Beginner indoor christmas shoot help

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October21

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Kate
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Hi all. I'm after some help. I've agreed to try and take some photographs of my 2 daughters and her 2 cousins for Christmas. I tried last year but had only recently got my camera so they were a bit rubbish really. I tried shooting inside and the lighting was poor. I'm fairly confident at getting the lighting right in outside shots now but I can't think of anywhere Christmassy that I can shoot at. So, indoor shoot it is I think. The kids are aged between 1 and 12 so it might be a bit of a nightmare getting them all to stay still. I have no equipment other than the Nikon d3200, kit lens and a f1.8 lens....impossible task?
 
There are so many variables its impossible to say if it would be mission impossible, the easy solution would be to get a flash you can bounce - well worth having anyway - and that combined with a fast prime would cover most situations.

What prime lens do you have?
 
Thanks for the reply. I only have the Nikon AF-S 50mm f/1.8G Lens. I know next to nothing about using flash (hence the reason I shoot outdoors mostly!) but I'm happy to get and practice with whatever I need before I go ahead and try it with all the kids here. What do you recommend?

 
The Nissin i40 would be a good match for your camera as it is smaller than most of the other so will balance well on your camera.
 
I'd say have a go around the house with the ISO increasing as you go to see what you find acceptable, as well as getting a editing program such as Lightroom to help noise reduction.
It will be tempting to help shutter speed by shooting at 1.8 but the dof will be shallow, so I wouldn't shoot wide open if I could help it when shooting groups
If you can't get a flash ( which I recommend) maybe use a tripod and get them to stay still
I would shoot it with flash and higher ISO to make the most of ambient light. Best option would be off camera flash, second would be bounce it off a ceiling or wall
 
You definitely need a flash...and ideally a light stand and brolley to get the best group photos. You can increase the ISO, set the aperture to1.8 and use a tripod, but kids do not sit still so you will never get a decent shutter speed to capture the moment indoors. Get yourself an external flash (and brolley) and you'll be amazed at the difference...I lost 2 Xmas's by not doing this and now get fantastic results.
 
n2desilv said:
You definitely need a flash...and ideally a light stand and brolley to get the best group photos. You can increase the ISO, set the aperture to1.8 and use a tripod, but kids do not sit still so you will never get a decent shutter speed to capture the moment indoors. Get yourself an external flash (and brolley) and you'll be amazed at the difference...I lost 2 Xmas's by not doing this and now get fantastic results.
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That sounds like a great idea for this Xmas. I'm thinking of the same thing.

Would I literally just need a cheap photography umbrella and an off camera flash?

I have a Yongnuo 565EX.

Do the umbrellas come with stands that you mount the flash unit to?
 
wezza13 said:
That sounds like a great idea for this Xmas. I'm thinking of the same thing.

Would I literally just need a cheap photography umbrella and an off camera flash?

I have a Yongnuo 565EX.

Do the umbrellas come with stands that you mount the flash unit to?
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You'd need a stand, a bracket and an umbrella.
Or a stand and a softbox with bracket.

But for the off camera flash you'd need a triggering system, and the optical systems from Canon and Nikon aren't that reliable, I'd recommend radio triggers.
 
Yeah I got a 55cm umbrella - think it was about £10 and a stand around £50 from Wex. You may need to buy a clamp as well but they are cheap. Then for simple use, angle it at 45 degrees and do some test shots to determine the power of the flash. Enjoy!
 
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You should try using natural light and bump the ISO up.. the 50mm f/1.8 should be fine.. maybe try some candid ones at f/1.8.. then formals / posed with F4 and above.. bump
 
You should be fit to use ISO1600 or even 3200 at a push.. DO you have access to Lightroom? very handy for removing noise..
 
technics100 said:
You should be fit to use ISO1600 or even 3200 at a push.. DO you have access to Lightroom? very handy for removing noise..
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Is it also useful for making the awful indoor light look attractive?
 
Any big windows you could use to let natural light in to use? Harder to control than a flash but much cheaper and you can practice today.
 
natural light can't be relied upon in winter and limits the time you could shoot. We've had plenty days lately when it's been almost dark all day then dark by 3.30 for sure
@Jayst84 im not suggesting buying a bundle of kit. To me if you control the light, you can achieve the goal of some nice shots of the kids nicely lit to your choosing. A cheap flash and a reflector would go a long way to getting near what the op would like without breaking the bank. If you leave it to natural light, you may not get what you seek. Stands and triggers are nice to have, but bounced flash or a human light stand could work too
It may not be what the op or you like to hear, but the best way to achieve what he wants is to take control and leave nothing to chance or what time it is. It's up to us all as individuals to invest as we see fit depending on how important nicely lit photos are (financially or knowledge) and never intended to come across as "buy lots of kit and you will be great"
 
Jayst84 said:
Love how everyone jumps to recommending buying a pile of gear and setting up off-camera flash, etc. don't even know what the situation is.

I reckon you can do a hell of a lot with the gear you've got. Just need to think about what you're doing.
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You're not familiar with typical British window sizes and typical British winters James.

As above, midday in my house ATM would require ridiculous ISOs (12800) for a family group in the living room. And I do live in a 'typical 30's semi with a larger than average bay window.
 
Phil V said:
We'd love to see some of your work, the OP could learn a lot from it.
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I'm no expert, but certainly, if it makes you happy ;-) and gives the OP some pointers..

My tips on shooting kids in general..

https://adammcateer.wordpress.com/2012/10/19/photographing-children/

Some shots taken this time of year inside with natural light.. exif is still instact to see ISO etc..

taken with X100 https://adammcateer.wordpress.com/2014/10/03/dollies/

D300.. https://adammcateer.wordpress.com/2013/11/24/egg-in-a-cup/

Again the D3200 would outperform the above in terms of ISO.. so take is to ISO3200 without issue, reduce noise in LR..

D700 with a old 70-210mm F4 Nikon on it.. https://adammcateer.wordpress.com/2012/02/01/sick-babies/ some more. https://adammcateer.wordpress.com/2012/04/03/ella-this-evening/

Maybe not professional examples (I'm not a pro, just a father of two with an interest in capturing their childhood), but should give the OP some info and ideas of how to do it without spending anything on extra gear.. if flash is needed, then a cheap TTL flash and bounce the flash et 45deg behind always works well for me..

Bounce flash

D300 with SB-700 bounced.. https://adammcateer.wordpress.com/2014/01/26/sol-turns-2/

Hope that helps the OP..
 
Hmm. So I'm now in two minds about spending my money on a flash etc. The kids are over next weekend. :/ Our house is AWFUL for natural light. Literally everything has to be perfect to get a decent shot at this time of year. Ramp up the ISO to 3200 and the noise makes it unusable. Unless I'm missing something (quite possible.) Anyhow, unfortunately I'm nowhere near figuring out how to get everything perfect with just my daughter wriggling about so I will have much less chance with 4 of them.

I never normally use flash. If the light is appalling and I try a flash in a shot it just looks awful. Is that normal for the cameras own flash to look so bad? Will an external flash cause the shot to be harsh like the cameras own flash does?

Thanks again for the help!
 
Direct flash will always be awful looking, Best bet is to buy a cheap TTL flash, mount it on the camera and bounce the flash 45deg up and behind you which bounces it off the ceiling and softens the light.. you can have the camera in Aperture and flash in TTL.. or go full manual with both if you like..

but you could try something like this first.. http://www.diyphotography.net/the-party-bouncer-is-back-in-business-card/

Even with the flash, bump the ISO up to stop the flash working so hard..
 
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technics100 said:
I live in Northern Ireland, we don't even get light in summer!!
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There's some lovely images there :), but not with the apertures the OP will need for a group of 4 kids of different ages.

It's easy when you're talented, confident and know your gear, to work around limitations like low light. But when you're inexperienced nervous and unsure of your gear, low light levels are the straw that breaks the camels back.

A carefully bounced flash, will raise ISOs and shutter speeds, and allow the OP to concentrate on the difficult bit - the cat herding that is child group photography.
 
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