Bright Lights, Big City

T(h)orsten

I got me new camera and went out shooting at night for the first time. I can say I am quite happy with the results.

What f-stop do you recommend for shooting at night, esp. for far away objects like city skylines? I used 5.4 with iso100 for all shots.

Any comments on the exposure on the ones below?

I shot raw. Photos have been modifed slightly (crop, shadows) with "raw essentials"

Thanks, Thorsten


#1:
Exposure time : 5
Exposure program: Manual
Exposure mode: Manual
Exposure bias [EV]: 0.0
F-Number: F5.6
Focal length [mm]: 126
ISO value: 100
Shutter speed : 4.50
Aperture: F5.6




#2
Exposure time : 2
Exposure program: Manual
Exposure mode: Manual
Exposure bias [EV]: 0.0
F-Number: F5.6
Focal length [mm]: 40
ISO value: 100
Shutter speed : 2.00
Aperture: F5.6




#3
Exposure time : 2
Exposure program: Manual
Exposure mode: Manual
Exposure bias [EV]: 0.0
F-Number: F5.6
Focal length [mm]: 40
ISO value: 100
Shutter speed : 2.00
Aperture: F5.6




#4
Exposure time : 1
Exposure program: Manual
Exposure mode: Manual
Exposure bias [EV]: 0.0
F-Number: F5.6
Focal length [mm]: 70
ISO value: 100
Shutter speed : 1.30
Aperture: F5.6





#5
Exposure time : 3
Exposure program: Manual
Exposure mode: Manual
Exposure bias [EV]: 0.0
F-Number: F5.6
Focal length [mm]: 168
ISO value: 100
Shutter speed : 3.20
Aperture: F5.6

gubbs

Hi,
Excellent job, well composed and well exposed The only thing I'd suggest is that you might want to try shooting earlier (an hour or so after sunset). The skies will be dark blue & with more ambient light you'll be able to pick up more detail in the shadows without blowing the highlights.

Phil U.

Is this first time shooting at night or first night shots with the new rig? Either way you did well but if this was the first time doing night shots you did very well. Good exposures, interesting compositions.

I agree with Gubbs that having the blue in the sky is more pleasing. You don't have a very large window of time where the blue shows up but put side-by-side those always seem to win in my mind.

T(h)orsten

Night Shots Feedback
Thanks for the feedback! I will go earlier next time to catch the dark blue sky as suggested. Guess I will have to go three times then as the shots have been taken at three different locations. Will definitely go for it.

It’s the first night shots ever and the first time with the new equipment. Just got my first DSLR last week, incl. my first tripod. D20 + 2 lenses + tripod + mem card + filters. So far I was "just" using a Canon point-and-shoot. I went on a trip to Bali, took lots of photos, found this website … and now I am bankrupt

Phil U.

T(h)orsten wrote:

I went on a trip to Bali, took lots of photos, found this website … and now I am bankrupt

Ah, welcome to the madness!

USAIR

Looked at these the other day but was at work and couldn't comment
Glad they made their way back to the top

All very good photos good comp
Love #1 best all razor sharp

Thanks
Fred

JimM

T(h)orsten wrote:

It’s the first night shots ever and the first time with the new equipment. Just got my first DSLR last week, incl. my first tripod. D20 + 2 lenses + tripod + mem card + filters. So far I was "just" using a Canon point-and-shoot. I went on a trip to Bali, took lots of photos, found this website … and now I am bankrupt

These are great! Amazing they are your first time. Nice job and welcome to the addiction!

illuminati919

The clarity of the pictures is great. I remember when I just bought my dslr, it was like a baby in my hands, well not that precious, but it was still awesome. The photos are good, keep up the great work !!!!

T(h)orsten

Thanks for the comments. I read a lot in this forum and elsewhere, but practically I am just starting to try out all these things. It's good to get some feedback as I am not sure if I got it right or not.

Of cause i took many shots that night. Normally with 3 different shutter speeds for each photo. So I deleted many later. But I guess whats just part of the process?!


Thorsten

T(h)orsten

Night Photography
Ahhh, now its dark blue ... and a few other colours in the water too. Thanks for the tip again. More feedback is always welcome as it seems to really help!

That is so much fun! :photo

erich6

T(h)orsten wrote:

Ahhh, now its dark blue ... and a few other colours in the water too. Thanks for the tip again. More feedback is always welcome as it seems to really help!

That is so much fun! :photo

All good shots but this last one is GREAT!

Erich