Tina over on Taken’s Facebook page asked, “What would you do first… adjust the exposure compensations or bump up the ISO in a low light situation?”

First off – an internet high-five goes to Tina for giving me the fodder for  this Tuesday’s “Better” post. Thanks for following Taken and participating in the discussion.

Secondly, there are SO many answers to this question, and really it mainly rests on preference/style, not right or wrong. Feel free to read and then post your answer to the question.

Okay, since I’ve already rambled here’s the question again

What would you do first… adjust the exposure compensations or bump up the ISO in a low light situation?

If I’m in a low-light situation most likely I’m shooting a wedding. Either it’s a wedding ceremony or a reception – really any place inside without large windows. (Side note – I think next time I’m gonna talk about why low-light situations are a big deal in photography – yay? nay?) Okay – focus, Alicja.

What settings I choose is totally dependent on how and what I want to capture.

Generally speaking, with my style, I want wide depth of field – so I love low apertures. Secondly I don’t want to risk camera shake, so I don’t tread lower than the focal length I’m using (ie – If’ I’m using a 50mm, I won’t go below 1/50th shutter speed – UNLESS I want to capture light trails or ghosting). However I know that I tend to move a lot, and during dances, bouquet tosses, and sexy garter fun, I need to stay faster. SO all that to say, yes, the first and main thing I change is my ISO – the light sensitivity of my camera’s image sensor.

For specific shots, or certain light situations (since I use LOTS of off-camera-flash – OCF) I may want higher F-stop (aperture) – to narrow the depth of field (get more things in focus) or to star burst the OCF flash.

I would love to hear your ideas, thoughts, experience or questions! Post a comment.

<3 alicja