Best way to get rid of noise? - DPChallenge Forums

Olympus 40-150mm f/2.8 PRO M.Zuiko

09/19/2008 03:35:06 AM · #1

I am taking pictures of my Ballroom team practicing in our gym I know a gym isnt the best place to shoot but thats where we practice so everyone is in just normal clothes so all different colored shirts etc. I have a Canon S5 IS. Need help with the best outcome of the pictures. I have photoshop CS2.

Brad

Olympus OM-D E-M1

09/19/2008 03:50:21 AM · #2

Without knowing what kind of lights and how much, I would say try some test shots first. The key to getting the lowest noise is proper exposure. Under-exposing, then pushing it in Post-Processing generates a lot of noise. Possibly set a custom white balance to get it right or as close to right as possible. Raw is the very best suggestion I can give. It offers a wider latitude after the shot is taken if you need to make adjustments in the exposure and white balance without hurting already compressed pixels in a jpeg.

Edit to add:
Oops - I just read in another thread you aren't even sure about what f/stops are, so what I just wrote will go way over your head, with the exception of taking test shots to see what will give the best results. Really need to read up on what your camera can do and how to make adjustments. Trial and error and a LOT of clicking while paying attention to what happens when you make adjustments to the settings. I opted to leave the reply, as it is still good information.

Message edited by author 2008-09-19 03:57:29.

bobonacus

Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM

09/19/2008 04:47:25 AM · #3

Take a look at noise ninja (there are a few others but I found that to be the easiest and best on the default settings). You can download a free trial from picturecode.com You install it by copying it to your C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CS2\Plug-Ins\ directory and then it will appear under filters.

Shooting at a lower ISO will reduce noise but will also reduce your shutter speed so you need to make sure your shutter speed is fast enough. At a very rough guess you are going to need to shoot at 1/250 or 1/500 to make sure there is no blur depending on how fast the people are moving.

One tip with something like this is have them pose and take the shot whilst they are still as you could shoot with a much slower shutter speed then, maybe 1/80 or 1/160.

As brad said raw is a good way to recover dark underexposed areas (and if your white balance is off you can change it in cs2)!

Message edited by author 2008-09-19 04:48:21.

Sony DT 18-70mm f/3.5-5.6 Aspherical ED Zoom Lens for Sony Alpha

09/20/2008 03:19:04 AM · #4

I have found in my gym that i need to be at like ISO 800 otherwise everything just looks blurry and the fastest shutter speed I have gotten out of my camera is 1/150..... is that cause of my lens? or because thats how fast my camera can go? or is it because of the settings I have?

MyeReadBik

Sony DSLR-A200

09/30/2008 06:22:11 PM · #5

I used to own an S1 IS before I sold it.

Here's the 4 basic variables you work with when shooting:

ISO Speed
Av (Aperture Value): The size of the opening that lets in light when the shutter opens.
Tv (Shutter Speed): The amount of time the shutter is open.
Focal Length: The amount of distance between the front and rear elements of your lens. (The S5 IS has a long zoom.)

What you need to get a good shot in the conditions you have:

1. High ISO speed. I wouldn't even bother trying to go lower than 400 in the light setting you're in.
2. Wide Aperture. Open the Aperture up to f/5.6 or as low as you can get it.
3. Fast Shutter speed. Get this as high as you can; with the image stabilization on, you can probably use 1/40-1/60 if your subjects aren't moving fast, and you're zoomed all the way out. If you use the zoom, that means you are letting LESS light get into your camera's sensor, and you need to use a higher ISO speed, wider Aperture, or faster Shutter speed to compensate.

On the dial on your Camera, you should see the options M, Tv, and Av. M means you pick all the settings; ISO speed, Shutter Speed, and Aperture Value. The camera picks nothing. Tv means you pick the shutter speed; and the camera picks the aperture value. Av means you pick the Aperture value, and the camera picks the shutter speed. You will be able to select ISO speed in both Tv and Av shooting modes.

So, here's my advice:

1. Set your camera to Tv.
2. Select a shutter speed of 1/60.
3. Set the ISO to 400.
4. Take a photo.

If your picture is blurry or dark, do this:

1. Decrease the shutter speed to 1/40. Make sure the 'Image Stablization' is turned on.

If your picture is still blurry or dark, set the ISO speed up one increment. And repeat the steps, try taking a photo again, and keeping increasing the ISO speed until you get a good picture.

IF, after doing this, you increase the ISO speed to the maximum your camera allows, and you still can't get a good picture, than the lighting conditions in the gym are simply out of the range of what your camera can capture when hand-holding. You could bring a tripod, and do a long exposure, but any subjects in the photo are guaranteed to be blurred if they move even the slightest bit.

With this said, I don't think it will come to that. You mave have to use the onboard flash, which will make your pictures appear a bit washed out and flat, but you should be able to at least get a few usable pictures.

Interesting Info: Everytime you increase the ISO speed, Aperture size, or Shutter speed by one increment, you double the amount of light that reaches your camera's sensor.

Hope this helps!

Message edited by author 2008-09-30 18:25:22.

10/06/2008 03:34:19 AM · #6

Thanks for the info MyeReadBik I will try it out tomorrow :D I bet it will help lol.

klkitchens

Pentax K-1

Pentax FA 50mm f/1.4 AF

10/06/2008 06:53:45 AM · #7

Originally posted by MyeReadBik:

Interesting Info: Everytime you increase the ISO speed, Aperture size, or Shutter speed by one increment, you double the amount of light that reaches your camera's sensor.

Hope this helps!

That is if you increase by one stop, correct? Many cameras let you adjust by 1/2 or 1/3. ISO 100 to ISO 200 is double, but not the steps in between.

Also, increasing the shutter speed reduces the ambient light from the room, making the background darker.

bobonacus

Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM

10/06/2008 07:40:31 AM · #8

Originally posted by HawkeyeLonewolf:

Originally posted by MyeReadBik:
Interesting Info: Everytime you increase the ISO speed, Aperture size, or Shutter speed by one increment, you double the amount of light that reaches your camera's sensor.

Hope this helps!

That is if you increase by one stop, correct? Many cameras let you adjust by 1/2 or 1/3. ISO 100 to ISO 200 is double, but not the steps in between.

Also, increasing the shutter speed reduces the ambient light from the room, making the background darker.

Thats correct, going from 100 to 200 doubles the sensitivity of the sensor, effectively allowing you to double the shutter speed or reduce the aperture by one complete stop, eg f/5.6 to f/8 is one stop ... f/8 to f/11 is one stop. Then again ISO 200 to 400 or 400 to 800 will double the sensitivity of the sensor.

Going from f/8 to f/5.6 will double the amount of light hitting the sensor again letting you double the shutter speed.

10/09/2008 03:53:20 AM · #9

wow lol most of that went WAY over my head. hahaha.

bobonacus