camera settings

[henry07]

hey guys, Ive seen some photos where it looks like the person has drawn an image or written their name with a light in one shot.
does anyone know how to set your camera to do something like that?
its not photoshopped either

[Bigtime]

Do you have a DSLR?

[Table 5]

Sounds like a basic long exposure....set your camera on Bulb (might be a different setting, but basically with this the shutter is open on until you release it), and have it on for a long time (say 30-60 seconds) while you wave around a flashlight. You don't need a DSLR for this....just darkness.

[Maritime Q-Scout]

like Table 5 said it's the long exposure. If you have a standard point purchased in the last few years there's probably an "extended exposure" setting, or "starry sky" where you can set the exposure to be open 15, 30, or 60 seconds. A "night time scenery" may get you the effect you're looking for but it won't be a standard X amount of seconds of open shutter, which is what you want for your desired effect.

I love playing with the settings on my camera (Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ3) and last summer with the 60 second exposure on "starry sky" I took this:



it's still not an SLR, and the fireworks would have turned out better on a 15 second exposure I think, regardless you get the idea.

[REDVAN]

In order to do this you probably need a tripod or something to sit the camera on while the shutter is open. If you move it at all, your shot will be wrecked.

[Bigtime]

Yup, anything steady to put the camera on will work as well (table, chair, car hood).

[henry07]

thanks guys. I have a panasonic lumix LX3 I will try those settings out.
that pic looks pretty....pretty.....pretty..... pretty good.

[SebC]

This one's f/10 and 3 minutes. For some reason ISO isn't in the metadata though (at least not in Right Click -> Properties -> Details, although I'm sure there's a better way), so I don't know what is was... probably 100 or 200. Basically if you don't want to appear, you need a long exposure relative to the time you're actually drawing and dark clothes also help. If you're doing it right, you'll look like a bank robber. On the night I took this one I actually went back home to change from white to dark shoes.

Looked up your camera, you'll probably want to stick it in manual, 60 seconds, f/8 and ISO 80. If the background is too dark, bigger aperature (f/smaller) or higher ISO. Too bright, you'll need to cut down shutter speed and draw fast!

[wooohooo]

What did you use to draw that? A bright light? Did you just do it really fast and then run out of the picture? Didn't take any part of you in the picture? Really cool looking picture

[SebC]

Originally Posted by wooohooo

What did you use to draw that? A bright light? Did you just do it really fast and then run out of the picture? Didn't take any part of you in the picture? Really cool looking picture

Just an LED flashlight. Made sure to keep it pointed towards the camera. Actually I was sitting down and used myself as a reference while drawing, but dark clothes and having an exposure time much longer than the time I was in the photo makes me invisible. (And yes, it's SOOC - straight out of camera.)

[henry07]

thanks SebC. im fairly new to this so what do you mean by (60 seconds, f/8 and ISO 80)? how would i set the 60 sec? f/8 settings is where and what does that mean? I know how to adjust the ISO though

[SebC]

Originally Posted by henry07

thanks SebC. im fairly new to this so what do you mean by (60 seconds, f/8 and ISO 80)? how would i set the 60 sec? f/8 settings is where and what does that mean? I know how to adjust the ISO though

f/8 is aperture (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aperture - scroll down to "In Photography" section). Basically it's the size of the hole your camera lets in light through. It primarily affects two things: exposure and depth of field (how much of the photo is in focus). It's on a logarithmic scale though, so f/8 = small hole, while f/2.8 = big hole. Those are the max and min for your camera. f/8 lets you use a longer shutter time without making things too bright, though depending on how bright you want the background, you might be okay with a bigger aperture (smaller number).

Erm... I'm not sure how you actually adjust them on your camera, but they should show up on your LCD. You'll want to be in M (Manual) mode on the top dial. (Either that or "starry skies" mode, but I'm giving you instructions for M mode because I don't know what "starry skies" does.) You might need to change your display info, but it would be pretty silly to have an M mode that doesn't show shutter speed and aperture. If that's not enough info, you should be able to find everything you need in the owner's manual.

[henry07]

lol thanx SebC. was being lazy about it but i will play around with the settings.