Banquet Photography

[thomas_mulder]

<p>I have to shoot a banquet where there will be mostly low light. Will i have problems with soft images if I shoot it with a Canon 24-70mm f/2.8 L series lens? I will be using a flash. Last year I shot the same event with my 24-105 f/4 L series lens and ended up with a lot of soft images.</p>

[personalphotos]

<p>Without knowing the camera model, it's impossible to answer.</p>

[Spearhead]

<p>How did you end up with soft images when using flash? If you're properly using flash, that should never been an issue, unless you're trying to get soft images.<br>

<br />I don't see how the body could make a difference. If your flash is powerful enough, the body (and the lens) should not be an issue with softness, only settings that you use.</p>

[picturesque]

<p>Were you using focus assist from the flash? It is only available if you are using One Shot focusing. With it, given your lens can focus accurately, and you have good focus technique, you should have sharp images.</p>

<p>If you were attempting to focus in low light using AI Servo (no focus assist available), with an f4 zoom, I can see why you'd have soft images.</p>

[thomas_mulder]

Oops i will be using a Canon 7D with the Canon 24-70mm f/2.8 lens.

[picturesque]

<p>I'd give the same answer. Even with an f2.8 zoom, no focus assist from the flash is asking too much in low light.</p>

<p>So--were you using focus assist?</p>

[thomas_mulder]

<p>@ Nadine Ohara - I don't think i was using the focus assist option. Thank you I will try it.</p>

[frank_skomial]

<p>Seems that this time you will have a better chance to produce sharper pictures.</p>

<p>What camera body you use matters a lot, since possibly you could afford to use higher ISO. Your flash will recycle faster and have longer range possibly providing more light for distant areas where the ambient light could possibly contribute more to the softness, also you could possibly afford smaller aperture and get deeper focus area.</p>

<p>Your 7D will do fine.</p>

<p>Just keep in mind that auto focus assist light from the camera may have limitted range, but focus assist lamp from an external flash should be sufficient in most cases.</p>

[markonestudios]

<p>Thomas, your question is so open ended as to make it pretty difficult to give some specific advise and guidelines. The focus assist function has limited range and won't guarantee you sharp shots. We need to understand the geometry of room, how close you can get to your subjects, type of ambient lighting, time of day, etc. Are you, for example, allowed to use supplemental lighting, or off-camera flash setups? Are you doing any formally posed shots or just capturing the banquet as it happens?</p>

<p>Focus assist, though useful, won't be your cure-all. It will not work in every situation. Sometimes even with that feature, your lens might not gather enough light to focus by. You may want to consider a fast prime lens. My 50 f/1.8 has brought me out of many a jam in extremely low light. On a 7D it may possibly be too long. I use it primarily on my film and 5DII cameras.</p>

<p>Please share more detail so we can give you proper guidance.</p>

[personalphotos]

<p>I was thinking the same thing Frank. If the last time Thomas was using a Rebel at a high ISO, the shots could look very soft due to grain/noise. The 7D should be fine as you suggest.<br>

Also it is easily possible to get soft shots when using a flash, if you have the shutter speed to low and the subjects are moving, you'll get a 'ghosting' and soft results. Some of the ambient light will be captured as well as the flash light.<br>

As Mark suggests, a remote light would be best to fill in darker areas that are too far for the flash to fill in or focus assist to work. For example, if it's a long table and you are at one end, the near areas will be bright and the further areas will be progressively darker. A second light would make a big difference in that setup.</p>

[julian_ribinik]

<p>Nadine, focus assist works also with AI Focus.</p>

[picturesque]

<p>Julian--it works with AI Focus when AI Focus is using One Shot. It won't use focus assist when it goes into AI Servo. In fact, AI Focus (IMHO) will guarantee OOF shots in the kinds of party situation described here. I used it once by mistake, and I got nothing but rear focused shots because the camera interpreted camera movement (as in focus recomposing) as subject movement, and switched into AI Servo, only to rear focus on whatever was contrasty behind the intended subject.</p>

[julian_ribinik]

<p>Nadine - cannot agree, I ONLY use AI Focus and I shoot in series. Can't complain about focusing problems.</p>

[picturesque]

<p>OK--I won't argue with your success. However, I do what works for me. The part about the focus assist still stands though. Focus assist does not work when AI Focus switches to AI Servo.</p>

[johne37179]

<p>When shooting banquetes I find it is usually a mistake to position myself too close to the desserts.</p>

[savagesax]

Most likely your pics will be soft, sorry to say. Soft in the sense that no flash or very little flash will be used.

 

If you use a flash there will be that look of the background going completely black with a normal setting of around 60th of a second and around F4 ISO shouldn't be more than 1600, of course you can get away with 1600 these days with the newer cameras, with your asa/iso set at this setting.

[savagesax]

I just read your post on the 7D. Well that fits the area of using 1600 without too much worry regarding ghost like movements With the 7D you may be able to push the iso to 3200.

 

I find color chrispness and sharp saturation may be OK, but you may not be totally happy using a slower iso. Lower iso settings can really pop out color as well as clean detail with the lighter colors such as your whites.