[PIC_THREAD] Sports, Action, Transportation

First time out at F1 with the A7iii, coupled with a 70-200 f/4

I struggled to get the right settings and grip on the first day - the ergonomics are not as comfortable as my old D750 - you really have to press the shutter button rather than squeeze on the Nikon. But by the second day I was settling into it. I did find that the camera just lost focus on some rare occasions, and struggled to pick it back up. But overall I enjoyed using it properly for the first time.

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Nice :) I take it that's your car and you stepped out to take the photo? What f stop, shutter speed and iso settings did you use? Teach me, I'm a beginner :p

It is yes, over a year ago now that photo!

That was:
ISO400 (could have done ISO200 and longer shutter, but 400 is still low noise)
F8 (small aperture keeps everything in focus and produces those flares around intense points of light)
3.2s shutter (what was needed to get the exposure about right)

Using a G80 + 12-60mm kit lens @ 20mm. I've since moved to a G9 with a 12-35mm F2.8 and 35-100mm F2.8. I'm also using a circular polariser filter.

Here's the JPG straight out of the camera (resized to web suitable resolution):

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So you can see I've adjusted the WB to remove the yellow cast and get the car looking more natural, which has the side effect of making the white lights more blue. I'll have to review the edit for specifics, but I would have also adjusted white / black levels, highlights, shadows to get it how I wanted. I usually leave colour on the Camera Standard setting, sometimes Natural if I want more muted tones. I also put a graduated filter in post at the top, which is why the top is darker. And finally drop to 16:9 (for that videogame look) and just straightened it a bit.
 
That's an awesome explanation, thanks! Yes the light flares look very cool. I can see how much nicer it is after removing the yellow cast. I've got a circular polariser which I've never used yet. I guess using that in the evening would have increased your shutter speed and iso? Wow though, 3.2 seconds, you must have set up a tripod? Is it possible for me to get a similar composition with everything in view like in your shot using my 50mm f1.8 lens at f8, and how would I change an edited raw image to 16:9? is that something you do within lightroom or photoshop, or are we just talking simple cropping along the bottom?
 
That's an awesome explanation, thanks! Yes the light flares look very cool. I can see how much nicer it is after removing the yellow cast. I've got a circular polariser which I've never used yet. I guess using that in the evening would have increased your shutter speed and iso? Wow though, 3.2 seconds, you must have set up a tripod? Is it possible for me to get a similar composition with everything in view like in your shot using my 50mm f1.8 lens at f8, and how would I change an edited raw image to 16:9? is that something you do within lightroom or photoshop, or are we just talking simple cropping along the bottom?

I used to overuse the c-pol a lot, it rarely left the lens which is a mistake looking back. Its a tool like anything else that should be only be used when it improves something. For photos of cars, it can help enhance reflections and give paint that super glossy look, and it can eliminate reflections on glass etc. See the picture below, reflections on the side of the car are enhanced, but there are no reflections on the windscreen, and the reflections on the bonnet are a bit muted. They can work well on landscape images with water in the scene as well. You can use it to eliminate reflections on water, which can get amazing results on clear water, and it can enhance blue skies quite dramatically.

Yes it was on a tripod. Handheld would have been possible with a higher ISO and wider aperture, but then it wouldn't have the flares on the lights and only the car would be in focus, which would have changed the look signififcantly.

RE: 50mm f1.8 - stopping down to F8 or higher will do similar. If you're on a APS-C sensor camera like a entry / mid level Canon or Nikon then you may need to go slightly higher than that. Been a long time since I've used a Canon or Nikon though. Your focal length is longer so you are more "zoomed in", so to get exactly the same shot as above you'd have to be physically further back. For the widescreen ratio I just cropped in Lightroom, its just a simple crop so can be done in any image editing software. I usually do everything in Lightroom.

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Thanks, yes, I kind of thought I'd have to stand further away to get the same since you were on 20mm and I'd be on 50mm. Mine is a full frame, 5d mk2.

Wow, that's a stunning car photo! Love the passenger side gloss and wheel sharpness.
 
Thanks, yes, I kind of thought I'd have to stand further away to get the same since you were on 20mm and I'd be on 50mm. Mine is a full frame, 5d mk2.

Wow, that's a stunning car photo! Love the passenger side gloss and wheel sharpness.
If you're on full frame then there's not actually much difference, as m43 is 2x crop factor. 40mm on yours will be the same FoV as 20mm on mine!
 
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