Inon D2000 help

[ReyeR]

Thanks for the hands on teaching. The owners manual sets the ISO at standard 100 and I would have proably followed that ISO setting. I assume the reason you can bump the shutter speed to 1/125 or 1/250 is because of iso 64.

On the contrary when you lower the ISO you need more light so you will need to use a slower shutterspeed. But remember, the above camera settings are for strobe dominated photography. This assumes that your subject will be within the strobe's range and it will be the primary source of illumination. In strobe or flash photography shutterspeeds of 1/125 or 1/250s will make no difference to the strobe exposure as a strobe will go on and off way faster than 1/125 or 1/250s*. What the fast shutterspeed will do is eliminate blurring from camera or subject movement, giving you sharp pictures.
Again, because your subject is well within the strobe's range you will have plenty of light. For this reason you should use the lowest ISO to keep the sensor's noise at its minimum. The higher the ISO, the higher the noise level in your recorded image.

Does the ISO matter if I am using a wide angle lense and/or is there a special settup for WA.

The ISO matters if you are using ambient light only (no strobe). A higher ISO will mean you can use faster shutterspeeds or smaller apertures. For example, if a particular shot at ISO 64 will be properly exposed at 1/30s and f/2.8, and you increase the ISO to 100 then you have the option of increasing your shutterpeed to 1/50 giving you a better chance of freezing any motion. But remember the higher the ISO, higher the noise.

If you want to understand shutterspeeds, apertures, ISO and strobe exposure have a look at this site: Dave Read's Exposure 101

Alex Mustard also has a hands-on article on the D-2000 in Issue 23, page 27 of the UWPMag (free, downloadable PDF): uwpmag.com

*you may find that at very high shutterspeeds, 1/500 and faster, it may start affecting strobe exposure

 

[steve367]

I have made a notebook on everything you have told me. Thanks again.

 

[herman]

Thanks for the education ReyeR.
On the shutter speed, isn't 1/125 a little too fast if you want med to light blue backrounds? I know it depends a lot on ambient light but seem like I had to shoot in the 1/80 to 1/100 range to get the blue backrounds I like. I set the speed based on the LCD and a quick review of a test shot.

On the flash, if he wants to shot in supermacro mode, he will have to change the setting to slave and shoot in manual if he wants either strobe to fire. I don't recall if you can the flash to slave in A or S modes.

 

[steve367]

ReyeR. I read Dave's Exposure 101 like you suggested. Great article I learned alot about shutter speed and aperature distance and how they work together. I had a little trouble on the light metering. The author suggested take a reading in blue water and set your shutter and aperature. He mention +/- on the meter could you explain. He also suggested I know the guide # for the strobe I believe the D2000 is 39. He also suggested that a beginner photographer might be better served to start in aperature mode rather then manual. mainly because its easier and less to think about. I thought I would try both. Can I use the aperature setting in STTL and settup like you told me for manual. Thanks.

 

[ReyeR]

Thanks for the education ReyeR.
On the shutter speed, isn't 1/125 a little too fast if you want med to light blue backrounds? I know it depends a lot on ambient light but seem like I had to shoot in the 1/80 to 1/100 range to get the blue backrounds I like. I set the speed based on the LCD and a quick review of a test shot.

Correct. This is right for 'balanced' or 'mixed' light photography. That is why I stressed above: the settings are for 'strobe dominated' photography. But you are absolutely correct - for mixed light photography use the shutter speed to control the ambient light. Slower shutter speeds will let in more ambient light and give you blue-er backgrounds, faster shutter speeds will give you black-er backgrounds. But remember that slow shutter speeds means the possibility of blurring from camera or subject movement.
If fact you can use the aperture to let in more ambient light too - by opening the aperture. But opening the aperture will also affect the Depth of Field (DOF) and, if you are using manual strobe operation, you will need to reduce your strobe's output as well (this will be done automatically if you are using TTL). So, in mixed light photography, it's a matter of balancing all these factors to get the most pleasing result.

On the flash, if he wants to shot in supermacro mode, he will have to change the setting to slave and shoot in manual if he wants either strobe to fire. I don't recall if you can the flash to slave in A or S modes.

Correct, but it can't be done on-the-fly (underwater) as the magnet in the D-2000 will need to be installed so the Advanced Cancel Circuit is turned off. Slave flash is available in A and M shooting mode.

Steve367, I hope this isn't confusing you. On the other hand, if I have made an incorrect assumption of your skill level please don't take offence to it.... :blush:

 

[ReyeR]

I had a little trouble on the light metering. The author suggested take a reading in blue water and set your shutter and aperature. He mention +/- on the meter could you explain.

As explained in my previous post, do this for balanced light photography. With the C5050 in Manual mode and the D-2000 in S-TTL, meter the background by pointing the camera at it and adjust the shutterspeed and aperture till the meter reading on the top right corner of the display reads '0.0'. This means that your camera will now correctly expose the background given the amount of ambient light present. Then re-compose your shot, aim the strobe and take the photo.

See the picture of the Flamingo Tongue (page 29) in Alex Mustard's article in the UWPmag PDF (issue 23) I mentioned previously. Notice the blue background behind the fan? Here's what he would have done: (i) determined that since it was a macro shot and he's using a macro lens, Depth of Field (DOF) would be an issue, so he set the aperture to F/8 to maximise the DOF; (ii) he wanted to balance the strobe lighting with that of the available ambient light so he metered according to the background. Since the aperture has been set for maximum DOF, his only option was to adjusted the shutter speed till it read '0.0', in this instance it was 1/40s (in reality he probably deliberately underexposed the background and metered a '-0.3' or a '-0.7 to achieve a deeper, more saturated blue); (iii) he would have then re-composed, aimed the strobe correctly and let it to its job - lighting the subject (as it's well within the strobe range) and bringing the beautiful reds back in the foreground; (iv) he would have had hold the camera really still and gently release the shutter because of the slow shutter speed - due to the high magnification, any camera movement would be magnified too.

To convert the same shot to a strobe dominated picture all you needed to do is change the shutter speed to a fast one, like 1/250s or even 1/400s, giving the ambient light no opportunity to be recorded on the sensor, and the blue background in the shot would become black and cyan bits on the fan lit by the strobe, giving you a totally different (strobe dominated) effect.

He also suggested I know the guide # for the strobe I believe the D2000 is 39.

If you are using the D-2000 in S-TTL then knowing the guide number is not critical, except maybe to know the furtherest your strobe will reach underwater.

If you are using manual strobe control then it is useful to know the guide number and understand it's relationship with strobe-to-subject distance and aperture - but most digital photographers manage just fine without it. Remember that Dave's article was written for film cameras. With digital and the ability to review the picture instantly, most photographers make a 'guestimate' of the strobe power, take the picture, review it, and adjust the strobe output if it is under or over exposed. With experience you will be able to judge distance and set the correct strobe output for the camera settings you have chosen intuitively.

 

[Wolverine]

I have to admit this is really educational.. it should be made into a sticky thread to help novice photographers on the effects of ambient light and strobe light. Bravo!

:wave-smil

 

[ReyeR]

He also suggested that a beginner photographer might be better served to start in aperature mode rather then manual. mainly because its easier and less to think about. I thought I would try both. Can I use the aperature setting in STTL and settup like you told me for manual. Thanks.

Yes, use the same settings (Fill-in flash mode) in Aperture Priority mode for strobe dominated photography. For balanced light photography try :lightning SLOW flash mode. For ambient light photography turn the camera's flash off.

IMO if you are going to bother to fiddle with Aperture settings in Aperture Priority mode it isn't that much harder to go full Manual shooting mode. It will give you far better control and results:

• start with 1/125s or 1/250s and F5.6: this will take care of most of your fish portraits
• use the aperture to control the DOF, where you need more e.g. macro photography close the aperture to F/8, for less open the aperture
• for blue-er backgrounds (or more ambient light) slow the shutter speed, for black backgrounds (more strobe influence) select a faster shutterspeed

HTH and I haven't confused you.

 

[steve367]

Special thanks to ReyR for the education you gave me on the UW photography in general and the D2000. I can't think of any more questions so I guess I will digest all the information I have received and head for the Cayman Islands to practice my new UW skills. Thanks again

 

[herman]

You do realize you are now obligated to post pictures don't you?