Low lighting question

[mamarazzi_squared]

So, I went to a wedding last night and played with the creative side of the dial trying to figure out this whole low light thing.

I shot most of the pictures in AV mode at 50 mm f/1.8 and ISO of 800 / 1000 or so. The lighting was fairly low as it was an indoor reception. Should I be using the flash under these conditions or not? I did NOT use flash for most of the photos -- mostly beacause it does not come up automatically under the AV mode.

I can see noise in some of the photos (to be expected at the higher ISO) but they also have a yellowish tint. What is likely the cause of that?

Thanks for the help!

[bodynmotion]

I am no expert by any means, but in the Av mode, I don't think it prompts you for a flash. Also the yellowish tint could be from incandescent lighting. Could be corrected in CS3

[mamarazzi_squared]

I believe that you can use the flash in AV mode IF you turn the flash on, otherwise it will not pop up -- is that correct?

So, should I have changed the setting to incandescent to account for the lighting (in addition to changing the iso)?

What is CS3?

Thanks!

[iCe]

CS3- Creative Suite 3... Photoshop. You can deal with white balance issues in camera or in photoshop. Personally I prefer to set a custom white balance but that doesn't mean that I always do

Typically (not always) on camera flash looks like on camera flash... which anyone can do. You might consider picking up a 580EX if you are shooting Canon, add something like a "lightsphere" or "stofffen" put the camera on M, and play with it. It's the best way to learn how to use a flash.

[Digital Daddy]

When you use the Creative side you have to force the flash up. Yellow is from the incandescant lights. You can set your white balance to that setting, or shoot in raw and correct in photoshop ( very easy).

[Gordeez]

Originally Posted by Digital Daddy

When you use the Creative side you have to force the flash up. Yellow is from the incandescant lights. You can set your white balance to that setting, or shoot in raw and correct in photoshop ( very easy).

Thats the best and easiest and quickest way to fix the White Balance, IMO.

[MarcFromTheDark]

I would assume the tint is due to overexposure of colors in the shot since the shutter is open longer. Try setting your white balance to selected color frequency, and go really low, like 2000-3000. It should help fix the yellow (which is really red) and add more blue to even it out.

[Pikachu]

Originally Posted by mamarazzi_squared

So, I went to a wedding last night and played with the creative side of the dial trying to figure out this whole low light thing.

I shot most of the pictures in AV mode at 50 mm f/1.8 and ISO of 800 / 1000 or so. The lighting was fairly low as it was an indoor reception. Should I be using the flash under these conditions or not? I did NOT use flash for most of the photos -- mostly beacause it does not come up automatically under the AV mode.

I can see noise in some of the photos (to be expected at the higher ISO) but they also have a yellowish tint. What is likely the cause of that?

Thanks for the help!

Which camera body were you using?

[mamarazzi_squared]

I was using a 30D with a 50mm f/1.8 lens. I did not shoot the photos in RAW format, so I assume that means I can't change the white balance, etc now in photoshop now, correct? I know I can still mess with the sharpness, contrast, tones, etc.

[iCe]

Kind of but not really... you can't change the white balance but you can use a curves or levels layer and move the individual color channels (probably just red and blue) until it looks right or at least more right. If you aren't real proficient in CS2/3 or PS then try the levels layer first. It won't take much and since it's on a layer you won't harm the original (However I always back the original up and work off of the copy)

If all this talk of levels and curves doesn't make sense. one of the best books out there for learning to use Photoshop is The Photoshop CS2 Book for Digital Photographers. I have quite a few books but this one makes CS2 a lot easier to use and the examples that he uses are real world examples...

[Digital Daddy]

I assume you have PS. Go to image, adjustments, and try auto levels. Sometimes the auto stuff works, if not, you can undo. Also, like iCe says, work off a copy.

[mamarazzi_squared]

Well, I have PS Elements ...

I am not a begginer in elements but I would not call myself an advanced user by any stretch. I actually have the Scott Kelby book referenced above that was written for Elements. I will flip through it again tonight to see if he touches on any of this in the book, however, I don't recall this information being covered. No one has ever described the main differences between Elements and the full PS to me, so I am not sure what functionality I do not have.

[ngoduyviet]

Originally Posted by iCe

Kind of but not really... you can't change the white balance but you can use a curves or levels layer and move the individual color channels.....

Unless I'm mistaken, but the Curve function also allows you to change WB. If you use PS in Windows, hold down Ctrl + M will bring this Curve function window up. The eye-droppers will allow you to pick gray/white and/or dark point in your image to change its WB.

[iCe]

Originally Posted by ngoduyviet

Unless I'm mistaken, but the Curve function also allows you to change WB. If you use PS in Windows, hold down Ctrl + M will bring this Curve function window up. The eye-droppers will allow you to pick gray/white and/or dark point in your image to change its WB.

Good point... I wasn't sure where she was in her PS skills so I didn't go into white point / black point correction. That said, curves beats levels hands down.

Here's a pretty good explanation of White Balance and why a custom white balance (something I need to use more often) will typically beat an Auto white balance for image quality.