Outdoor Monolight: I have a sharpness problem that I'm not sure how to solve. Used a monolight to expose dog but had to set camera exposure for dark forest. Settings: ISO 400, f 10...

Golden Rule Loc: Washington State

I have a sharpness problem that I'm not sure how to solve. Used a monolight to expose dog but had to set camera exposure for dark forest. Settings: ISO 400, f 10 aperture, and .4 shutter speed and used a tripod. I know shutter is the problem but I had to have the forest exposure so the background was not black. Any suggestions on how not to make this mistake again?

This is how most of the shots came out

(Download)

This is the only one that was halfway decent but still not as sharp as I'd like

(Download)

larryepage Loc: North Texas area

Golden Rule wrote:

I have a sharpness problem that I'm not sure how to solve. Used a monolight to expose dog but had to set camera exposure for dark forest. Settings: ISO 400, f 10 aperture, and .4 shutter speed and used a tripod. I know shutter is the problem but I had to have the forest exposure so the background was not black. Any suggestions on how not to make this mistake again?

Actually, these are very nice. I agree that some movement of the dog has limited sharpness. The grapes and the front of the basket are close to perfect. My first question would be around whether your camera would have allowed you to use an ISO of, say, 1200. That would let you drop the exposure time to just over .1 second. You would have to make sure noise was still acceptable, and that reduction of dynamic range didn't cost too much shadow definition.

To me, there comes a point where some movement of a live subject is just a by-product of portraying a living being. It can be best to embrace it rather than fighting it.

13 Loc: I am only responsible to what I say..not what

Great shots!!!

luvmypets Loc: Born & raised Texan living in Fayetteville NC

OMG!! That is just adorable!! I absolutely love#2!! I know that you are having exposure issues but the cuteness outweighs it.

Dodie

Golden Rule Loc: Washington State

Thanks for the compliments. Anyone have any suggestions on a sharper image for using a light on a subject and exposing for a darker background? I don't like the grainy results of a higher than 400 ISO on my Nikon D750.

Grahame Loc: Fiji

Golden Rule wrote:

I have a sharpness problem that I'm not sure how to solve. Used a monolight to expose dog but had to set camera exposure for dark forest. Settings: ISO 400, f 10 aperture, and .4 shutter speed and used a tripod. I know shutter is the problem but I had to have the forest exposure so the background was not black. Any suggestions on how not to make this mistake again?

I'm unclear as to what you consider a "sharpness problem"? There are parts within the image, mostly seen around the basket that are absolutely sharp, some may even consider too sharp. There are a few areas around the dog fur that appear as if there was wind/movement but that would not be a sharpness problem but movement that could be arrested with a faster shutter speed.

What did you focus on?

With respect to settings, I would question whether you wanted/needed the deep DoF, and if not you could have gained some speed and/or drop in ISO. A reduction in DoF would have isolated the dog and reduced the business of the scene, just an option.

For info, I downloaded both images and looked at them in PS at only 1:1.

Golden Rule Loc: Washington State

Grahame wrote:

I'm unclear as to what you consider a "sharpn... (show quote)

You are right, I am asking the wrong question. Better put is how do I expose for the background and apply a flash to the subject without having movement blur? Is there such a procedure? I thought about DoF and decided to go with long just in case that was a better preference. I could always somewhat blur the background in LR.

joecichjr Loc: Chicago S. Suburbs, Illinois, USA

Golden Rule wrote:

I have a sharpness problem that I'm not sure how to solve. Used a monolight to expose dog but had to set camera exposure for dark forest. Settings: ISO 400, f 10 aperture, and .4 shutter speed and used a tripod. I know shutter is the problem but I had to have the forest exposure so the background was not black. Any suggestions on how not to make this mistake again?

Spectacular - and really gorgeous color and light 💓💓✨💓💓

Grahame Loc: Fiji

Golden Rule wrote:

You are right, I am asking the wrong question. Better put is how do I expose for the background and apply a flash to the subject without having movement blur? Is there such a procedure? I thought about DoF and decided to go with long just in case that was a better preference. I could always somewhat blur the background in LR.

Great, that makes things clearer.

Your only option is to try and obtain a shutter speed for the background as close as you can to freezing any movement of the dog/fur. This is going to be dependent upon time of day and ambient light level you choose. It will also be dependent upon the minimum DoF you will accept along with the amount of noise due to high ISO you can accept and deal with. This is not easy and compromises are required.

Once you have determined this, the fill light for the dog is just a matter of getting the level you want.

The problem is that if there is movement you will get two exposures on the dog, one for ambient and the other for flash. If no movement great, slight movement and it may not be noticeable. I would take a number of shots and pick the best.

Another gain would be to put the dog in shade so that ambient light has less affect on it and the flash which will freeze movement is more prominent. Balancing the two may be possible in post.

Curmudgeon Loc: SE Arizona

Fun shots. The Ghost Dog would have taken my arm off at the shoulder if I tried that. Goldens are have a totally different attitude

Grahame Loc: Fiji

Golden Rule wrote:

I could always somewhat blur the background in LR.

Out of curiosity I used the new Blur tool in ACR/LR on one of your images, impressive.

tcthome Loc: NJ

Cool dog! Deserves some more treats. Rais the iso! =increase the shutter.

rcarol

larryepage wrote:

Actually, these are very nice. I agree that some m... (show quote)

I agree. These are great photos, particularly number 1. I would prefer that you think about all of the things that are right about these images rather than dwelling on what might be wrong.

cjones405 Loc: Waterville, WA

That's one patient pooch! I'm no help, but I love dogs!

PaulBrit Loc: Merlin, Southern Oregon

cjones405 wrote:

That's one patient pooch! I'm no help, but I love dogs!

Me too! I find these brilliant photographs.