Lighting question....shooting an event...

Need your opinions on this. I may be shooting a paid gig in here: NYC Green Space. It is a annual benefit event for a public advocate organization. About 150 people will be attending.

http://www.thegreenesp​ace.org/rent/

How should I light this place? 13ft height ceiling. Over 1800 sq ft. Looking at some of the shots of the venue, there is nothing to bounce from since the ceiling is black and it has some lighting rack up. I am thinking about shooting at ISO1600 to 3200 and using a single shoe mount 580exII at reduced power and gel. 1/250s shutter speed the whole time. Also, towards the back of the venue, there are windows too.

Why the 1/250 shutter speed? Dragging the shutter will allow you to get a better balance between flash and ambient, you might not need 3200 ISO. I'd also use an adjustable bounce card like the rogue flashbender or a foam bounce card to soften the light a bit and provide a bigger catchlight. Those bounce cards can be directed so that you are kicking the full amount of light forward.

gonzogolf wrote in post #15129767
Why the 1/250 shutter speed? Dragging the shutter will allow you to get a better balance between flash and ambient, you might not need 3200 ISO. I'd also use an adjustable bounce card like the rogue flashbender or a foam bounce card to soften the light a bit and provide a bigger catchlight. Those bounce cards can be directed so that you are kicking the full amount of light forward.

Got it. Will use a slower shutter speed and keeping ISO speed to 1600. Will use a bounce card.

TooManyShots wrote in post #15129792
Got it. Will use a slower shutter speed and keeping ISO speed to 1600. Will use a bounce card.

Dont you know this is the internet? You are supposed to argue against all advice given you You are far too agreeable.

gonzogolf wrote in post #15129829
Dont you know this is the internet? You are supposed to argue against all advice given you You are far too agreeable.

Thats not true!

gonzogolf wrote in post #15129829
Dont you know this is the internet? You are supposed to argue against all advice given you You are far too agreeable.

What for?? I seriously doubt that the ambient light would be that dark. It isn't a performance event. I may have a hard time trying to get an overall shot of the venue though. I may need to use ISO3200 or more shooting with ambient light only.

TooManyShots wrote in post #15129875
What for?? I seriously doubt that the ambient light would be that dark. It isn't a performance event. I may have a hard time trying to get an overall shot of the venue though. I may need to use ISO3200 or more shooting with ambient light only.

Just kidding you. These days so many people ask for advice, then argue why they can't/won't take it. I just looked at the exif from some shots I took in a poorly lit hotel ballroom. I got a nice ambient balance using the strobe at ISO 1000. I dont know what camera you are using, but 3200 seems to be less flexible on my 5D so I only go there when neccessary.

gonzogolf wrote in post #15129903
Just kidding you. These days so many people ask for advice, then argue why they can't/won't take it. I just looked at the exif from some shots I took in a poorly lit hotel ballroom. I got a nice ambient balance using the strobe at ISO 1000. I dont know what camera you are using, but 3200 seems to be less flexible on my 5D so I only go there when neccessary.

1dmarkIII. ISO2000 is still good as long as there is little cropping. Above that, NR must apply. I do have a special NR program, FlexNR, that can make my ISO3200 shots too look very clean. Here is a shot shot at ISO3200 with FlexNR applied and cropped too.

IMAGE LINK: http://www.oneimagingp​hotography.com …605921&k=rJbqCS​b&lb=1&s=A

TooManyShots wrote in post #15129926
1dmarkIII. ISO2000 is still good as long as there is little cropping. Above that, NR must apply. I do have a special NR program, FlexNR, that can make my ISO3200 shots too look very clean. Here is a shot shot at ISO3200 with FlexNR applied and cropped too.

Maybe its me, but I dont find indoor lighting to be as forgiving at higher ISO's. Maybe because its often not full spectrum light so its less flattering to begin with.

JakAHearts wrote in post #15129833
Thats not true!

I'm sorry, is this a 5 minute argument or the full half-hour?
http://www.youtube.com​/watch?v=kQFKtI6gn9Y

Just came back from the shoot. Can you say holy batman low light??? The ambient light was only slightly better than the condition in a bar. I was at ISO 2000, 1/125 to 1/160 shutter speed. F4 to 4.5. I was still -2 stops exposed to the ambient light. Fortunately, the mother of all flash diffuser, Flashbender, did its job pretty nicely. I didn't get any excessively dark background. I am feeling that my 24-70L on a 1dmarkIII isn't wide enough to get some head to toe shots in a very confined space. If I may need to pickup a 17-40L or 16-35L for these tight space venue.

What do you guys think? Just testing out how to process these shots.

Staff shots after event.

I'd say these turned out pretty well.

ISO 2000, 1/125 to 1/160 shutter speed, F4 to 4.5 giving you 2 stops under isn't all that horrible. I mean, it isn't the greatest, but I wouldn't find that too challenging.

That said, I think the shots turned out good. I might just brighten up the left side on the first photo just a tad to compensate for that little bit of fall off.

Otherwise, they look fine for what they are. Event photos. You take what the place gives you. Nothing more you can do.

nicksan wrote in post #15176683
ISO 2000, 1/125 to 1/160 shutter speed, F4 to 4.5 giving you 2 stops under isn't all that horrible. I mean, it isn't the greatest, but I wouldn't find that too challenging.

That said, I think the shots turned out good. I might just brighten up the left side on the first photo just a tad to compensate for that little bit of fall off.

Otherwise, they look fine for what they are. Event photos. You take what the place gives you. Nothing more you can do.

Thanks Nick. One more of shot of the rest of the "studio." Basically, you have some light falls off and spill over from the main stage to the rest of the "studio." Maybe you have one or two spot lights overhead.