.asp?GalleryID=785

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated....

Cheers!

[swalter]

Most of the photos on that page have the EXIF info embedded in the files so you can see the shooting data. That should give you a start on settings. If you need help on viewing this info, search for EXIF or just ask.

Learning flash is quite a big job. There's a lot of information, here's what I think is the best site:

http://photonotes.org/articles/eos-flash/

Good luck.

[TCorzett]

Do you have any samples of how things didn't come out as you wanted?

Night is a difficult time to shoot... high ISO, fast glass, etc. Most of the shots I see on the GrandAM site appear to have very minimal (if any, I didn't check all the EXIF info) flash. The key, IMO, of night shots is to convey that it's night. Don't try to overpower the scene with flash - using auto modes on the camera/flash can easily do this. Panning and finding the areas of the track with lots of ambient light is really the key. As for the podium stuff... flash is good, but watch for harsh reflections and the exposure.

-Todd...

[cjracephotos]

Thanks for the responses!

Here is one in particular that is bugging me. first, obviously the exposure which I can fix with PSCS2, but why the heck does it only focus on the number and the front of the car is fuzzy. I was panning with it.

Link: http://www.race-photography.com/forums/nightshot.jpg (Sized down)
http://www.race-photography.com/forums/IMG_2860.JPG (Original 2.6MB)

shot info:
Camera Model
Canon EOS 20D
Shooting Date/Time
5/13/2006 6:13:56 PM
Shooting Mode
Manual Exposure
Tv( Shutter Speed )
1/200
Av( Aperture Value )
5.6
Metering Mode
Evaluative Metering
ISO Speed
400
Lens
16.0 - 35.0 mm
Focal Length
31.0 mm
Image Size
3504x2336
Image Quality
Fine
Flash
Off
White Balance Mode
Auto
AF Mode
AI Servo AF
Parameters Settings
Contrast Standard
Sharpness Standard
Color saturation Standard
Color tone 0
Color Space
sRGB
Noise Reduction
Off
______________________________

Thanks!

[TCorzett]

why the heck does it only focus on the number and the front of the car is fuzzy. I was panning with it.

With a shutter speed of 1/200th of a second you will get motion in a moving subject. The "focus issues" are not focus, but rather motion. It's like shooting someone who is moving with too slow of a shutter speed... they will be blurry because of the motion. In this situation... and in all panning situations... not all areas of the car are moving at the same speed in relation to you (short of perfectly perpendicular shots). The front of the car is moving faster (relatively) than the other ares, and therefor is blurry.

IMO, you shouldn't be disappointed with this shot... rather, be happy that something (the CITGO) is sharp and that the car shows motion (ie. speed). If you want to eliminate this (ie have the whole car sharp) you need to use a faster shutter speed. Given that this was shot at 1/200th at ISO400... you could go to 1/800th at ISO1600 and freeze things (or drop to f/2.8, etc.).

-Todd...

[cjracephotos]

I guess I am just getting used to it. I have always been 100 feet from the cars and for this and other shots, I was only about 2 to 5 feet from them.

Which is funny that I am complaining because my others were so sharp that the cars looked staged.

Thanks for the insight.

[TCorzett]

This effect doesn't just happen at night... basically anytime you have a subject that is moving with a slow shutter speed... especially when they are close to you... there will be motion.

http://www.unitonestudios.com/portfolios/2wheel/images/040315_20475.jpg

http://www.unitonestudios.com/portfolios/strip/images/040731_20122.jpg

-Todd...

[cjracephotos]

Great Shots!!

I guess that motion is not always a bad thing....especially in Race pictures....

Gives me a bit more confidence in my shots....Thanks!

[JacobPhoto]

it happens when the car is moving towards you (or away from you). Whichever part of the car you focus on and pan with will be in focus, but the other parts will be blurred because they are moving slower / faster than the rate you are panning at. It's a physics thing.

try having a friend drive by around 30 mph on a street, and shoot the car from the opposing sidewalk. if you pan directly across from you (so that all you see is the side of the car), most of the car will be in focus (the longer your lens and the further the car is from you, then more of the car will be in focus). If you try and shoot from further up the street as he comes towards you (getting a front 3/4 shot of the car), you will notice the blur on whichever parts of the car you didn't focus on. make sense?