Is it the lens or do i need a speedlight?

[sliond]

Hi all,

Recently i went to my friend's christmas and brought my D300 with 18-105 f/3.5-5.6 VR along.

Noticing that her house was a bit dim (For the sake of the ambience), I used the largest aperture and push ISO to 3200, shutter speed at 1/20.

However, Picture turned out to be blur although VR was turned on.

My friend suggested to get either a prime lens (50mm f/1.4D or G) or a speedlight with diffuser.

Any suggestion bros?

I am new to photography. Pardon me for such simple question.

[iamryansaw]

Why didnt you use your built in flash? d300 has manual flash settings. Maybe u could have use flash with just a little power (for the sake of ambience right?) to brighten your subject and also freeze and sharpen your subjects to a certain extend with the given shutter speed (1/20) , which i think is too slowly for your situation, or generally, for taking humans.

if you have to choose 1 between xternalflash or prime, i think a prime would be a better choice FIRST. Cause you can still use your built in flash. (which u can have control to a certain extend thanks to your model)

[viix]

Originally Posted by sliond Hi all, Recently i went to my friend's christmas and brought my D300 with 18-105 f/3.5-5.6 VR along. Noticing that her house was a bit dim (For the sake of the ambience), I used the largest aperture and push ISO to 3200, shutter speed at 1/20. However, Picture turned out to be blur although VR was turned on. My friend suggested to get either a prime lens (50mm f/1.4D or G) or a speedlight with diffuser. Any suggestion bros? I am new to photography. Pardon me for such simple question.

A picture speaks a thousand words.. maybe post one with the exif data intact and we can reverse engineer the solution to you!
While a prime would work, a 50mm might be too restrictive for shot variety.

[boyboy]

Originally Posted by iamryansaw if you have to choose 1 between xternalflash or prime, i think a prime would be a better choice FIRST. Cause you can still use your built in flash. (which u can have control to a certain extend thanks to your model)

having two primes and a flash, i heartily disagree with ur statement.

for indoor photography, a flash is infinitely more useful than a fast prime. of course, no harm having both, and cheaper primes tend to be cheaper than a decent flash anyway. when u have no light, no prime is going to save the day for indoor snaps. if u are talking about proper photoshoot, then the argument is moot anyway.

for street photography or places with high ceilings, then yes, prime is good.

i only use the built in flash as a commander. if i'm caught without my external flash then maybe i'll use it in an emergency. but so far, my flash goes everywhere the camera body goes except the drybox

btw, i got my 50mm prime before my flash. and i recently bought a 35mm prime lens. i wish i got the 35mm first since i usually shoot cropped frame digital and 50mm is kinda too close up for general purpose. 50mm is only normal for film. but in any case, wider is always better unless one has something in mind. u can usually go closer, sometimes, u don't have room to step further back.

wider primes would cost much more so they are out of my budget

To TS, one suggestion that doesn't require you to buy anything. use slow shutter sync with your built in flash. that way, the subject can be seen with well-defined outline (there may be a bit of motion blur but the flash will "freeze" a distinct image), the background will have some exposure as well due to the slow shutter speed. but u gotta try this out and play with the shutter speed settings.

also, fire off several shots if u shoot slow shutter. that's a natural VR cos u are likely to get a shot without handshake with more tries. 1/20s up to 50mm is really very manageable with VR on. could be subject motion causing blur.

[Fotophilic]

Noticing that her house was a bit dim (For the sake of the ambience), I used the largest aperture and push ISO to 3200, shutter speed at 1/20.

Usually, lenses performs well (as in general sharpness of image) not at their largest aperture. Your image may appear softer. High ISO means more noise, even on D300. 1/20 is slow for shooting moving ppl, definitely. 1/20 may also not be enough to overcome your handshake blur.

However, Picture turned out to be blur although VR was turned on.

VR helps to counter your handshake blur. But it does not work wonders. It can only help a bit. VR cannot "stablise" moving subjects.

My friend suggested to get either a prime lens (50mm f/1.4D or G) or a speedlight with diffuser.

In general, your friend is right. To be more specific, your problem lies in your shutter speed. Both flash and prime can help you increase your shutter speed, when used correctly. For me, I WILL CHOOSE FLASH. I am ASSUMING you are interested in getting some normal day-day party shots.

Reasons for not choosing prime.
1) Until today, I find it a hassle to change lenses, especially when shooting events.
2) One focal length, you lose the ability to zoom. i.e. less flexiblility when compared to zoom.
3) To achieve higher shutter speed by increasing aperture size, you narrow your depth of field. i.e. you lose the ability to get more things "in focus" on your picture. Unless you are shooting only one person and wants to throw everything behind out of focus, narrow depth of field is not handy in this case. Note that this depends on what you are trying to acheive.

Reasons for choosing flash.
1) That's what Nikon is famous for right? Hahaha...
2) More light naturally allows higher shutter speed and use of smaller aperture. So you can get higher shutter speed, etc.
3) Wireless flash mode (slightly more advance liao, but good to learn)
4) Bouncing the flash off ceilings, etc. Direct flashes are harsh and causes shadows. i.e. ugly.

I know, there are some situations which you cannot use flash. An example is in the theatre. In this case, prime or F2.8 zooms will be a better option. But that is another story already.

To me, the best way to stop blur pictures is shutter speed and good camera holding technique. VR helps, but not alot. I old school one.

[MrJelly]

Originally Posted by sliond Hi all, Recently i went to my friend's christmas and brought my D300 with 18-105 f/3.5-5.6 VR along. Noticing that her house was a bit dim (For the sake of the ambience), I used the largest aperture and push ISO to 3200, shutter speed at 1/20. However, Picture turned out to be blur although VR was turned on. My friend suggested to get either a prime lens (50mm f/1.4D or G) or a speedlight with diffuser. Any suggestion bros? I am new to photography. Pardon me for such simple question.

well....at 1/20, sure will turn out blur. VR cant help. Furthermore, ur subject is human which means not stationary object.

The best solution is just get a speedlight with diffuser. With flash, shoot at 1/60 if ur subject not moving too much. If subject moves quite a lot, shoot at 1/80 or 1/100. I guarantee u wont get blur ones anymore unless ur hands are super shaky.

[shareoffroad]

nothing is perfect.

lens with large aperture will be essential for the sake of ambience.

the flash will get your better performance on particular photo objective esp. people.

[jnet6]

Get a speedlight SB900 you will find your pictures much better!

[geraldkhoo]

There are some possible reasons for a picture to be blur:
1. Handshake
2. Subject moved
3. Out of focus / out of the depth of field

VR is meant to take care of (1), but not (2). I've tried the 18-105VR lens, but not very impressed with the VR. I find the 18-200VR or 70-300VR better.

For (1) and (2), the simple solution is to have a faster shutter speed. To increase shutter speed, you can go with one or all of the following:
a. Bigger aperture (i.e. smaller f-number) to allow more light in.
b. Higher ISO.
c. Supply more light (e.g. switch on more house lights, use flash, etc.)

When using (a), you have to becareful of (3) if you use like f/1.4 where the depth of field is very thin.

When using (b), you are more prone to noise.

When using (c), you'll need to learn to control the light (e.g. diffuse, off camera, etc.).

[sin77]

wat u need is a D3.... hahaha...

Joke aside, I think u should get a flash (at least SB600).
To me it is the most basic item to get for photography hobby.
If not, you can try using the built-in flash.

That day i went orchard without my external flash unit.
So i use tissue paper wrap around my built-in flash and shoot portraits.

[Legoz]

Originally Posted by jnet6 Get a speedlight SB900 you will find your pictures much better!

Now that TS has more of less gotten the answers he needs... heres my thoughts...

D300's photos are great. I think TS cant appreciate it. hahahah.....

[sin77]

Originally Posted by shareoffroad nothing is perfect. lens with large aperture will be essential for the sake of ambience. the flash will get your better performance on particular photo objective esp. people.

i don agree.
I shoot alot of indoor photos with flash.
I use high iso + flash + diffuser.
All the pictures turn out very good, with warmth, but without shadow and harsh light on face.

i use high iso to capture the background behind the subjects (not referring to bokeh for single-subject portraits). A lot ppl have the mistake of using low iso because they thought since they have flash.
End up all the pics have dark background. Or if not, there is no warmth in the pic because they 'long-throw' their blu-ish flashlight.

However, not all cameras can use high iso (> or = 800).

[sin77]

Originally Posted by Legoz D300's photos are great. I think TS cant appreciate it. hahahah.....

Duno wat u talking.

[ch130176]

can create artificial ambience by putting on gel for flash?

actually another option is to use tripod since u can slow down shutter speed that much.

[sin77]

Originally Posted by ch130176 can create artificial ambience by putting on gel for flash? actually another option is to use tripod since u can slow down shutter speed that much.

use tripod at xmas party??? ok if it's for group photo.

[woodstock]

I'd recommend doing a bit of reading and digesting the stuff from this website. Then get yourself a SB600 and start making good pictures in dim situations.

[ch130176]

Originally Posted by sin77 use tripod at xmas party??? ok if it's for group photo.

oh i didn't know it's x'mas party! mind a bit blur to analyse the situation correctly. if u use 1/20 at f/3.5, then should be able to use a faster lens at 1/30 and f/2.8. that should be enough to shoot at 18mm lah~ so apparently it's the lens that matters.

but consider that most parties are held at night, even shooting with a lens with f/1.8 (most affordable one) it still won't be sufficient for great results as the environment is actually dimmer. so need supplement light.

the verdict is clear, isn't it?

[sliond]

Hey all...

Thanks for the prompt reply.

After going through all the suggestions, looks like the only way out is to try and try and try.

Tml will be another count down party at the same person's house with the same kind of mood i reckon. I will try my built in flash first then decides if i really need a prime or Speedlight.

THANKS ALOT GUYS.

[ortega]

i would go for a flash

[sin77]

Originally Posted by sliond Hey all... Thanks for the prompt reply. After going through all the suggestions, looks like the only way out is to try and try and try. Tml will be another count down party at the same person's house with the same kind of mood i reckon. I will try my built in flash first then decides if i really need a prime or Speedlight. THANKS ALOT GUYS.

Just remember to diffuse the light if it is too harsh.