Whats The Best Way To Take Night Photos?

Question

Mine always comes out blurry when i take a picture of the city skyline. it also seems kind of dark.

i was using a tripod but it was like 30 degrees next to the river so it was kind of windy.

Answer 1

Wait until night time first of all, then get a camera that will permit you to set it on a long exposure or will figure the exposure time for you. A tripod would help but the camera can be placed on an stationary object to avoid moving the camera during exposure. Film manufacturers offer special film for night photography such as 400. I took night pictures in Paris with the brightly lit Eiffel Tower in the background and some people in the foreground. I was afraid there would be a problem since I was using flash to light the people. I used a Canon AE1 Program camera on automatic with a tripod and 400 speed film. Although I'm no expert on photography the pictures came out well.

Answer 2

First off, you need a sturdy tripod. Most tripods that you buy in electronic stores or convenient stores are probably around $50, extremely flimsy, and prone to break. If you're using this type of tripod with a small digital camera, it's useful for daytime group shots, but for night shots, any slight movement will cause it to shake. If you're using a digital SLR, the weight may be more than the tripod can handle, so make sure to get a solid tripod that won't shake. Some tripods also allow you to attach a weight in the middle which can reduce the movement. If it's windy, try standing between the wind and the tripod to decrease the amount of wind that reaches the tripod.

If you're using a compact digital camera, remember that most can only shoot 4-15sec at max, so you have to make sure there's enough light. This also means you have to manually boost the ISO on the camera since from my experience auto ISO doesn't do anything but choose the lowest ISO (at least in full auto mode). If you want to minimize shaking from pressing the button and don't have a remote release (or can't use one with a compact), you can put the camera on timer and let it take the picture after 2 or 10 seconds, depending on how long the self timer is.

For the most part, the meter in digital cameras can measure the required exposure for the night shot, especially a skyline, though it tends to over-expose, so you have to componsate for that. In your case, it could be that the shutter speed required is beyond what the camera can do, so it stops taking the photo after 4-15sec (30 sec for digital SLRs if you're not using bulb), even though it hasn't finished, resulting in the dark image. In this case, boosting the ISO to 200-400 (the limit with most compact digitals) or ISO 800-1600 (if you have a digital SLR) will decrease the time needed and allow the camera to take the photo properly. Note that this will also create noise due to increase sensitivity, but it's better to have some noise and a clear shot than no noise and no shot.

Answer 3

Blurry shots happen when the camera moves (even slightly) while the shutter is open to take the photo. You can't hold a camera steady enough for the time the shutter needs to stay open to take photos in low light. So, either you need a tripod or you need to set the camera on a solid surface during the exposure. A cable release or remote shutter control is also useful so you don't cause camera motion by pressing the shutter button.

Determining the correct exposure time for night shots is difficult. Start with a one second exposure for a distant skyline, then adjust to 2 seconds to make it lighter or half a second to make it darker as needed. With experience, you won't need to do as much trial and error.

There are lots of good web resorces you can consult. Try googling for "night photography." One example is linked below.

Answer 4

Set your camera on a tripod, set the camera to the widest aperture available (5.6, 4, 2.8 etc.). At a wide aperture you should be able to get a shutter speed from your light meter perhaps 10 seconds. Now to icrease the quality and depth of field you need to stop down.

Example:
Your camera is set to 5.6 and your shutter is set to 10 seconds, narrow your aperture to 11 (this is 2 stops 5.6, 8, 11), for every stop you have gone down you need to doulbe your exposure time. So if it was ten seconds first double to 20 then to 40. Set your shutter speed to bulb and hold the button down for 40 seconds, even though your camera is on a tripos you still need quite a steady hand to do this.

Post production, In photoshop you can sharpen the image slightly using the unsharp mask and also tone down any colours that have become too saturated.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/69225552@N00/224424470/in/set-72157594250734531/

This image was taken at 10.30 in the evening using the above method. Using a tripod means that the scene looks in focus whilst anything that moves records as a blur, in this case the sea, but in a city scape this could be traffic, people, etc.

Answer 5

With night photography, the exposure time is much longer than during the daylight hours, so to prevent the blurry pictures use a tripod. They are dark because you are not allowing enough exposure time.

Answer 6

you need a tripod

the best way to take night shots is with an slr camera on the bulb setting while using a tripod...

Answer 7

night vision