Need some Advice on Night-time Cityscapes

Lambo77 · Feb 27, 2011

Ok, I've shot at night before using a tripod, long exposures, etc. Normally I put it on manual and continue to adjust app and shutter till I get it right. But I was wondering, is there a better way? Should my app be wide open to let in the most light, or use a small app but lengthen the exposure. I'll be shooting in Washington DC, so there will be a lot of lights, I like the "star-burst" effect with lights, but I don't want it over done. Oh, and I'm shooting with my T2i, most likely using my wide angle 10-20 Sigma 4-5.6. Also have a Canon 50 1.4 in the bag. Advice??

dxqcanada · Feb 27, 2011

Think of the lens aperture as your eyelids ... at night when you look at lights, and you squint ... the points get smaller/sharper.

If you wear glasses you will know exactly what I mean.

Lambo77 · Feb 27, 2011

Think of the lens aperture as your eyelids ... at night when you look at lights, and you squint ... the points get smaller/sharper.

If you wear glasses you will know exactly what I mean.

Nice analogy. I don't wear glasses, but I see what your talking about. Thanx.

Felix 222 · Feb 28, 2011

aperture of 11+ for stars. also, pay attention to the white balance during the shoot if you use TIFF or JPEG. Otherwise, wb can be easily changed during RAW processing.
white balance has a pronounced influence on colors for night time shots.

rehab · Feb 28, 2011

Great thread. Other than light presence are there any other major notes to keep in mind when photographing night landscapes. Im in the same boat as the OP, i experiment alot but never know if I am missing anything major.

reedshots · Feb 28, 2011

if you are doing city scapes high (small) ap is the way to go but remember your camera will only do 30sec shutter unless you are on manual. F9 and above (wouldn't go any wider) this should give you sharp details on the buildings and keep the lights in check.

to get the star trails with building/lights - try setting F9+ and shudder to match for a 25 to 30 second, then lock down the shudder for 25 to 30 min on continuse. then you can stack the 50+ shots. this will give you an even lighting with the star trails and nothing blown out.

dxqcanada · Feb 28, 2011

Visualization.

Take spot meter readings of the highlights, mids, and shadow areas ... then think about where you want to place those in exposure.
Now you are thinking, what the #@% do I mean.

If you only expose for the highlights, then the shadow areas may become too dark.
If you expose for the shadows, then the highlights may become blown out.

Digital sensors, like film, have a latitude of exposure that it can handle before losing detail.

... I would continue but it is getting late. Maybe someone else can add some more info on what I am trying to say.

MidnightGrimm · Mar 1, 2011

Make sure you stop by the WWII Memorial. It's absolutely gorgeous at night. I was there last year, and froze my butt off on a cold January evening. Ended up walking from the White House metro station, to the Lincoln Memorial, and then on to the metro station 6 blocks north. Dropped my camera during all that and broke a sizeable chunk of the casing off. Oops. lol. Got some great pics tho. Have an amazing time, and can't wait to see the results.