Essential Gear to Ensure Sharp Shots at Night
In order to capture the color in the sky with your digital camera, make sure you shoot at dusk, around 30 minutes after sunset whereupon the sky will be a magical blue color. This window of opportunity will be longer during summer months and is often referred to as the “golden hour”. In the city it is easier to get the timing right, because you will see building and street lights become subtly brighter. The contrast between the sky and the buildings will also become more subdued.
Tripods
Low-light photogrpahy requires slow sgutter speeds, so a tripod is essential if you want to keep your images sharp on night shots. Make sure you buy the best and most stable model you can afford.
Remore Release
Your digital camera self-timer function will suffice for general scenes reducing the chances of blurs induces by shaking, but a remote release kit is essnetial for timing long-exposure traffic trails
Lens Hood
A lens hood reduces flare caused by stray light hitting your sensor, but on night shots in winter it will also prevent rain hitting your lens’ front elemenst as well.
We suggest the following set-up for best results:
ISO
Always use a tripod and stick to your camera’s lowest ISO setting to get the smoothest images in low light
File Format
Shoot RAW for best quality. This also gives more flexibility when it comes to editing your shots post-shoot.
White Balance
Stick with the daylight setting for consistent results when viewing your images.
Metering
Use overall metering and zoom into an area of bright lights, then line up your metering bars
Aperture
Keep your aperture fixed at f/16 for maximum sharpness and good depth of field
Exposure Mode
Use Manual and only adjust your shutter speed to increase or decrease exposure
Tagged with: Depth Of Field • Exposure Mode • Field Exposure • Flare • Golden Hour • Lens Hood • Night Shots • Self Timer • Shutter Speed • White Balance
Filed under: Photography Tips
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