Taking photos in bars and pubs

[KayJay]

I'm interested in learning how to go about taking good images in bars and pubs that have low light. I have taken an image this evening inside a Japanese restaurant but I'm not sure how to have the shutter long enough but also stop the blur on moving people. Is this possible? I had the camera resting on the table next to us and used my hand to push the button for focus and to take the shot. I've yet to experiment with the timer.

I used my Sigma 10-20 wide for this using the following settings.

Exposure: 0.25 sec (1/4)
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 10 mm
ISO Speed: 800

I'm thinking perhaps I should be using an ISO of 200 or so with perhaps a longer shutter speed?

Help and advice would be very much appreciated.

 

[mobilevirgin]

That's not a bad effort. The only way to get people to stay still for long exposures is, well to get them to stay still. The bigger challenge with that sort of shot is getting the balance right between the bright lights and the low lights. You've done that reasonably well and the faces are lit about right without totally blowing the neon / whatever lights around the walls and on the ceiling.

Bottom right is a potential issue. You could address this in Photoshop - there are various methods. HDR is one. Another is to develop 2 different exposures (assuming you shot in Raw) and then merge the 2 together so you have 1 pic, but 2 layers, with the under-exposed one underneath. Then erase the bottom right corner, so that the details start to appear.

If that sounds vague, its because I'm vague on the details. When I do that sort of thing in PS, its all a bit trial and error along with some smoke and mirrors.

Using the timer function would, obviously, mean you didn't need to have your arm looking like you've got it somewhere it shouldn't be. And reduces any chance of camera shake while you press the shutter. And enables you to get a pint in your hand just as the shot is taken

 

[KayJay]

Thanks for the feedback. I didn't shoot in RAW unfortunately. I'll be doing that as habit when I get a bigger memory card. I'll have a mess about with it in Photoshop to see what I can do. The colours of the lights changed very slowly so I wasn't sure how it was going to come out in the shot but it seems to be ok.

I'll try some more tomorrow night using your advice and see how they come out

Cheers.

 

[mobilevirgin]

No worries. As an aside, I'd try and re-compose that shot - get the camera a bit higher and maybe focus on above the table a bit more. It does look a bit like you're trying to see what's going on down below, as it were.

Trial and error with this sort of thing - take lots using different settings. Assuming your mates comply and don't become ex-mates.