When one has a new lens, then the most logical thing to do is to get oneself acquainted to the tool at hand and start using it as a professional tool. One of the ways is to get myself in the most difficult situation I could find or in circumstances close to what I would use the tool for. So for this 85mm F1.4 is to shoot portraitures and one of the application is to shoot performers on stage. In the meantime the worse stage lighting I know at the moment would be for the Home Club which is between Boat Quay and Clarke Quay and it is the home base of Singapore’s Underground Comedy Scene: Comedy Masala (http://www.comedymasala.com) where I am the official photographer. I really have to get this lens going in time for their Century Show coming in a month’s time!
Is shooting at F1.4 in a darken bar only with a spot light a nightmare? Definitely! More so when one has to rely on manual focus and coupled with the fact that there are people you have to jostle with when the show starts. But is it impossible? Not so too and that is thanks to the focus confirmation feature on the Samyang. The AE has helped things along as well. I brought along my Fujifilm X100 just in case but it hardly get used when I got my groove with the Samyang with the D200. Here are some of the pictures.
The Samyang Pictures
I would say this is the shot that got me convinced that I have made the right choice with regards to the Samyang. Shot F1.4 at ISO 800 @ 1/20s
Shot F1.4 at ISO 800 @ 1/20s
Umar Rana
Ian
Wai Sing
Orion Perez
Matthew Griffen
Rishi Budhrani
Fin “Angst Mo” Carew
Big Ben: Don’t ask me what he does with the Condom. See it to believe it!
Liam McDonald Headlining: Doing the Spanish “Har-pi-ness”
Serenading…
From the Fujifilm X100
Gary Ow
Joanna
Waiting for the show to start
Carlos The Mexican. Husshhhh
More pictures of this shoot can be seen at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wilzworkz/sets/72157630849378140/