When the action happens at night, the type of camera can help you capture all the excitement. Here are a few tips
By Guinevere Sofer
From Halloween parades to clubbing with friends, many of these lifestyle activities and events that we attend occur at night.
Mobile phone cameras, although convenient, are terrible at capturing low-light photos. The images are usually very grainy and dark, and the colours are typically distorted.
Fortunately, many compact cameras, just as portable as mobile phones, are built to handle these low-light conditions with their larger sensors and lenses. Here are a few great examples of what you can get with the right equipment.
A. USE THE COLOURS OF THE NIGHT TO ADD DRAMA
Sometimes it’s best not to use the flash. In many popular areas, the artificial lights are enough to add drama.
Your compact digital camera gives you the ability to increase the exposure to allow more light in, and to capture more of the subtle tones and halo effects from the artificial lights.
B. ZOOM IN TO REDUCE THE DARKNESS
Don’t be afraid to zoom in to the action and make all the details come alive – with a good compact digital camera. It can capture fast moving objects better and sharper than phone cameras.
C. FILL IN THE LIGHT
With flash power control, it’s easy to adjust the right amount of light needed. In the example above, the front fill-in flash is balanced with the ambient light, creating an overall, well-lit, vibrant photo!
Most phone cameras don’t have these controls and will generally blast the subject’s face with full-on power.
D. ACTION AND MOTION
Motion blurs and light streaks add unexpected excitement into nightlife images. By setting a slower shutter speed, let the moving objects in your photo create action.
A good compact digital camera will allow you to have slower shutter speeds to capture motion, while its auto-stabilisation helps to prevent shaking.
Why don’t you try it out ?
ADVERTISEMENTS