welcome, you need a combination of fast lenses, high ISO, and a decent shutter speed to stop the motion of the vehicle. each ride has different needs, but there are some recurring themes. what kind of camera do you have?
I was going to ask the same question. lol My husband and I have made last min plans to go to WDW the end of April which means I need to learn quickly how to better use my camera. lol On rides, I have the option of two lens, on Nikkor 50mm the other Nikkor 18-200mm used with a D90 body(not sure if you needed to know that). Im thinking I could use the 18-200 lens on the rides and if I waned a 50mm, I could set it to 50 mm. Am I right with this thought? If not want part am I not understanding?
Is your 50mm lens a low light prime...such as an F1.4 or F1.8? If so, that will be by far the better lens. The aperture value of the lens will be the biggest factor affecting your performance, not the zoom range here. On dark rides, you generally have to shoot with the biggest aperture your lens has and the highest (or at least very high) ISO setting your camera can shoot. It'll be very tough with any lens that has a maximum aperture of only F2.8 or smaller.
What zackiedawg said. The 18-200 is considered "slow" because your maximum (largest) aperture is 3.5 - at 18mm. At 50 it's probably around 4 or 4.5. If it's at 4, that is one stop slower than 2.8, and just over 2 stops slower than 1.8. That would mean that if you needed to take a picture at ISO 3200, f/1.8ish, 1/30 sec, you would need a shutter speed of more than 1/8 second, which is a long time in photography unless you're using a tripod.
Dark rides can be tricky. The one thing I will add to what Roger and Justin have already stated is to switch your camera into spot metering mode. With the D300 (and I assume the D90 since it's the same internals) switching to spot metering gives a better overall image in dark rides/stage productions (no real surprise there), and it has the added bonus of giving the overworked processor less to worry about, which speeds up the camera. I had been using Aperture priority, setting to the max the lens would allow on a 50 1.4, however, I've also had better results in shutter priority starting at 1/50th or 1/40th depending on the ride. I would suggest starting with the 'easier' dark(er) attractions such as Small World, CoP, and Figment. I would not suggest diving head long into Peter Pan, HM, Parts of PoC, and SSE as they may cause you major frustration. Most of all, have fun and try different things. Don't get frustrated by blurry images of Steve Wozniak in SSE, or of a black frame that should have been the care taker in HM. Everyone has trouble with those!
Definitely the 18-200 will not work well on dark rides, I've tried it. I shoot dark rides on manual, shutter speed of 1/30 or 1/40 depending on the ride, and f1.4. AND---Nikon's have auto ISO, which works AWESOME on dark rides and dark parades. set your ISO to 200-400 (doesn't really matter) and set your max ISO to 1600-3200, whichever looks acceptable. Auto ISO will insure that you always have the correct exposure! Also, dark ride photos require a lot of post processing skills, which have been my major obstacle. I like POTC during the auction scene, it is pretty well lit and easy to get good results on!
OH! Forgot what may be the most important part: As Craig said, dark rides are post processing centric. To make that easier, shoot RAW if your camera supports it (the D90 does)!
First off thank you for all your help. I am still new to all this and will look up a lot of what you guys are talking about to make sure I know what it is and how it works and play with it before we leave. I have the AF-S Nikkor 50mm 1:1 4g. So i think its the one your talking about and should work. I hope. lol What about filters, do you leave them on on dark rides? I only have an UV filter. I don't understand if I should only have it on when Im outside or is inside okay? I also wonder if I should take it off at night? What do you guys think?
The 50/1.4g is excellent for dark rides. And like Tim, leave the filter on. It shouldn't cause any problem with a crop camera.
Thanks Tim and Roger. Is there any hints on how to get the shot you want on the rides? Im thinking just keep shooting and hope a few come out. I have other questions, should I start another thread? I don't want to hi-jack this thread. When would you use(in the parks) the 50/1.4? You said dark rides. How about indoor rides that are more lit like its a small world? Would you use the 50mm at night over the 18-200mm?
That's what you used to have to do with film. I would use Craig's starting point and learn from mistakes! The biggest advantage with digital is that you can check them out right away rather than wait for processing.... other than that you would have to let us know what you mean by shot you want.... It will depend on what your questions are about. Someone who knows nothing about ride photos may know something else, and could skip this thread. Some of us read each and every post. I would still use the 50/1.4, but IASW at WDW allows you to use a faster shutter speed, lower ISO, or better yet, stop down the aperture from 1.4 to 2 or maybe even 2.8. Lenses usually perform their best when stopped down to 2-3 stops from their maximum. So using the 50/1.4 at 2.8 or 4 is ideal; it would be better than the 18-200, 50mm at f/4. (since the 18-200 would be wide open at that point) No; night calls for tripod use. If you don't have a tripod, I would consider (but it will depend on what you are shooting) the 50 at night over the 18-200. The VR on the 18-200 is good, but you would be heading into the iffy zone because the 50/1.4 has a 2-3 stop advantage already over the 18-200. However, if you are looking for a wider angle shot than what a 75mm equivalent will give you, you have almost no choice but to use the 18-200.
The 50 can be used at any time but you have to zoom with your feet. It acts like a 75mm on your camera. It is a VERY sharp and fast lens. I recently had some success with it's cousin, the 50mm f/1.8, on dark rides on my last trip. I am a big fanboy of the 18-200VR lens. It's my all purpose, go anywhere, shot anything lens at WDW and most anywhere else. The VR technology will let you take shots you wouldn't have dreamed of before without a tripod. The zoom range gives you from wide angle to telephoto which comes in handy at WDW as you never know what you'll see as you walk through a park. With proper technique, you can hand hold the lens down a couple of extra stops. I've gotten good results down to 1/15th of a second, hand-held. As you can see, I differ with Roger on this point. I also agree with Craig, use Auto ISO. It's wonderful!
I was typing when Scott posted, and I echo his comments. At the end of the day, the 50 is some what of a specialized tool since none of our zoom lenses are as fast (max aperture value) as it is. That being said, there is NOTHING wrong with stopping it down and using it as your walk around lens. The 18-200 lens is really a luxury item, because it combines 2, and perhaps 3 lenses into one. For general non-parks photography, you can really super glue it on, but when it comes to dark rides at parks, it's really a must!
Gosh you guys are great, I can't say thank you enough. I will take all of what you guys said, write it down and take it with me as a referance guide. I wont have a big tripod on this trip. Im saving up for the really nice light weight one I have heard about on this site. I do have table top one that can grip on to things, I forget the name of it. And I order the pod to just see, it $20. If its works then great and if not, well it was just $20.00. lol I do want to make the poor mans tripod before we go, the one with the string you step on. it may not help, but its worth a try. This wont be the only time we go to wdw, its just a cheap trip for us, because my husband is going on work and we still have AP till May 13. But it gives me a chance to pay with the camera and lens and with your help, I have a starting point. mPower, I agree the 18-200 is a luxury lens and I just love it. Im not sure there is one lens for everything, but this one comes close.
I wrote this article for tmip. It is based on my experience with the 18-200 at night. I love the lens! http://www.themagicinpixels.com/index.php/2008072744/Photography-101/Night-Photograpghy-Without-Tripods.html
wow thanks for all the tips! Saturday I'm off to WDW and it'll be my first time with a DSLR. In November I purchased a Canon XS and I'll be bringing my 18-55mmIS, 75-250mmIS, 50mm and speedlight and I'm excited to take some photos! I'll be sure to post some up when I get back. Thanks for all your knowledge!
