Low light test? How about NO light test, with Voigtlander 25mm?

be cool if it went form pitch black to lit up as you would have no one questioning the lighting source, as well as putting it in the shot if not for a moment, but either way very interesting..... I want that lens!
 
Barry_Green said:
So, what... two candles and 1600 ISO? Heh. Four candles and 800 ISO?

The Noktor has been reviewed by several folks who say it does get soft when wide open. We used the Nokton 50mm (which opens to f/1.1) in "A Verse Before Dying".
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Actually, we used the Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f1.1 on the shoot, with the Leica to M4/3 adapter (thanks, LensRentals!). This is the lens we used…
http://www.cameraquest.com/voigt_5011.htm

And this is the "Noktor" HyperPrime that goes all soft wide open…
http://noktor.com/products.php
 
S. Matthews said:
be cool if it went form pitch black to lit up as you would have no one questioning the lighting source, as well as putting it in the shot if not for a moment, but either way very interesting..... I want that lens!
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what's the screencap from your avatar taken with? Looks like a similar candle test to barry's
 
it is haha, that's where my suggestion came from, I did one of those pitch black background ones, lit with a lighter at points and a single red bird match at other points. But I let it go pitch black before lighting it up, made it hard to get right especially by myself, so yeah I guess that's where my suggestion spawned from... *loosens collar*...... so I can understand if I'm told to go..... well it's the holidays so..... but yeah anyways was trying to add my biased opinion.

Oh and the camera is the gh-1 hacked in avchd, at ISO 640 and I believe that shot is lit with a large bic lighter in the process of lighting, it was a test to see what my camera could do in a similar situation to Phillip blooms low light test of the pre-production model af100 he had.

p.s. if you would like to see the video PM me and you can see the link or check my history, as this is Barry's test thread
 
So when does the challenge begin? :) Do we post in this thread?


New version - way under exposed - way cooler.
ISO 3200 "Cinema" profile for lower noise. Shooting into mirror for extra bounce.

Only f1.8 as that's the sharpest thing I've got at that aperture. Oh and LA7200 with +1 Diopter.


Need the 25mm now. Credit Card is ready, just need a place to buy it!

That is candle-dancing bokeh from the aluminum foil reflecting back into the mirror
 
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Difficulty is, as the same with lighters and matches as well, is that most T light candles burn at different brightnesses(especially depending on how long they have been burning the wax used and if it has been used before, though I assume anyone doing a test can splurge on a new T candle), the most consistent test would be to use a source that is low in light emission but constantly puts out the same intensity no matter the unit, Red did this and had people use a specific Iphone app which made it easier to reproduce results from different shooters and camera's.

Considering your mirror set up, without seeing your exact set up, and having similar sized mirrors, it would be hard to replicate. Hence the reason why the sole light source works well as a comparison though still far from perfect, I guess any test is helpful (to an extent) and any comparison despite inconsistent variables can still be useful in rough comparisons.

well here is to hoping my neighbors cut the bass so I can finish shooting my Christmas present for my family, I only need a few more scene's.... come on Christmas miracle.
 
S. Matthews said:
Considering your mirror set up, without seeing your exact set up, and having similar sized mirrors, it would be hard to replicate..
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Very true. I would do a wider angle, but that is the only spot I can focus at f1.8 with a +1 diopter. With anamorphics it gets really wonky to shoot faster than 2.8. Focus has to be controlled solely by the diopter.

I can't even get 2 minutes of consistent light with an oil lamp to do low light testing across multiple cameras.
 
I guess any test is helpful (to an extent) and any comparison despite inconsistent variables can still be useful in rough comparisons
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There's nothing to be accomplished or proven by this exercise. This is just something fun to do... what can you do with one candle? That's all. No need to standardize anything or whatnot, just ... be creative, stretch your imagination, etc. I didn't want the typical one-light look, I wanted three-point lighting. I couldn't get it; I couldn't figure out how to get a decent hairlight* and a strong key both out of one candle. I could get a good key and fill, and a little bit of backlight, so that's what I went with. I've been thinking of trying to get an old empty PAR can, putting the candle in it, and shining it halfway through a silk and halfway onto the background, so I can maybe get a minorly decent soft key and still have some left over to hit the background. To me the ultimate goal would be a softlit interview setting that somebody would have no idea was shot by one light source, much less one candle!

*hairlight has a potentially very negative connotation when talking about candles... practice safety first!
 
Barry... I just picked up the .95 with a buddy.... I will p shoot something next week and throw in my .02. However,it wasn't specified how big of a candle.... I'm going to have a frankenstein style torch/candle. .... muaaaaahhhh Or maybe I'll stick to the rules.... I might do some slider low light stuff...


I love the voigtlander... built like a tank.
 
I'm thinking a used coffee can would work great as a candle holder. At .95, I'd like to try placing the can behind the subject as a *hairlight* and then bouncing from the front.
 
I'm going to have a frankenstein style torch/candle.
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Well, obviously a torch or a road flare doesn't count; we're talking about candles here. The things with wicks, and wax? The type of thing that, at one foot, can be measured as giving off "one footcandle" of light... so, yeah, that's what we're working with. One footcandle. So, yeah, no cheating by lighting the same candle at both ends... the only allowed source of illumination is one individual flame, one candle. However you can stretch, bend, redirect, or bounce that one footcandle, that's the fun part.
 
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Barry_Green said:
There's nothing to be accomplished or proven by this exercise. This is just something fun to do... what can you do with one candle? That's all. No need to standardize anything or whatnot, just ... be creative, stretch your imagination, etc. I didn't want the typical one-light look, I wanted three-point lighting. I couldn't get it; I couldn't figure out how to get a decent hairlight* and a strong key both out of one candle. I could get a good key and fill, and a little bit of backlight, so that's what I went with. I've been thinking of trying to get an old empty PAR can, putting the candle in it, and shining it halfway through a silk and halfway onto the background, so I can maybe get a minorly decent soft key and still have some left over to hit the background. To me the ultimate goal would be a softlit interview setting that somebody would have no idea was shot by one light source, much less one candle!

*hairlight has a potentially very negative connotation when talking about candles... practice safety first!
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I think you did a good job of that, as it looks great for a shot lit by one candle. creating candle lights, I like it.

p.s. on a side note that no one will care about I got the music shut off.... lets just say don't mess with the guy who sleeps beside the electric panel..... oh and they weren't even there went out to the club hours ago and left their music blaring, I guess that's what neighbors are for. back to shooting...
 
Awesome test shot Barry. I just got mine today. Haven't shot anything with it because I just have my GH1. GH2 arrives tomorrow, so maybe some time this weekend I'll get to it.

I have one question for everyone. Is there a way to declick the aperture ring on this lens? I declicked my Zeiss ZF lenses myself, but with the aperture ring at the front of the lens on this I don't know if doing it myself is a good idea.
 
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