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Wow, Keith, those shots are beautiful! Thanks for the tips. You've inspired me to have another go at night shots.
Here's my only (so far) halfway-decent night shot. It was taken with my old camera, a Sony DSC-V3. The reason the top of the castle was cut off is because I didn't have a tripod and just rested the camera on a wall.
Posted 36 months ago.
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One of my best.
Posted 36 months ago.
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Sometimes the fine line between what is and what could be becomes a bit blurry....
Posted 36 months ago.
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Aperture: f11
Exposure: 15 sec
ISO: 200
Posted 36 months ago.
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In the past two years, I have been using a method for night photography which I developed by experimentation. I don't know if anyone else uses this, but I haven't seen it mentioned anywhere. It has become my standard method of capturing night scenes which have become one of my favourite genres.
These are the details.
In order to use this technique your camera needs to support multiple in-camera multiple exposure. I know that the Pentax K10D and K20D have this feature as well as the higher end Nikon cameras (D200 and up). I am not sure about the Canon cameras. I don't think the 40D and 50D have it.
I always use a sturdy tripod when using this technique. I also trigger with a remote and using mirror lock-up to minimise vibration. It is critical that the camera doesn't move between exposures.
I set the camera to multiple exposure and select anything from 3 to 9 shots (this is a camera setting).
I choose a suitable aperture. I usually use f8 or f11 to maximise image sharpness and still have a good depth of field. With my 12-24 f/4 lens, I sometimes shoot wide open because it is very sharp there and for a wide angle lens depth-of-field is huge even wide open. I almost always shoot my night scenes at ISO100 (no noise even if I have to push the exposure in raw). I alwasy shoot in RAW
I fire the in-camera meter in matrix mode to get a shutter speed for the scene. I normally work in either Manual (M) mode or Aperture Priority (Av). I take the first shot and then take more shots (usually two or 4 more) bracketing for exposure by adjusting the shutter speed in M mode or the Exposure compensation in Av mode.
Whatever EV you choose to bracket by depends very much on the scene and you will learn with practise as I have. If there are a lot of bright lights may need to go as low as -3EV to prevent highlight clipping in the final scene. The good things is that after each frame (on my K10D) it show the cumulative image. I use this to judge what exposure I should use for the next frame to provide an even exposure. You don't necessarily have to choose your component exposures so that they are symetrical about the meter reading (i.e. -2EV, 0, +2EV). You might get better results in some situations using something like --3EV -1EV +1EV or even -2EV -1EV 0 +2EV -1EV (again) just make adjustments as you go if your camera shows the combined image up to that point.
If done correctly, the resulting shot will have both shadow and highlight detain with smooth gradation of colour and luminance.
You may be thinking that what I am doing is the same as HDR in software. Well, it is similar in that you are combining bracketed shots, but it is different in that I feel the shots look far more natural and it doesn't use tonemapping (I have never liked HDR imaging much, because I have very seldom seen it well done and producing a natural looking image).
OK, now for some samples. Click images to go to image page.
If you want to see more, have a look in my Multiple Exposure set
Originally posted 34 months ago.
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Craig Jewell Photography edited this topic 34 months ago.
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Beautiful series. Thanks for the how to. Even though I shoot with a Canon it is still food for thought.
Posted 34 months ago.
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Great topic and fine examples. One point I have read for both my P&S Canon S3 and my Olympus SLR, is that both manufacturers recommend turning OFF image stabilisation when the camera is on a tripod. I do this and it sometimes (rarely) makes a noticable difference.
One other tip, is to carry around a small red LED torch - like those key chain torches. This lets you find gear you've dropped without wrecking your night vision.
Posted 34 months ago.
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Good to read these tips, and fine examples as algenonQ says. But night photography needn't always be about slowing things down. If you shoot wide open and use available light sources, in urban environments at least you can get good results with a short exposure. I really like this, from leslie liu's photostream:
Leslie's explained in a comment how the shot was taken.
Posted 34 months ago.
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In addition to the tripod, if you can lock the mirror and use a remote, you will minimize the chances of vibration when taking your night shots...
Here is the Montréal skyline at 13s exposure (f/13, ISO 200):
One at 30s exposure (f/16, ISO 200)
And one at 8s (f/10, ISO 200)
Originally posted 34 months ago.
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rugby4all edited this topic 34 months ago.
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I love black and white night photography... Cpatruing the light seems to adds character to the shot. Check out some images caught earlier this year in and around Sydney.
But then again, add some colour and see what happens...
Posted 34 months ago.
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I love that opera house image.I will have to try some b&w conversions now.
One more tip - I have found that with some angles and lighting, if I leave my UV filter on (hoya hmc) I get noticable ghosting and reflections - so I tend to take the filter off at night.
Posted 34 months ago.
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I agree with SydneyLuke that B&W night pictures can be/are beautiful...
Here is one of my favorites (Philadelphia):
Originally posted 34 months ago.
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rugby4all edited this topic 34 months ago.
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Posted 34 months ago.
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If anyone wants any light painting tips, don't hesitate to click the shot I posted or FlickrMail me
Posted 34 months ago.
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Posted 34 months ago.
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Here is a one hour exposure, taken in total darkness, moonless night sky from on top of Mauna Loa 13,250 above sea level.
Posted 34 months ago.
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A cool effect for ghosting can be done easily at night, in this shot my daughter stood still for about half the exposure then when I said run she quickly ran out of the frame and this is the result.
Posted 34 months ago.
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Posted 33 months ago.
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Most of my of my night shots have been hand held city street scenes etc, usually taken on vacation.
Canon 5D with Canon 24-104 F4 IS (VR) lens for these.
Examples:
(1) ISO 1600 1/15 @ F4
(2) ISO 1600 1/10 @ F5.6
(3) ISO 1600 1/10 @ F6.3
Originally posted 33 months ago.
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dicktay2000 edited this topic 33 months ago.
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My minimal requirements for night shots:
- tripod
- mirror lock
- remote release
- flashlight :) (not a flash!)
The hardest thing to get right is the exposure time. Waiting 10 mins, only to find out things got overexposed. Backing to 5 min, only to see that it was not long enough. And so on.
Originally posted 33 months ago.
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Alesa Dam edited this topic 33 months ago.
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And not to forget!
Use a lens hood. Normally used against sun or lens flare.
It helps to block incoming light from the wrong places :)
Posted 33 months ago.
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thank you for this article! it will be good for beginners also to see the difference between the different f-values!
...of course i have to add one of my shots:
Posted 33 months ago.
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I almost shoot at night exclusively. feel free to ask me anything as I always share any tips and tricks I have.
Originally posted 33 months ago.
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tdub303 edited this topic 33 months ago.
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OZZI-PAUL [deleted] says:
I am getting a Hoya screw on ND4 filter (4 stops) for some waterfalls, how good are these filters for long exposure street
scenes at night and light trails.
Posted 33 months ago.
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Its always good to experiment... night photography can offer nearly endless possibilities, many more than during the day. Worst that can happen is you'll throw away the shot. As an example, here is an experiment in something a little less conventional. that has been a hit. This is a 60sec exposure in which the trees were *backlit* using a camera flash:
If I think about it, I'll post a version without the flash backlighting and I think you'll see the difference.
Originally posted 33 months ago.
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pdxsafariguy edited this topic 21 months ago.
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I recently took some night shots and used the following settings as recommended to me by an experienced photographer . I was happy with the results .
Camera mounted on tripod with remote release ,
Mirror lockup enabled ,
Iso 100 ,
Tungsten metering during dusk , changing to auto when fully dark ,
Aperature priority .
Posted 29 months ago.
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Full moon on Sydney Harbour with this night shot.
Posted 23 months ago.
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I love night shots.
These are some great examples above. Nice work.
Mine:
Posted 18 months ago.
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Posted 18 months ago.
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Hi guys
I do a lot of night time and indoor photography. I photography people though, so I tend not to be able to use slow shutter speeds (I mean like over a second). Unless I'm in a night club and I can use a flash.
f/4.5, 1/4s, ISO-12800, 38mm, no flash
This was taken with a regular kit lens, no fancy gear other than a Canon 7D.
I have a blog where I talk about night time people-photography techniques.
lastphotographer.blogspot.com/
You can take some nice pictures even with a normal kit lens!
Posted 18 months ago.
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35mm f1.8G Nikkor. Shot at 1/200 sec @ f2.0
Originally posted 18 months ago.
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stan schurman edited this topic 18 months ago.
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I'm sure most you have this on by default, but I didn't see any mention of LENR (long exposure noise reduction), which is an invaluable tool. Also, it makes a very small difference, but I tend to pull off the eyecup/piece and block the viewfinder with the little cover that's attached to the camera strap.
Posted 16 months ago.
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Beautiful shots guys, I especially love
I recently shot this and combined 3 lighting styles to achieve the results i wanted.
CAR
580ex II 60" brolly camera left
580ex II 30" shoot through camera right
STRUCTURE
LED Lenser (Light painted)
SKY and BRIDGE
Ambient 15sec exposure
Posted 16 months ago.
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Posted 13 months ago.
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Fooling around with the kids and sparklers - Hand held 5 sec exp.
Posted 13 months ago.
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I love that opera house image.I will have to try some b&w conversions now. 
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