Delivery Room Lens Options..

[eclipse]

<p>Dear All,<br>

I will be shooting a birth and I am trying to make a decision between several lenses. I have asked a similar question before but it was only about one lens option. I had a chance to diversify the lens options that I can use during the birth.<br>

I appreciate if you could give an opinion which one would be the best choice. Camera is a Nikon D700.<br>

Nikon 50mm f/1.4<br />Nikon 24-85mm f/2.8-4<br />Nikon 17-35mm f/2.8<br>

I am leaning towards 24-85 but I am not sure if it would be too slow for a delivery room as I am not familiar with the light conditions inside the room.<br>

What do you think ? Thank you..</p>

[savagesax]

Is the D700 full frame or 1/2 frame? If it's full frame I would bring 2 lenses, the 17-35 and the 24-85. You pretty much want to stay in one place so you aren't in the way, yet close enough to get nice photos. Are you using a flash? I'm not sure of the hospital rules, most likely you can use a flash.

[david_schilling___chicago_]

<p>I suspect that you're over-thinking the lens issue, just take all three and since you're shooting full-frame, start with the 24-85 and adjust as much as you'd like. Looks like you got plenty of info in your last post.</p>

[benjamin_tapper]

<p>50mm, you can shoot just about anything PJ style with this lens, until you need a bit more zoom</p>

[Jerry_]

<p>"Is the D700 full frame or 1/2 frame?" It is a full-frame camera, with the option to shoot in DX mode, with a smaller image size. Both FX and DX modes will handle high ISO settings well.</p>

<p> </p>

[marcsaint]

<p>Whichever lens you choose, make sure you have a filter on it.....:-)</p>

[eclipse]

<p>Thank you all for your responses. I think that the delivery room is not that small. As the camera is FX, I am not sure if the 17-35 would be too wide. On the other hand, I could not be sure if the 24-85 is fast enough to perform well in that light conditions.<br>

Yes, I have received some good advices for my previous post. But, I did not mention the other options in my bag as I was only thinking about shooting with my 50.<br>

What I have found that, after reading tons of forum messages, there are no rules of thumb for such shootings (except a few like shoot RAW and avoid flash).<br>

Anyway, thank you all again for your kind contributions..</p>

 

[savagesax]

Thanks Jerry for the update on the d700.

 

Benjamin's suggestion might be the way to go, because I don't think the 24-85 is razor sharp as the 50mm is. You can always crop if needed.

[eclipse]

<p>OK. 50 seems to be the best option. Thank you all..</p>

[pete_s.]

<p>If you are the father or are expected to do anything besides photography I would keep it simple. Having shot two deliveries as a father I think the 50mm is a poor choice as the only lens. You need wide for environmental shots and you need a tele for closeups. Possibly a macro or very close focusing tele after the birth because babies are small.</p>

<p>The 24-85 f/2.8-4 would be my choice because it is wide enough and it has tele and it has a 1:2 macro setting. Light levels will be reasonably high as it is a working environment and people need to be able to see. f/2.8 will work at the wide end and you need at least f/4 for close ups anyway. If it's low light levels you will be shooting at iso 1600 possibly having to bump up to 3200 for some shots.</p>

<p> </p>

[david_schilling___chicago_]

<p>Avoiding flash is not a "rule of thumb".....start with whatever lens floats your boat but take all three. Personally, I'd be more concerned about your backup gear (or lack of backup gear) than I would be lens selection............</p>

[gary_mayo1]

<p>I would go wide, and capture the whole event going on in the room, and minimize any graphic details. </p>

<p>Everybody eats sausages, but no one wants to see them made. </p>

[William Michael]

<blockquote>

<p> just take all three and since you're shooting full-frame, start with the 24-85 and adjust as much as you'd like.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Agree.</p>

<p> </p>

<blockquote>

<p>Avoiding flash is not a "rule of thumb".</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Correct.<br>

WW</p>

 

[eclipse]

<p>OK. Thank you all for your responses. I have only used 50mm in the delivery room. It was a right choice as the light conditions were not that good enough for a slower lens. But, outside the delivery room I have switched to my 24-85 as some wide- angle shots were needed to tell more about the story.<br>

When it comes to the use of flash, I think it heavily depends on the medical crew in the delivery room. In many cases, they consider flashing lights in such a small room as distractive.<br>

Thank you very much indeed again for the tips..</p>

[bob_bill]

<p>I think my preference would have been a 24-70 2.8 and push the iso to 1600 or 2400 easily handled by a d700. Not much rapid motion to worry about so could drop shutter to about 80-100. I dont think a baby needs to come into the world to a flash banging away, just seems inappropriate. What iso, aperture and shutter speed did you end up using in the delivery room? </p>

[eclipse]

<p>Hi Bob,<br />I have tried to push ISO to 1200 and further, but unlike what people think, the results were not satisfying. I think 800 should not be exceeded if it is not really required. Majority of the photos taken at ISO 800. Shutter speed was around 1/125. I have used aperture priority mode and kept the aperture open between 1.4-2.8 depending on my preference about depth of field for that specific shot. Results were satisfying. I would use the same combination if I would have another chance.<br />Yet, I do not recommend 50mm f/1.4 for newbies in such conditions as it would be so easy to shoot photos out of focus.</p>

[JRCrowe]

<p>Ask the Doctor about the use of flash. I was able to use flash for all three of my children but bounced it off the ceiling in the delivery room. It is much kinder on the eyes and no one seemed to mind. I never really went for the detailed shots if you know what I mean. Of course that was in the days of film. I have a Canon 5d mk2 now and would feel comfortable shooting at ISO 3200 as long as I could process in Lightroom 3. </p>

[daverhaas]

<p>I'd also ask the Doctor / Hospital about their policy regarding photography during the birth process. </p>

<p>Apparently it is becoming more of a trend for hospitals to ban photography from the time active labor begins until the baby is 5 minutes old. I just saw an article on ABC News.com about a photographer who is having a baby in a few weeks and just found out that her husband will not be permitted to take any photos until after the 5 minute mark. </p>

<p>Hospitals say it is done to minimize distractions to the medical team and to allow them to focus on ensuring a safe and healthy delivery. Also - if there is a complication or issue with the baby - they don't want a dad or significant other with a camera in the way. Parents who are upset with the policy say that there is a significant difference between a newborn and a 5 minute old baby. They (parents) also say that it is hospitals / doctors trying to cover from potential lawsuits - since if there is a complication and photos exist - they could be used as evidence. </p>

<p>Bottom line - check the hospital's policy. </p>

<p>Dave</p>

 

[eclipse]

<p>Dave, you are right about the changing hospital policies. It is almost the same here in Turkey. Docs and hospital managers hesitate to let fathers or other emotional involvers in the delivery room because of the possible outcomes. Especially for the c-section operations. Even if everything goes OK, I have heard some examples where dads fainted during the operation and medical staff urged to take care of the father instead of the woman giving birth.<br>

Very complicated issue indeed..</p>