Which body for stage performance lighting?

John M Roberts said:

I searched a bit but got tired of reading peripheral information and thought I'd just ask directly. Recently for fun I shot a musical staged event with some dynamic stage lighting and smoke machines. In order to capture any action I had to shoot iso 6400. Camera used, a Rebel SL1 with kit lens. I wasn't too excited with the results.

Having read how good the DF and F4 sensor is at high iso I was looking to hear from experienced shooters as to what body they'd recommend. I hear the focus on the D750 is a plus in lowlight. For this type of subject matter I'm not too concerned with MP's. In another thread I thought I saw the D750 has a bit higher DR reach than the DF but it didn't state at what iso.

I own a D800e and a D700 as well. Next time I'm going to give the D700 a shot at this type of scene. I guess I'm basically wondering which sensor D4, DF or the D750 would handle iso 6400 best and also would like to consider focusing in the mix as well. I'm guessing the DF would handle the iso better but the D750 would nail more low lit shots. Also which camera could be shot quietly if among theater type setting where you don't want to hear the shutter.

Thanks,

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sssesq said:

I really meant to delete this post as When I saw your website I could see that you know about sharpness and needed no advice. IDK if this website compresses stuff, but I know that I upload examples and they seem to be sharp. Look at my post above - Hit the "original" to see the full size file. (the original I uploaded is 1.93 MB).

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John M Roberts said:

I searched a bit but got tired of reading peripheral information and thought I'd just ask directly. Recently for fun I shot a musical staged event with some dynamic stage lighting and smoke machines. In order to capture any action I had to shoot iso 6400. Camera used, a Rebel SL1 with kit lens. I wasn't too excited with the results.

Having read how good the DF and F4 sensor is at high iso I was looking to hear from experienced shooters as to what body they'd recommend. I hear the focus on the D750 is a plus in lowlight. For this type of subject matter I'm not too concerned with MP's. In another thread I thought I saw the D750 has a bit higher DR reach than the DF but it didn't state at what iso.

I own a D800e and a D700 as well. Next time I'm going to give the D700 a shot at this type of scene. I guess I'm basically wondering which sensor D4, DF or the D750 would handle iso 6400 best and also would like to consider focusing in the mix as well. I'm guessing the DF would handle the iso better but the D750 would nail more low lit shots. Also which camera could be shot quietly if among theater type setting where you don't want to hear the shutter.

Thanks,

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billslatteryjr said:

My D4 is so noisy that it caused a diver to fault at a swim meet and others to complain. I'll only use it now once they leave the board. Most of the time I give up the FPS for the D810. It also draws lots of unwanted attention and comments at ball games and other sporting events. It has spooked a good many close birds. Much more than my old D800. If the Df or D750 have a quiet mode that is actually almost quiet like the D810 quiet mode, you may want to sacrifice the FPSs and get one of those. The D4 is very LOUD!

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DuxX said:

I think that DF still have that edge at extreme highISO but D750 is better package. D750 would be my weapon of choice.

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Dusko Jovic / DuxX /

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calson said:

Low light autofocus depends on the camera, the lens, and subjects, and the lighting. In stage settings there is usually plenty of light and the subjects are medium to high contrast most of the time. The camera's AF sensors need areas of high contrast to detect when focus is achieved. This is something you can quickly test at home. In low light I can focus on a branch much more readily than on a cluster of leaves and the difference is edge contrast.

Using an f5.6 lens is going to cause problems for most cameras. Some like the Df, D4, D7100, D750, D610, and D800 have f8 autofocus sensors which make a big difference but are situated as a single row at the center of the viewfinder. If you subject is dead center then they work but if not then the camera is relying on the less sensitive sensors.

Lighting in theaters for the audience is usually low but the stage itself is very bright and more than enough. You can help the camera in part by using a lens that provides for manual assist or by focusing on an area of high contrast, like the neckline of a dress instead of the person's face.

In terms of noise I would be inclined to use a mirrorless camera like the ones from Olympus and one of their excellent f2.8 constant aperture telephoto lenses - i.e. 40-150mm f2.8 or 12-40mm f2.8. Their mirrorless provide very good image quality up to ISO 6400 though I have never needed more than ISO 2400 in any stage environment.

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olstrup said:

I figure he referred to audible noise (mirror slap), not high ISO picture noise.

If money is no problem at all, a Leica M is the classical tool for these jobs. I and many others used them in the film days when we used Tri-X push processed to 1600ISO. The rangefinder worked well in low light and the shutter was quiet. However, IMHO Leica M digital cameras are now too expensive compared to say Nikons or Canons for what they can and cannot do. I was somewhat disappointed when the M9 was introduced. Instead of utilizing the bigger sensor to get better low light capabilities, they choose to increase the pixel count. In my book, Leica was always about low available light shooting and if they had continued along that road, they might have had me buy a M9 to use with the lenses I already have. I also miss the compact size of Leica rangefinder gear. I think a FF Leica M with the high ISO performance of say a D4S would appeal to many, both pros and amateurs.

But I digress.....

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John M Roberts said:

Wow. The delayed response to my thread is a head scratcher. I posted this quite a while back and just under two weeks of nothing it got its first hit. I left it for dead but just recently while scrolling saw it and all the replies. Thanks.

Since posting Nikon announced the D7200 with quite a DR and AF capabilities at a lower price. If I got into performance shooting professionally then I could justify the D4s which in many points sounds like the top tier body. It sounds like the D750 would be a notable upgrade due to DR and AF. I like lighter gear as well so I may have a look at the D7200 and see if for this type of performance pleasure shooting it would fill the bill plus be useful on extended butt hauling hikes.

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