I took this photo at 8:30 p.m. I’m experimenting with the Leica’s night and low light capability. I could have added some light, and I should have used my new tripod if I were serious about the photo, but I’m still learning about the Leica, and it asks more of me than any other camera I’ve had and tests me.
At night, my study is a cozy dark place; I like it that way, I can focus on nothing but my work. Zinnia’s position is always by my feet, and I can reach down to give her a pet or a scratch from time to time.
I think the tripod was all I needed to keep this photo sharp. I’ll try it again tomorrow night. I’m doing lots of experiments with aperture and exposure. In a room that dark, the image had to be somewhat out of focus (before all the e-mails come telling me it is out of focus) without a tripod or some more lighting.
I’ll keep at this until I figure it out. Thanks for being guinea pigs.
I like the slightly out of focus look. Makes me feel like my eyes are adjusting to the dark room as I enter.
Very moody and atmospheric. I’m beginning to understand the appeal. And the challenge.
I agree, I like the *soft* edge that this focus provides……it nuances well with the dimmer light. Very nice!
Susan M
I think it can soften a photo, unlike much digital photography, but I wouldn’t use it too often..
Jon…
1. That would likely have been the “blurriness” problem. With film cameras, good results for anything approaching a time exposure (1 sec or more) would require fast film (ISO 400 or higher) plus a support to lean the camera against while shooting. Or even better, a tripod.
The Leica lives in a different world, but the same principles might apply.
2. For your exposure experiments, some thoughts:
Does the Leica use more than one metering mode? If so, how does changing the mode affect the “Dark Study” portrait image?
If the Leica uses area/matrix metering, how is the image inside the room affected by changing the background lighting (for example, by lowering the blinds)?
Btw, when I conducted system testing, for each new test case I would change only one variable. If I changed more, the results would become conflated and I wouldn’t know which variable caused what change.
Donald, thanks for the thoughts, I’m afraid you’re quite ahead of me in terminology and technics…I’m not sure what these terms mean. I do best experimenting, even when I don’t know the names of the things I’m experimenting with..
I agree. That slight out of focus look just adds to the appeal. And, that Zinnia face is so touching.