Help! Nightspot photography on a D3000...!

Hey Nikonites!!

Camera3000 with 18-55 lens
Extras: None

So I have a D3000 and am a bit into amateur photography lately! Although I have relied far too much on auto mode (shame on me...) coz I haven't had any guidance as to what else to do. One time my friend helped me alter ISO settings in low light for a sunset shot but thats about it.

Next week I'm supposed to be taking pictures for my Law Society Booze Cruise through Melbourne Yarra River. Ummm .... freak out! Quite interested in getting into nightspot photography so would love some good shots to use as a portfolio type thing. Assuming there will be some average lighting in areas inside the boat however also some areas of 'night club' type lighting as well as areas of dark outdoor lighting (on the deck).

Any advice is much appreciated! Should I be buying a flash attachment ? (though really couldnt afford one for a lil while due to uni budget stuff)

Thanks heaps

You'll need to set your ISO minimum sensitivity to ISO 100 and max ISO to 1600.

Get a tripod if you can and decrease your shutter speed in order to lower your ISO setting but you'll get some blur if the subject moves. \

Welcome to the forum.

If you're going to take pictures of people on the boat having fun, a flash would be nice to use so you can keep the iso down. If you're thinking of taking shots of the view from the boat, it could get trickier as the boat will be moving and it might be very difficult to get clean shots. A monopod could help but it all depends on how fast the boat is moving and how choppy is that river.

And one thing to remember, the more you'll drink, the fuzzier the pictures…

Try using the Night Portrait Scene mode on your 3100, since you're short on time to learn technique. Look for this icon on the big Mode Dial on your camera:

Night Portrait Mode



In Night Portrait mode, the D3100 adjusts the aperture and lowers the shutter speed so that the subject and background are well lit. The slower shutter speed allows more light to hit the image sensor which effectively brightens the background, getting rid of the “black background” effect when using flash in low light. You can adjust the ISO manually or set it to auto. For now I would suggest you leave the ISO setting on "Auto".

I recommend using night portrait mode indoors and outdoors during nighttime hours. In dark situations, enable Auto ISO and set the flash to auto + slow sync. This will allow you to get more natural looking exposures in low light situations. If you have access to a tripod it will greatly reduce the likelihood of camera shake, resulting in sharper photos.

The pop-up flash will get you through for small jobs but not much more. A really good flash unit I can highly recommend the Yongnuo YN-468 II. It costs a fraction of what you'd pay for Nikon-branded flash units and performs like a champ! Get this diffuser for it (trust me, you'll want this) and your strobe needs are covered. Links go to Amazon, stateside, but this strobe is available everywhere.

All these tips were so helpful, thanks guys!
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