a good lens for clubbing photography for D40?

I have a D40 and the kit lens that it came with, and i am not generally happy with 'all' the photos i produce, and I go out regularly to do

photography in clubs and the such like for dontstayin.com and would like to improve the pictures i take.

I know the D40 isnt the best of nikons but still.

 

I was just wondering, what would be a good lens for clubbing environment, bright lights, lots of movement e.t.c.

 

yeah i am an amateur, i just do it because i love it!

 

Many thanks in advance!

 

Tom.

Hi Thomas. I think what you're looking for is a very fast lens, something like the Nikon 50mm f1.8, which will cost a little over $100 used. The reason I say that is because you're saying there's lots of movement, and I'd think you'd want to use a fast shutter speed to free the action. Also would work well when lights are not so bright. I'm not sure if it will meter on the D40, though.

 

Also, it would be useful to be able to edit your photos using a photo editing program such as Nikon Capture NX2.

You'll want something fast, since clubs are often very dark. The 50mm f.18 is a tack-sharp, cheap lens ($110) and fast. I think that its a bit tight for clubs, I'd want something a bit wider, say wiith the range of 18-35mm. To get something that wide and fast like f2.8 or brighter you'll probably have to drop a lot of cash.

 

I find shooting in clubs frustrating since they're usually so dark and the high sensitivity/iso pictures look pretty crappy. Also I find the colors to look awful afterwards. There are a lot of threads about shooting in bars/clubs/live music so search around.

I'd recommend the Sigma 30mm 1.4 or the Sigma 50mm 1.4 which will AF on your D40 unlike the Nikon 50mm's

Have you looked at the Sigma 30/1.8 prime. It will AF on your D40 where the Nikon 50/1.8 you will have to manually focus. I have read where the D40 does well at the higher ISO's.

The 50mm will likely not be wide enough in a club environment and manual focusing may be difficult, especially in low light. The Sigma mentioned above is likely your best choice.

I shoot nightclub stuff on the side so I wanted to offer some notes from the field.

 

I have the Nikon 50mm f1.8D. Love this lens, on a DX body the crop factor makes it a 76mm. Having an aperture of

1.8 is fast but you're going to want your shutter at 1/500 or faster to freeze action. Is freezing the action

important to you? Are you going to be taking photos mostly of people who stop and pose for you?

 

You may need a wider lens depending on the venue. Also, I really hate taking shots where I'm not looking into the

viewfinder, but sometimes the dance floor is so packed that you really have no choice but to throw up your

camera, point it down at the crowd and fire. Again, this depends on how popular the venue is, what night you

shoot, etc.

 

I love the 50mm 1.8, but the AF will be too slow to AF-servo a (drunken) girl dancing wildly. Manually focusing

this prime lens is a challenge.

 

It really depends what kind of shots you want to take. If you want to take artsy photos with crazy blur,

streaking and noticeable grain then I can suggest the prime. I shot a nightclub this one time with my friend and

he brought a monopod and except for shots of people at the bar, the 'pod didn't make a very big difference in

cutting down blur.

 

Consider getting a speedlight.

 

I would say keep and use whatever lens you have and pick up a speedlight. If you're using a lens that's over

100mm long you will get the len's shadow in the photo if you are using the D40's pop up flash. The pop-up flash

isn't too bad, either, if used correctly. You have infinite film for testing (shoot and delete) so play with it

and see if you can come up with something that works.

 

From there it all comes down to how you command the light, diffuse it, bounce it, and there are tricks like

dragging the shutter to capture the ambient light of the club. Play around with it; come back here if you need

more help or google the strobist. Good luck!

The club photos on donstayin, like most club photos these days, are shot with flash. You don't need a fast lens, you need a good flash and good flash technique and an understanding of lighting. I suspect most of the posters above other than Joshua haven't done any club photography.

>> "I'm not sure if it will meter on the D40, though."

 

It will meter on the D40. But its lack of AF already largely defeated its effectiveness in action-oriented shooting situations.

 

Besides the huge 200 f/2, there's not another Nikkor faster than f/2.8 that will AF on the D40. I doubt even if a f/2.8 lens will be nearly as fast as you would like/need. The Sigma 30 1.4 and 50 1.4 are two good options, but they are not cheap.

 

The lack of AF competibility in the D40 was one of main reason why I upgraded to the D300.

<i>I doubt even if a f/2.8 lens will be nearly as fast as you would like/need. </i><P>Why? Anyone who has done "club photography" as it is referred to here knows it is done with flash.

jeff is right, an sb-600 or sb-800 and lots of practice with rear curtain sync setting will produce pics with the club 'look'' with your current lens.

 

however, you may still want something faster, like the tamron 17-50/2.8 w/ micromotor, which has better IQ than the nikon 18-xx kit zooms, or the sigma 30/1.4 HSM. those are good for no-flash indoor pics, such as band shots, and will AF on your D40.

 

it's always nice to have the option to shoot no-flash<div></div>

and a no-flash shot capturing the DJ bathed in blue light<div></div>

one more typical club shot<div></div>

>> "Why? Anyone who has done "club photography" as it is referred to here knows it is done with flash."

 

Well, with flash things are going to be quite different.

Did you look at the site he referenced? Have you seen what is currently called "club photography"? This would give you a clue as to what is being discussed.

Get a wide angle zoom. The best would probably be the 12-24 zoom (or heavy 14-25) and then you can just go crazy. Upgrade to the d90 and then you'll have access to the fantastic d300 sensor. This camera will open up a whole other world to your lowlight photography. After that get a 135mm fixed lens for those sneaky candids where you will shoot your prey without them even knowing it. My 2 sense, cheers - Alex.

not sure why you would want to 'club' someone with a lens.....

here's what i get At the moment.

 

<img src="http://epyhjv9m9oszc.6hops.net/f55cb6ec-dcbd-42af-bf84-f7880fd52e61.jpg">

then i get some shots that are, unclear, not as sharp, an its not just the one off bad photo, its a regular thing

 

<img src="http://epyhjv9m9oszc.6hops.net/e19646f8-af77-46be-ae56-bf08d38bb0c9.jpg">

I think it's all about getting a good flash, bounce or diffuse it. You'll stop the movement with the flash and then you play with the available light for the background.

 

cheers!

What are you using for flash? It looks like you don't have enough flash output in the second one. In the first one, you may need to do some post-processing to bring down the shirt.

i have a flash gun, nothing Great.

 

Marumi

 

cheap really, but im only a barman, don't make much money.

there are basically two ways to light indoor scenes in dim conditions: either use available lighting or supply your own. or both, which is actually three ways... looks like you need some more practice using flash...are you using the built-in flash? maybe a speedlite, a flash bracket and/or a remote speedlite would be more of a need for you than a lens.

 

the first shot looks OK, rear-curtain sync focused on the DJ and gave the background motion blur for that club 'look.' a w/a or fisheye lens would have maybe made the second shot more 'scenic' but you're also at the mercy of hazy blue club lighting with very little ambient light surrounding it. what makes this a difficult composition from a technical standpoint isn't your flash or your lens, but your composition. you're trying to shoot directly through that hazy glow which crosses the frame diagonally.it looks like it diffused your flash a bit, resulting in a 'cooler', almost underexposed, feel.

 

in the first shot the lit knobs/buttons on the DJ's equipment worked to your advantage. in the second shot, you just dont have a lot of background light to work with. also, the dudes are posing, so the sense of motion blur is limited. as far as available light, you've got the glow-stick in his hand, the neon sign, and the blue haze. no bright reds or yellows, and very little high-contrast colors which could have offset the blueness of it all.

 

if possible, you might want to try framing the scene next time so the high overhead blue light is behind them and not off to the side which would give them a more backlit appearance. bouncing the flash may or may not have helped (depending on how high the ceilings are) and off-camera flash may or may not have helped. practice makes perfect.

Thanks for you help eric!!!

 

it's all been noted down.

 

cheers mate.

<p>

This is pretty much what I do for a living.

</p>

<p>

It's a matter of style really, but if I can advise anything, is that you should have a fast-and-wide lens. Now,

I'm not on the Nikon system (Canon here), but what I use on Canon is the venerable 16-35 f2.8 L.

</p>

<p>

Now, I know what you're saying, and that is that "Dan, why the hell do you bring a $1,000 piece of glass into a

noisy, dirty nightclub?"

</p>

Well, what it came down to me was that the 16-35 was the most robust lens for the price for the performance. It's

tough, goes wide, and used, the price isn't horrid for what essentially became my permanent walkabout lens as well.

<p>

Prior, I had a 17-55 f2.8 IS (EF-S) lens. It's a wonderful lens, and the stabilizer was great for those epic

"room shots".

</p>

<p>

I got rid of it, simply because it wasn't robust enough considering what I paid for it. After about a year of

heavy use, the stabilizer seriously acted up (it "stabilized" even when the camera was sitting on a table), so I

got it fixed, took the hit, and traded it for the much-simpler, but more robust 16-35 L. I just had to remember

how to work without a stabilizer.

</p>

<p>

Now, the 16-35 2.8 is very versatile. It works great for ambient-light images:

</p>

<a href="http://forum.talknightlife.com/gallery2.php?g2_itemId=14037"><img

src="http://talknightlife.com/gallery2/item/14037" alt="011a" /></a>

 

<a href="http://forum.talknightlife.com/gallery2.php?g2_itemId=14956"><img

src="http://talknightlife.com/gallery2/item/14956" alt="042a" /></a>

 

<a href="http://forum.talknightlife.com/gallery2.php?g2_itemId=13047"><img

src="http://talknightlife.com/gallery2/item/13047" alt="002" /></a>

 

...and for the occasional grin-and-grip-not-worth-a-damn-except-to-those-in-the-photo shots.

 

<p>

<a href="http://forum.talknightlife.com/gallery2.php?g2_itemId=13426"><img

src="http://talknightlife.com/gallery2/item/13426" alt="042a" /></a>

</p>

 

Flash? Whatever you use, get it off the camera. It's fun.

 

Now, if you're smart, you can work with and without flash. If there's enough ambient light bouncing around (the

club's light tech is your friend), screw using flash, especially with DJs or performers. They get irritated

easily when people pop their flash.

 

I've gone and retained all my EXIF if you want to save the images and see what my settings are. You'll see a

confirmation of a flash all the time since I have an ST-E2 mounted.

<p>

Now I know this is the Nikon forum, but this does seem to be a bit more of a general question...it was on the

front page, after all!

</p>