Robert’s Photography Blog

Taking good photos in poorly lite, noisy nightclubs present a formidable challenge even with a dSLR. The first time I tried it, I came home with a compactflash card full of dark and out-of-focus shots. Robert learned fast! After shooting in many of the top clubs in Singapore, I now get a high yield of good (and sometimes great) photos. Don’t expect fine art but it’s a lot of fun!

Currently, my favorite lens for nightclub photography is the Canon EF 17-40mm f/4 lens. It’s light in weight, L-series, wide-angle, sharp at f/4, and has an unobtrusive petal-shaped hood. Using the lens at wide end (17mm) with a Canon EOS 20D or Canon EOS 30D, you can easily photograph groups of up to 10 persons in limited space.

Here are some do’s and don’ts:

Do

• Use the manual mode with a shutter speed of 1/250 sec at about f4
• Use an external flash on a bracket (either a Stroboframe or Canon’s Speedlite bracket SB-E1)
• Use a STO-FEN Omni-Bounce or equivalent
• Tilt the flash head up at about a 45° angle
• Set the flash exposure compensation to about +1.5 stops
• Use ‘all focusing points’
• Shoot 2-3 frames in case of eye blink
• Avoid ‘disc smoke’ - it messes up the autofocus

Don’t

• Don’t use the Program, Av, or Tv modes
• Mount the flash on the camera’s hotshoe
• Use a single focusing point
• Take anyone’s photo without asking their permission

Remember, with these parameters (1/250 sec at about f4 in manual mode), all the metering is handled by the E-TTL circuitry. Be careful not to block the Speedlite’s IR beam. In low light, there is only the IR beam for the AF to lock onto.

One last point: Make sure that you have permission to shoot with a dSLR in the club. It’s not generally allowed in most nightclubs and security staff (some huge guy with a ponytail) will bounce you out in no time. I never take photos in a club without a media pass or security clearance.

Examples of nightclub photography are in my gallery.