Advice required! Photographing a children's performance at 2pm today!

Hi All,

I am a newbie to this forum. Hoping someone can help me before 2pm today!

I have a Nikon D90 camera and the lens that I plan to use today is a Nikon 28-300mm 1:3.5-5-5.6.

I managed to 'finally' stop using automatic about a year ago, but I seem to have lost my confidence and when put on the spot I panic and find myself flicking back to auto mode - which is very frustrating!

This afternoon I have been asked (as a favour) to photograph a stage school performance. There will be about 25 children - moving and dancing around. Not much natural light (if any as they will likely close the curtains). Stage lights will be used (so I am worried about yellow looking photos).

So... I know I will have to probably crank up my ISO - and will need a fast shutter speed (over 250?) to stop blurry photos - and I guess I need a highesh F stop (8f ?) to make sure everyone is in focus. I still struggle pulling this information all together (hoping it comes naturally to me one day! My problem with this situation is that I am worried with the above combination that my photos will be too dark unless I have a super high ISO - which will then result in grainy pics?

My other issue is that I am not sure how to focus my camera (which settings to use). I think that I should be using AF-C but I am used to shooting AF-S - it beeps when I lock focus and off I go. When I use AF-C it doesn't beep! Can some explain to me about the AF-area mode? Should I be using Dynamic area or auto area? I normally focus (using the middle focus point - push the shutter half down and then recompose)

I have actually read my manual (believe it or not) but this information just doesn't pull together for me easily!

If anyone can point me in the right direction so that I can come out with some half decent photos this afternoon I will be extremely grateful! Or if there are any good website / blogs explaining focussing.

Thank you!

​Michelle

Welcome to the forum...

Welcome!

To get you started before I have to head to work, you may need a faster shutter speed than 1/250 to counter camera shake when you're shooting on the long end of your 28-300mm. Unless you're using a tripod, then disregard.

As far as your concern about dark photos, you'll have to decide what's more important to you. Crank up the ISO, but accept more noise, or open up the aperture and accept a smaller DOF. Maybe a combination of both. Try to get closer, so you aren't reducing your DOF further by using the long end of the zoom. I'd probably go the ISO route first. I don't know how the D90 performs at high ISO, but I've always considered it more desirable to have a noisy photo that's in focus than a clean photo that's blurry or grossly underexposed.

For the focus lock, does the D90 have an in-finder focus indicator? That's what I use. I've never had the focus confirmation beep turned on. You may also be able to set the camera so it won't release the shutter unless it's in focus. Some D90 owners can chime in on if that's possible.

Good luck!

Thank you Mike. Good advice about getting closer - I will try that as I am photographing the rehearsal so not concerns about getting in the way of anyone! Have a good day and thanks for your time

Do you shoot raw? If not, today might be the day to try raw + jpg. Raw to give you more room to fix exposure problems and white balance.
I am no expert, but I would shoot shutter priority to insure my shutter never got too slow. (I'm assuming no flash) Use whatever ISO is required to get the shot. Matrix metering and auto area focus unless you have a particular character you need to follow. In that case, I would single point focus and possibly spot meter. Remember shutter priority to keep that shutter to 1/focal length or even higher if there is any motion to stop. Crank the iso up as needed for a happy exposure. Crank it up a little more if you need to get the aperture stopped down a bit for more depth of field. Aperture is your second priority though, first priority is to be sure you don't have blurry pics from slow shutter speed. Hopefully you have enough light to get both shutter and aperture where you want them. Don't worry so much about noise, that can be fixed to some extent. Blurry can't be fixed.

Get to the performance area a little early to scope out the situation if you can, do some test shots and what not. Doing so could really help you get a better grip on the lighting situation. If it were me, I'd shoot this using Aperture Priority, keeping my shutter speeds at or around 1/125 to 1/250 and metering in "Matrix". The D90 supports "Auto ISO" so I'd let it! Same with white balance: Auto. For Auto Focus I'd probably use AF-S, be prepared to move my focus point and just deal with it. These setting should allow you to pay strict attention, more or less, on focus and composition.

Histograms are a tool that, used correctly, can really help you bring home proper exposure. Learning to understand them should take about ten minutes; it ain't rocket-surgery. I'll even get you started... Luminous Landscape to the rescue! How to Understand Historgrams

Did I see that you were shooting the rehearsal? If so and you can walk around then use a shorted zoom and that will give you a better chance of shooting without blur.

You will need to shoot RAW + JPEG so that you can use the RAW file to fix the White Balance after the fact.

Just to add to what's been said only because I recently ran into this. The curtain color/backdrop will also play a key role. If its a black curtain or dark backdrop then it will overexpose your pictures. Definitely take test shots and ask if the lights will be the same during the rehearsal. ISO up, shutter speed as fast as you can get it to prevent blur. I had issues that I wasnt expecting shooting an f/4 lens. if you can get your hands on a faster lens then I would go that route or get really close and make sure you use the widest aperture you can obtain with your current lens. Due to uncertainty I would shoot RAW so you can adjust white balance and remove noise easier in your post-processing.

The event I shot was an awards ceremony and I wasn't happy with my results, but I learned a lot. Also if your going to be in one spot I would take a tripod or monopod to steady the camera.

Good luck, you have great advice from great people. Take your time, take your test shots and try to enjoy the performance.

Use a monopod so you will have more mobility but steadier shots than handheld. You didn't mention it but, since a rehearsal, why no flash? Might get the kids used to flashes if cameras allowed during the actual performance (proud parents). Best advice - relax! Use the skills you have; it appears you know how to use your camera, trust your instincts.

How did it go Michelle?