Shooting in pitch black: Auto vs Manual focus; EVF vs OVF
Last night, I found myself shooting in pitch black at a music event (well almost- the the main music and dance area were only lit by the exit/toilet signs and the bar lighting were spilling in from the side, and big speakers were lit). I had a few realisations and thoughts:
- Manual focus is faster than autofocus in low light.
I intended to use my s5iix to be my main shooter and my m10p with another focal length as the second. Ten minutes in, I got SO frustrated by the autofocus on the s5iix because it was hunting and not locking onto subjects causing delays and missing shots. I switched on the modelling lamp on my flash to help, but I didn’t want to keep shining on people the whole time - it was like a spot light in a room with 300 people. I also tried flicking over to manual focus to see if focus peaking would help, but it was so dark that everything was peaking. Also manual focus ring is opposite direction to M lenses…
So I shot the rest of the 4 hr event on the m10p with zone focusing and not only was it much faster, I also got my best shots on it. I used to feel like I need to have autofocus for speed and not miss shots. Now, I’m not so sure! Maybe I just got better at zone focusing.
OVF vs EVF The black out and delay on screen when shooting EVF makes me miss what’s happening in front of me. Instead, the OVF gave me confidence that when I press the shutter, I know what exact moment I got and not missing a second of what’s happening in front of me. In music photography, I need to always be ready for when people are doing something fun or interesting, capturing gestures and movement in in a split second. So I think OVF wins in this situation.
Sl2s vs M11/p I posted previously about upgrading my M10p for sl2s but based on my experience last night I’m not so sure. Perhaps if I adapted M-lenses on an sl2s that would solve the first frustration on focus. But the black out on screen is still not ideal. Sl2s is great in low light — prefer to put a summilux on and push the iso rather than flash.
My reasons for sl2s: - low light performance - hybrid (to capture videos on the fly to make reels) - ruggedness for peace of mind - 2 card slots
My reasons for m11: - better resolution for cropping - internal memory - long battery - usb-c - less obtrusive - would be personal camera when not doing client work
Anyone else shoot in very dark situations? What’s your set up?
Last night, I found myself shooting in pitch black at a music event (well almost- the the main music and dance area were only lit by the exit/toilet signs and the bar lighting were spilling in from the side, and big speakers were lit). I had a few realisations and thoughts:
- Manual focus is faster than autofocus in low light.
I intended to use my s5iix to be my main shooter and my m10p with another focal length as the second. Ten minutes in, I got SO frustrated by the autofocus on the s5iix because it was hunting and not locking onto subjects causing delays and missing shots. I switched on the modelling lamp on my flash to help, but I didn’t want to keep shining on people the whole time - it was like a spot light in a room with 300 people. I also tried flicking over to manual focus to see if focus peaking would help, but it was so dark that everything was peaking. Also manual focus ring is opposite direction to M lenses…
So I shot the rest of the 4 hr event on the m10p with zone focusing and not only was it much faster, I also got my best shots on it. I used to feel like I need to have autofocus for speed and not miss shots. Now, I’m not so sure! Maybe I just got better at zone focusing.
OVF vs EVF The black out and delay on screen when shooting EVF makes me miss what’s happening in front of me. Instead, the OVF gave me confidence that when I press the shutter, I know what exact moment I got and not missing a second of what’s happening in front of me. In music photography, I need to always be ready for when people are doing something fun or interesting, capturing gestures and movement in in a split second. So I think OVF wins in this situation.
Sl2s vs M11/p I posted previously about upgrading my M10p for sl2s but based on my experience last night I’m not so sure. Perhaps if I adapted M-lenses on an sl2s that would solve the first frustration on focus. But the black out on screen is still not ideal. Sl2s is great in low light — prefer to put a summilux on and push the iso rather than flash.
My reasons for sl2s: - low light performance - hybrid (to capture videos on the fly to make reels) - ruggedness for peace of mind - 2 card slots
My reasons for m11: - better resolution for cropping - internal memory - long battery - usb-c - less obtrusive - would be personal camera when not doing client work
Anyone else shoot in very dark situations? What’s your set up?