Help: Nikon D80

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AlexanderB

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Alex
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I recently received a Nikon D80 and want to get started in taking photos at various nightclubs and lounges.

I was wondering what type of things I would need to prepare myself in taking them.
i.e flash mount,

exposure setting
aperture
focal length
ISO speed
exposure bias
flash
etc.

If you can give any guidelines or help in any way, I would be much appreciated!

Thank you!
 
Extremely quickly, I find the following a good starting point.

ISO ~500 to 800
Shutter speed ~20-30
Flash, I can't remember but for some reason 1/8 or 1/4 power seems what I used. But it was rear curtain synced. Aimed at ceiling, slightly forward, as the ceiling was semi high. I didn't have a stofen or diffuser.
Use what ever quality settings you like.
I like using a 50mm, makes for nice shots. But I also used my kit 18-55 VR.

I took some pics of a get-together we had not too long ago in a restaurant with a bit dim lighting, here are the pics if you're interested where I'm getting these values from.

But ultimately you have to just go down and experiment. A shutter speed of 30 might be too slow and movement might blur at nightclubs, even with a flash.
 
Those are exactly the kind of quality pictures I need. They're perfect!

I just now have to learn how to use this darn thing haha!
 
Well, hope they help

Oh, and welcome to the forum, be sure to post some soon ;)
 
...oh and my camera came with the afs-nikkor 135mm lens. Is that good enough for these type of pictures with your settings?
 
You'll be able to achieve results with either flash.

You will also be able to achieve the results with your 18-135 lens, but you might notice that it may not get those kind of vibrant colours as a prime lens, but it'll still be very good. But ultimately everything is possible.

And as for f stop values I seem to like to hover around 4-6. Getting to f/1.8 gives really nice lighting and can 'eliminate' the need for a flash but in a darker setting I find it's a little harder to focus properly. F 9-11 puts everything more in focus but IMO that's more or less the limit because you really shouldn't be upping your ISO or decreasing your shutter time too much, and increasing flash power can only help so much.

Practice makes perfect :)
 
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