Extremely Low Light Shots!!!??? help

Kendo556

Kendo556

Active member
ok so heres my problem im shooting a short documentary on Graffiti and im shooting with the dvx 100 i am goin to be getting alot of shots in really low light areas i would like to know if there is a lens or adapter or something in camera i can do to get shot of the artist doin there work. any information will help
thanks guys :dankk2:
 
Best option is to use some light. Second best option is to put the camera on a tripod, turn off the shutter, shoot interlaced, and use every other trick to get as much light on those imagers you can.

The DVX is awesome, and I love mine, but no camera does well without light.
 
Assuming you are covering some covert activities and you can't really use extra lights... there are a couple things you could do.

First, no ND, obviously.

Second, manual IRIS all the way OPEN.

Third, shoot with the zoom a Z00. Once you start to zoom in, the iris closes and you lose light. You might be able to zoom in to Z25 or so without the iris closing, but any further than that and you're losing light.

Four, gain is not a terrible thing. It's better to be able to tell your story even if there is some noise than have noise-free pictures of blackness. If you lower your DETAIL setting and increase your CORING setting, it will combat some of the noise of that GAIN will create. Put DETAIL at -7, and you should be able to GAIN up to +6 or +12 (I don't even mind +12).

Five, if you are really desparate, switch to a 1/24 shutter. This used to be a huge no-no, and it will causing smeering/streaking, but it will immediately double the light hitting the lens.... or shoot in interlaced mode which will also double the light.

BTW, how are you protecting the camera from paint in the air? I hope you have a UV filter on the lens, and maybe more on the camera.

Hey, if none of this works, then get a consumer cam with night-vision infrared mode. With documentaries, it's OK to use a lot of different kinds of sources. As long as the story is good, the quality is nearly irrelevant.
 
Joshua, I wasn't aware the DVX had a coring setting. Mine certainly doesn't. Was this added later? I know the HVX has it.
 
I have used 1/24th of a second regularly, unless its fast moving camera or subject, it is pretty clear. I have had a hard time trying to get the streak effect.
 
yea i forgot to put in there that i cant have extra like the activities im doin cant be seen, and yes this is for a school documentary, joshua good advice an yes i do has a UV filter on my camera but normally im a good 5-10 feet away from my subject but when i am able to get close up shots i cover it with a plastic bag that i rigged as a rain cover.

and today i was researching while i was at work and i came across IR Illuminators that cant be seen by the naked eye if you get one that uses the right IR light not a cheap one. has anyone tried to use on of these im trying to avoid the option of a night vision lens because if it comes to that i will be S.O.L

thanks
 
I don't know which DVX you have, but if you can, use SLOW SHUTTER, and you can get down to 1/4.

OR,

If it were me, I would borrow one of those sony's with the Nightshot. It'll look all cool and green too.
 
Another option is you can use the Slow Shutter function to obtain more light in the shots, But either way you need light.
 
PerroneFord said:
Joshua, I wasn't aware the DVX had a coring setting. Mine certainly doesn't. Was this added later? I know the HVX has it.
Click to expand...

Hm, maybe not on the original model? I have the B model and have used the A model, and I believe both had CORING option in the scene file. DETAIL is the more important setting in combatting noise, but CORING also helps.
 
Kendo556 said:
and today i was researching while i was at work and i came across IR Illuminators that cant be seen by the naked eye if you get one that uses the right IR light not a cheap one. has anyone tried to use on of these im trying to avoid the option of a night vision lens because if it comes to that i will be S.O.L

thanks
Click to expand...

If I remember correctly, 3-chip cameras like the DVX just don't see IR light.
 
to YEEHAAA i have the B model how do i turn on the slow shutter option i did not know i had that

an iain.bason i could be wrong but i remember reading something about camera and video cameras being able to see IR light i would be curious to know for sure
if they can see IR light i would be willing to spend like 200$ on a IR illuminator if i know it will do the job and not be seen
 
DVX as an IR filter, so it does not see IR light well. Most pro cams do not see IR well. You have to pick up a consumer cam like a Sony to get Night Vision features.
 
How to access the slow shutter on the DVX100a/B


1. Access your menu and assign "slow shutter" to "User 1": menu>SW MODE>USER1>YES>SLOWSHUT. (You will only have to do this step once)

2. Exit the menu

3. Turn off the Shutter speed: push the shutter button near the "speed sel" button.

4. Push the "user1" button (near the ND filters) and voila!


You can toggle between the different shutter speeds but pushing the "speed select" button repeatedly.

*In 60i: 1/4, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30.
*In 24P: 1/6, 1/12.
*In 30P: 1/4, 1/8, 1/15.


I hope this helps!
 
yea joshua i was think of buying or finding someone with a crappy cam with night vision
but i dont really want to spend money and buelusa thanks for that info i tried it jsut in a dark area and its a noticable diffrence i havnt gone out and tested it on a shoot yet but i think this will give just that last little bit of light to get what i want. i will post footage soon!! but since we are on the subject of low light shots what are some things other people have done on there own to get decent shots in low light???
 
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