Indoor photography

sep9001

sep9001

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Kev
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Hi

I am new to photography and have just purchased a Nikon D80, which came with the 18-135mm lens.

I have also bought a Nikon 35mm f/1.8 lens as suggested on another forum. The camera is going to be used mainly for taking photo's of my children (10 months and 3 years old), when taking indoor photos I am using the built in flash and notice my son closes his eyes when the flash goes off.

I want to know if it is worth investing in a cheap flash or are there other options available.

Thank you
 
sep9001 said:
Hi

I am new to photography and have just purchased a Nikon D80, which came with the 18-135mm lens.

I have also bought a Nikon 35mm f/1.8 lens as suggested on another forum. The camera is going to be used mainly for taking photo's of my children (10 months and 3 years old), when taking indoor photos I am using the built in flash and notice my son closes his eyes when the flash goes off.

I want to know if it is worth investing in a cheap flash or are there other options available.

Thank you
Click to expand...

dont use flash.. open the curtains let some natural light in.. your pictures will look a hundred times better than the ones taken with flash..

use the 35mm lens for this as i suspect that was why it was reccomended.. for non flash use
 
KIPAX said:
dont use flash.. open the curtains let some natural light in.. your pictures will look a hundred times better than the ones taken with flash..

use the 35mm lens for this as i suspect that was why it was reccomended.. for non flash use
Click to expand...

BandyQuill said:
yeah, kids are the worst for closing there eyes, if you HAVE to use flash make sure they are distracted (playing with something/someone) it will take there interest away from the flash...

but as above, natural light will be much better :)
Click to expand...

As above Natural light is best, BUT it is not always available, I do use flash quite a bit, even when there is good Natural light just for a bit of fill. I personally would look at a external flash with full TTL as it makes life easier
 
Thank you all for the suggestions.

I just have to try and play with the camera and the manual setting to get the correct exposure.

As it is winter and I get home late it gets too dark which is why I end up using the camera flash.

Might just have to take the camera to work with me and take shots around work to better understand taking photos..
 
sep9001 said:
As it is winter and I get home late it gets too dark which is why I end up using the camera flash.
Click to expand...

Get an external flash unit. There is no substitute really for taking good indoor shots when using natural light is not an option. The built-in flash will, most often than not, give you that "rabbit in the headlights" look.

5252138073_7f35251e4a_b_d.jpg


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Cheers
 
If you're son is blinking, are you using the flash for focus-assist? The camera may be doing it automatically, but you can disable it. It's also possible that you have got second/rear curtain sync enabled, which will also provoke the blinking problem if you are using slower shutter speeds indoors - see handbook.

If you get a decent flash gun, and learn how to bounce it and use bounce-fill technique, it will make a world of difference :)
 
Thank you all, will have to look for a flash. I know the Nikon ones are the best to get with the camera (SB-600) but I really do not want to spend a lot so may have to either get the Nissin Di622 or the Jessops one with the 3 year warranty.

What is the difference between the Nissin Di622 and Nissin Di622 MKII?

Highpriest nice pictures and lovely kids.

HoppyUK - Will have to have a look into what you have suggested.
 
Although a flash will help, it depends on what your children are doing when your taking the shots. If they are running around like made things as kids do then yes you will need a flash and a fast shutter speed. I brought the Nikon SB-400 for £80 second hand and although its not as feature rich as the SB-600, its a lot smaller so i'm more likely to use it.

I however have got good results using a high ISO and wide aperture to let as much light in as possible.

These shots were all taken at night, in our house with just normal house lights on. Ive even just had 2 blown up to canvas.


Flickr-8.jpg by BenR167, on Flickr


Flickr-9.jpg by BenR167, on Flickr


Flickr.jpg by BenR167, on Flickr
 
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as others have said external flash if you want flash but another cheap way I have found effective is a reflector with natural window light being the obvious choice but also works well with bulb light and allows you to get a nice bit of light on face and eyes..

its probably not the ideal way but its nice and cheap and IMO everybody should own a reflector.
 
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HoppyUK said:
If you're son is blinking, are you using the flash for focus-assist?
Click to expand...

I'm not sure that focus assist would be the problem - it's kind of like anti red-eye in that it is slightly prolonged, not the sort of thing that would leave someone blinking by the time the flash fires. My G/F often blinks when using flash and I'm sure it's down to the ETTL pre-flash, occurring even when there is no focus assist of any kind involved. Maybe 2nd curtain sync would be a solution, extending the interval between pre-flash and flash, or switching to manual flash, which should avoid the pre-flash altogether.
 
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