Add other shutter lengths possible?

chyidean · Dec 14, 2009

On my Nikon D90, under manual, I can select 10sec, 13 sec, 15sec, 20 sec, 25 sec, 30 sec, and finally bulb. Is there any way I can add 1 min, 2 min, 3 min etc exposure lengths (without using bulb)?

I'm interested in getting a B+W ND110 to experiment with long-exposure photography.

Josh66 · Dec 14, 2009

No. Longer than 30 seconds, you have to use bulb.

chyidean · Dec 14, 2009

Okay, so if I use bulb to achieve 1sec+ shutter lengths, it wouldn't be practical to just press down the shutter button right (as there would be camera shake, may let go, etc)?

So I'd have to get a release cord? And hold down the button for X minutes there?

Josh66 · Dec 14, 2009

Yes - a remote is the way to go.

Wireless or wired - your choice. Wired, you hold the button down (there will usually be some sort of locking device so you don't have to actually hold it).

Wireless, press once to open the shutter, press again to close it.

You can just hold the shutter release on the camera down, but you have to be careful to avoid camera shake.

Not sure about your camera specifically, but there should be some sort of timer that starts when you hold the shutter open in bulb so you know how long it's been open.

chyidean · Dec 14, 2009

Nope, no timer on my D90, unfortunately.

Josh66 · Dec 14, 2009

Really? Are you sure?

On my 350D, when I'm in bulb there's a counter that shows how long the shutter has been open.

If you don't have that (that sucks), just use your watch. With exposure times that long, being a few seconds off here or there won't matter at all.

chyidean · Dec 14, 2009

Any idea how I should be calculating the exposures? Or even better - can you direct me to a guide to long exposure photography? As you can tell, I'm a complete noob. I tried googling and most results aren't specific enough.

Josh66 · Dec 14, 2009

It's all reciprocal...

Not exactly what you're looking for, but it might help...
Pinhole Camera Exposure Guide

ecnal · Dec 14, 2009

For the record, I bought a wireless IR remote for my D40 and I LOVE IT. Paid 15 bucks on ebay for Nikon brand, but from what I've heard everywhere the cheapo $3-5 generic ones work just as good.

Garbz · Dec 15, 2009

They el-cheapo ones are good. They do fail but guess what, they are cheap. I have replaced mine every year, but at the rate I'm going I would need to replace them another 6 times before I've covered the cost of one Nikon remote

The results for long exposures aren't specific because it's mostly guesswork. You can take an educated guess though, or take an example shot. I was in the rockies once and it had -40degC so I really wanted to take 1 long exposure, get it right the first time and then get the hell back into my hotel. My solution was to take 1 30 second exposure at ISO6400. It looked like hell but at least I knew that it was approximately twice as bright as I wanted it to be.
30s @6400
1m @3200
2m @1600
4m @800
8m @400
16m @200
32m @100
Halve the brightness: 16m @ ISO100 was my final exposure. Nearly nailed it.

In less extreme circumstances I have just set up my camera and taken several many minute exposure to determine which one to pick.

The logical solution would be to take a group of 30second exposures and then stack the required number together using image stacking software to create the exposure you want, but that is too much effort for what could be passed by simply spending a bit of time to guess and correct in the field.