Toronto Wedding Photographer: Nikon D3s vs Nikon D3 for Low Light Weddings

We've all seen plenty of reviews on noise comparisons between these two cameras, or a Canon 5D MKII vs a D700, etc., etc. However, more often than not, the test results posted are simple shot comparisons of the same image side by side, with the camera set on a tripod. You know what I am talking about, as a working wedding photog, we just want to see these tools working in real life conditions or worst case scenarios. What we are looking for is justification to drop another obscene amount of cash on yet another camera body, right? There's also the much cheaper alternative of renting, which is what I did at Vistek. For $225/weekend, you can have a state of the art D3s body to use as a second camera for the big day.

I thought I was set with my Nikon D3, and that the D3s only made sense as an upgrade if I were to get into video as well. Boy, was I wrong! You can bet I'll be renting that body more often from now on. The following images serve to illustrate the subtle but very key differences between pushing the limits of high ISO with a D3 and doing the same thing with a D3s. First of all, let me explain the case scenario here. The reception for this wedding was very intimate, and it was held at Oro Restaurant. The room where it took place was VERY dark, which was the reason that prompted me to rent the D3s upon finishing my scouting trip to the venue the week before. The couple wanted to keep the lighting mood of the room intact, so bouncing flash all over the walls was out of the question. It was up to Nikon to deliver on its promise of amazing low light performance:

The following shot was taken with the D3s and it shows more or less what the real lighting conditions were there. Bear in mind, I had to set a negative exposure comp to bring the light down to these levels:

There's noise in the image, but you really can't see it unless you zoom in at 100%, which makes for a very usable image even at these levels.

The D3s really shines in this shot, as the light reflecting on the face of the girl is coming from the small LED candles sitting in front of her. Again, a very usable shot when zoomed in at 100%:


For this shot, I actually had to reduce the Exposure in Aperture in order to bring the light down, as even with the negative exposure comp set on camera, the D3s was essentially seeing more light than my eyes could.


Now, the D3 was a trooper as well and during the reception after reviewing the shots in camera, I thought it had performed on par with the D3s at the same ISO level (6400). Well, the answer is yes and no. The noise level was very similar and I did get plenty of usable shots with my D3 but the subtle differences came later in post processing. At ISO 6400, the D3 images start to present a color degradation. In other words, things like skin tones don't look quite as warm or natural as with the D3s shots. Don't believe me? See for yourself, these shots were processed using the same editing preset in Aperture 3.0. Notice how the skin tones look slightly more pinkish/reddish (depending on the person's skin color).





In conclusion, is the D3s superior to the D3 in high ISO performance? The answer is a resounding YES!

ASID CEU Toronto - Chris Hodges on dealing with facility manager clients and green building.

The last event of the Tayco sponsored educational series for 2009 took place at The Gladstone hotel this past Tuesday (December 1, 2009). Chris Hodges presented on evolution of the role of the Facility Manager, and how important it is to understand the needs and objectives of these key decision makers when presenting a project. Here are a few shots from the evening at The Gladstone Hotel.

Chris Hodges addressing the audience




Very trendy ornaments made out of recycled paper, magazines and posters


The audience


Signing certificates for attendees

ASID Toronto CEU Event at The Gladstone Hotel

Once again, I had the privilege of covering one of ASID's (Toronto chapter) educational seminars. The event was sponsored by Tayco and the presenter was Toby Israel Ph.D.

The venue was the Gladstone Hotel in downtown Toronto, which has a lot of character, even in its rooms used for events. This time around, the topic was a little bit more scientific and it revolved around the psychology of design. The presenter made a clear case for the correlation between environmental surroundings in people's upbringing and how those surroundings shape the way the design. Very interesting topic indeed. Here are some shots from the event.

From ASID Toronto CEU Event with Toby Israel - Sponsored by Tayco

From ASID Toronto CEU Event with Toby Israel - Sponsored by Tayco

From ASID Toronto CEU Event with Toby Israel - Sponsored by Tayco

From ASID Toronto CEU Event with Toby Israel - Sponsored by Tayco

From ASID Toronto CEU Event with Toby Israel - Sponsored by Tayco

Event Photography in Toronto: ASID CEU Educational Seminars hosted by Tayco

On Wednesday, May 13 Tayco hosted the second educational seminar for interior designers. This time, it was Susan Szenasy, Editor in Chief of Metropolis leading the presentation. The thought-provoking session showed the attendees a wide range of social and environmentally-driven projects in architecture and industrial design. As in the previous seminar, I was there to capture images of the evening.

Susan Szenasy during her presentation


Susan Szenasy after the presentation, mingling with the attendees


After the presentation


This attendee was sketching away on his notepad/sketchbook after the presentation


The image above inspired this promotional piece I put together to thank the attendees and prompt them to register for the upcoming events (2 more left in the calendar)


Attendees also participated in a draw for prizes such as this one:


And this one:


After spending the whole night standing up taking pictures, it was time to sit down and enjoy the wine

Toronto Portrait Photographer - Headshots and Portrait Session with David S.

This photoshoot was arranged by fellow photographer and friend Jared Wielfaert and he was kind enough to let Shelley and I tag along to help and do some shooting of our own. The model's name Dave and you can find him at Model Mayhem. He was extremely professional and very easy to work with.


One SB-800 camera right (65 degree) at 1/32 power on shoot through umbrella.


One SB-800 camera right (65 degree) at 1/32 power on shoot through umbrella.


AB1600 at 1/2 power on a medium octabox.


SB-800 on shoot-thru umbrella at cam left, 1/32 power.


SB-800 on reflective umbrella with 1/4 CTO gel, high above subject at cam left. WB set to Tungsten

Toronto Event Photography - ASID CEU Educational Seminar Series at The Gladstone Hotel on Queen St. West. Hosted by Tayco

Last night I had the pleasure of photographing the first event of Tayco's Educational Seminar Series. Penny Bonda, FASID, LEED AP, and Eco Editor for Interior Design magazine was the featured speaker. The presentation was titled The Green Materials Maze and it was certainly an eye-opener for me. However, the emphasis was on which materials to choose from for interior design projects and how to tell the real deal from hype. You can visit Penny's blog by CLICKING HERE

Here are some shots from the event. The room at The Gladstone was quite interesting on its own. The lighting was quite mixed, with gelled stage lights, natural light coming through the windows and overhead lamps throughout the room. Needless to say, it made post-processing quite interesting.

The shots of the podium were taken using a custom WB from my ExpoDisc






This is when things started to get tricky and I opted to set the WB to Auto and then fiddle with it in post.






Door prizes for the attendees


While the lighting was a bit challenging, the room at The Gladstone had a lot of character and one that I wouldn't mind going back to again and again.


This is the lamp that was hanging on top of the bar.


Since I was on Queen St. West, I decided to grab a few shots on my way back to the car but I was so tired that I literally just took a couple:

Downtown Toronto at Twilight, Dusk and Darkness

I went on a photowalk last night (Thursday) with fellow photographer Zeekid from TPMG. We were pretty much wondering aimlessly along Queen St. West trying to find inspiration but we found ourselves struggling to find good angles, subject, etc. It was fun nonetheless, as I had not been out taking pictures in awhile and I was itching to just go out and shoot.

Most of the shoots were taken along Queen St. West, with a little turn on Spadina just to return and walk back to Yonge and Queen St.

Have a great weekend!

Scotiabank Theatre


Triumph Bike Rider on Queen St. and Bay


Queen St. West walking east from Spadina


Strobist portrait taken by Zeekid with my camera. Strobist info: One (1) SB-800 as commander on camera, One (1) SB-800 to camera right with CTO gel with diffuser cap and Lumiquest Softbox III. Fired via Nikon's CLS on TTL mode.


Same setup as above but this time it was me taking a picture of Zeekid


Rush Hour Human Traffic in front of Osgoode Hall on Queen St. West

Salsa on St. Clair West set now available for Purchase

Pictures from the Salsa on St. Clair festival in Toronto now available for editorial and advertising purposes:

The Beaches Jazz Festival 2008 Image Gallery Now Available

The entire Beaches Jazz Festival 2008 Gallery is now available as Rights-Managed images for editorial purposes. You can access the whole Gallery here: http://pa.photoshelter.com/c/juanrojodesign/gallery-show/G0000A4YICQFjTpc/

This is the image that made it to the section of Toronto Magazine on Queen St. East


The one and only Johnny Max of The Johnny Max Band


Imbayakunas is another staple band of any Toronto street fest. I've personally seen these guys at Taste of the Danforth, Taste of Little Italy and The Beaches Jazz Festival


Jeanine Mackie of the Jeanine Mackie Band had a powerful voice that kept me shooting her band longer that I had anticipated

Night Photography in Downtown Toronto - South East Corner of Yonge St. and Queen St.

The following shots were taken almost two years ago with a Nikon D80 and the Sigma 10-20mm (I miss that lens). When I took them I knew they had potential but it wasn't until now that I was able to bring my vision to life with the help of Nik's Silver Efex Pro (I love Nik's software:Viveza, Color Efex Pro and Silver Efex Pro). Both shots were taken with the camera set on a tripod as the Sigma is terribly slow in low light.

1. Coming home from work and some grocery shopping. RAW conversion in Adobe Lightroom, Pro Contrast Applied in Color Efex Pro, then bleach Bypass with modifications, and finally Silver Efex Pro.


2. Waiting for the light to turn. RAW convesion in Lightroom, Pro Contrast in Color Efex Pro, then Silver Efex Pro.

Testing the HONL Grids

Ever since David Hobby featured them in his blog, I had been contemplating getting the HONL grids (1/8 and 1/4), as well as a speed trap to attach them to my SB-800. Last week I finally broke down and ordered them and they arrived in the mail today. These are my first test shots with the 1/8 and 1/4 grids. as well as the speed trap. They basically concentrate and soften the light beam from the speedlight giving some very dramatic results. In these shots there's not a whole lot of ambient light because I killed it with aperture and shutter speed but I can already envision quite a few cool applications for the new acquisitions:

1. SB-800 with 1/8 HONL grid above subject at camera left. Power set at 1/32, triggered via Nikon's CLS. Post processed via Nik's Color Efex Pro


2. SB-800 with 1/8 HONL grid above subject at camera left. Power set at 1/32, triggered via Nikon's CLS. Post processed via Nik's Color Efex Pro


3. SB-800 with 1/4 HONL grid above subject at camera left, small golden reflector handheld by subject at camera right. Power set at 1/8, triggered via Nikon's CLS. Post processed via Nik's Color Efex Pro

The Beauty of Available Light

While I'm a big fan of the Strobist movement, sometimes the best light is the one that is available, whether it's beautiful sun light or the light coming from a lamp on the ceiling of a greasy spoon diner.

In the following two shots the different sources of light (big windows at the front end of the restaurant and plenty of artificial light inside)in this diner provided for some very interesting colors, which were further enhanced with Nik Color Efex Pro Film Effects.





Then there's always the beautiful light produced by the last rays of the sun before the sunset