... of fast lenses and low-light photography

... it was a hot, clear afternoon; tired after my shoot in the morning at FGS DongZen Temple at Jenjarom, Selangor; still conjured enough strength and determination to go ahead with shooting the largest Wesak float procession in Kuala Lumpur that starts at the Maha Vijaya Temple in Brickfields.

After struggling to find a good spot to park my car and then crossing the massive crowds outside the temple, I entered the temple proper. I was only armed with 2 lenses, 2 primes (to the unintiated, it means these lenses don't "zoom" and have a fixed focal length), a 24mm f/1.4 and a 50mm f/1.2. The 50mm sat snugly in the Sidelineshooter that I have strapped across my shoulder like a sling bag, with 8GB of memory cards and a single DSLR.... I went to "work".


Why did I choose these 2 focal lengths? The single over-ridding concern about shooting at low-light is... well... the light is low, it is often so low that you will want to sometimes get acceptable photos at shutterspeeds of around 1/10 or maybe even 1/5. So, it is best to have a wide-angle lens with you. And of course, being a "people" photographer, I love to shoot people and some details, what is the fastest lens that I can use for that purpose without wide-angle perspective distortion? It's a 50mm.

So... how does one go about shooting low-light? Just like any other types or condition that you would shoot in, think about the shots you want to shoot, figure out where and how to use your equipment to get them. Remember, every equipment has it's limitation, know their limits as well as your own limits and on events like these, it is often wise to think about your own safety as you will be shooting on the streets.

In low-light, it is often fun to play with a bit of panning or motion blur... and that shallow DOF & large apertures are your friends, do not be afraid to use them; just learn to use them creatively and remember, wide-angle lenses have a lot of DOF even at larger apertures and the further away you focus, the more DOF you get even at the same aperture settings.

.... stop worrying about getting deadly sharp photos and focus on capturing the various facets of the environment; the people, the sounds, the feelings... again, remember, your equipment are tools and they have limits, work around their limts...

... most importantly, Enjoy! If you are tensed up about something, your photos do and will show it.