Tips for night photography?

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simus343
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Tips for night photography?

Post by simus343 »

Hey all.

I do a lot of night time herping around lakes near my house and photographs that I take of frogs never turn out well because the flash reflects off of the moisture on their skin and the picture gets whited out. Does anyone have any tips as how to get rid of this issue? Thanks.
MonarchzMan
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Re: Tips for night photography?

Post by MonarchzMan »

Diffusers will help greatly. You won't completely get rid of hotspots, but they won't be as large as a direct flash.
simus343
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Re: Tips for night photography?

Post by simus343 »

Alright thanks I'll have to give that a try.
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Stohlgren
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Re: Tips for night photography?

Post by Stohlgren »

Actually, the reflections will likely be larger with a softbox, as it creates a large surface of light, but the light is less harsh. Let us know what setup you are using and how you are using it, and we will be better able to address the situation. A couple example photos w/ associated camera settings would be great as well. Anyways, amphibians are tricky as their wet skin is prone to produce reflections. It helps to use an external flash off camera so you can control the angle of it and the resulting reflections. If you photos are washed out completely, it is likely that you are not using appropriate settings.
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Antonsrkn
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Re: Tips for night photography?

Post by Antonsrkn »

Posting some of the shots in question would help, But to echo the others... a diffuser is almost necessary when photographing wet amphibs

On a related note:
How much does a polarizing filter generally help with reflections in everyones experience? I have never had a polarizer so when I saw one on sale I picked it up and am planning on using it together with a diffused flash, I'm very curious as to how much it will help eliminate reflections?
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Stohlgren
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Re: Tips for night photography?

Post by Stohlgren »

To restate my point, I don't believe a diffuser is necessary when photographing amphibians. I have a bunch of photos taken without a diffuser that don't have huge issues with reflections. It is more about the angle of the light and the settings of the camera. A diffuser just tends to give softer lighting (and in general actually larger reflections).

Couple of shots taken without diffuser.
Image

Image
Antonsrkn wrote:On a related note:
How much does a polarizing filter generally help with reflections in everyones experience? I have never had a polarizer so when I saw one on sale I picked it up and am planning on using it together with a diffused flash, I'm very curious as to how much it will help eliminate reflections?
Never used one. There was an article that popped up on here a long time about about using polarizing filters on the camera and flashes to eliminate reflections all together. The results were a little creepy, but I don't know if anyone here ever tried it.
bgorum
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Re: Tips for night photography?

Post by bgorum »

I agree with Stohlgren. Getting the flash off of the camera and bringing the light in from an angle is the best way to avoid harsh reflections. It produces much more interesting lighting as well.

I'd post an example, but the new Flickr is driving me nuts!
simus343
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Re: Tips for night photography?

Post by simus343 »

Thanks all! I have a small LED light that I can make a crafted mount from some stuff around my house for, I'll try using that to put light in from an angle as suggested.
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chrish
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Re: Tips for night photography?

Post by chrish »

A polarizing filter will help reduce reflections somewhat, however amphibians are supposed to be shiny.

Here's the article that Stohlgren referred to by Will Herschberger - http://www.naturescapes.net/articles/te ... otography/

I actually bought some of the polarizing film and tried this myself. It works, but isn't really practical for the field as changing the position/angle of the flash requires repositioning the polarizer on the camera. It is a bit fidgety for field work, IMHO. And the results don't look as lifelike to me.
dthor68
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Re: Tips for night photography?

Post by dthor68 »

I have been back and forth on this topic for a couple of years. No doubt that the highlights are bad but the flat amphibian is just as bad. Other than toads and newts amphibians are suppose to be shiny. When you take that away from them, they look unreal. But, that seems to be the standard set by the "Photographers" of today, kinda like HDR.

I agree with diffuser idea and keeping the flash out of the hotshoe. I think you will be most pleased with those results. One other thing worth mentioning is to give yourself a little space between your flash and the diffusion material.
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