Help needed for night photography

[magekin]

Hihi, I'm planning to shoot a photograph of a doll figurine next to a small pond at my friend's house, somewhere after 8pm when the sky is completely dark. I need tips and pointers for the following queries:

a) How to get a clear shot of the doll while keeping the mood of the photograph? (i'm planning to have the background a bit dimmer so as to keep the focus on the doll)
b) How to capture the reflections of the water on the background? (there's a dark surface behind the pond)
c) Do i need to use any external flash?

My camera has maximum ISO at 1600, shutter speed 1/80. Hope you can answer my questions, thanks!!

 

[zh3ng]

Maybe you can take a picture of the pond first, and post here, the pros will be able to advise better

 

[attap seed]

a) background darker than subject is a good way to make subject stand out. but background totally dark is not a good idea. ideally, it must be darker, but still hold details. so, i suggest shooting at dawn/dusk.

b) if background totally dark like wat u suggested, where got reflections?

c) flash is good. but dun tink direct flash will be nice. ideally diffused and bounced.

and pls dun use ISO 1600. the doll is not running away. use low ISO, tripod.

 

[zac08]

Rear sync flash, with camera on tripod.

Direct flash can be used if you know how to control the power.