Night Photography - How to Do It Right

Not a lot of photographers understand that they can shoot stunning night photographs with normal camera equipment. "Is that even true?" Is a well-intentioned skeptic's question, that I subject numerous times every day when they are first introduced into my job.

In actuality, a lot of times I encounter my job posted on sites and photo-sharing social networking sites with hundreds of doubtful comments. So is it possible to find these shots without intense photo-manipulation and mixing in the stock vision of outer space?

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CAMERA GEAR

Let us begin with your camera equipment. That is an important distinction which you are going to need to make before you continue reading. You are going to want an ultra-wide lens with a large aperture also.

Are you prepared for your camera body and ultra-wide lens? Great. Pick up a secure tripod, and you are all set to go. Do you want the most expensive rig on earth? Not. I also missed lots of great shots in that time frame due a blend of wind and a shaky tripod. But using a stable tripod and incredibly secure ball mind will make your life infinitely less frustrating, and you're going to stop to miss shots because of the end, or water induced vibration and motion.

Now you are all set. You own a camera, tripod, along with a quick wide-angle lens. You could add additional equipment to your rig, but you are brand new to this, so we're keeping it easy. Then determine where and when to go shooting, and in which to take when you are out there. Let us cover that today.

FINDING A Great LOCATION FOR NIGHT PHOTOGRAPHY

Where to take during the night: You will need to discover a place with low light pollution with the convenient Dark Sky Finder.

When to take: Plan to take on a new moon when all of the conditions are great. Utilize cleardarksky.com to ascertain when that is going to be at a place you have previously selected.

The moment the conditions lineup, throw your rig in the car and drive from town. An hour passes, and you are approaching the place in which you intend to shoot. Perhaps it is a lone tree, a few stones, a hill, or a different interesting compositional element. Utilizing your flashlight or a reddish headlamp, install your equipment and look south. Can you find the Milky Way along with your bare eyes? Otherwise, use a constellation-finding program and target for Sagittarius. That is it!

CAMERA SETTINGS

We are going full guide. Are there some lights, bright planets or stars in the space, anywhere? In that case, then you may use your camera LiveView to concentrate on that remote light. This might be a town light, ship, or tower. No luck? Take out your handy laser pointer and then glow on something far away. Concentrate on the bright green dot with LiveView (nifty tip: if you press on zoom (+) on the back of the camera, then It Is Going to zoom the screen in so you can view it bigger, Which Makes It easier to concentrate, but It Doesn't zoom the lens)

Today you are going to need to set up your camera to catch the stars. Your attention is locked in, and it is time to get your settings right. You are going to want to your detector to "take in" each of the available light. How can you do so?

ISO -- put it high. Significant. Anywhere from 1600 -- 6400, based on what you are familiar with for your camera. Start with 1600 and move up. Experiment to discover what works best.

Shutter Speed -- put it to between 20-30 minutes Start in 30, then zoom in and examine one of your photographs. Are the stars small stripes? Reduce it to 20 minutes. Bump the ISO up a halt to compensate if you're able to. A useful trick is to split 600 from the focal length to have the most amount of time in seconds you can leave the shutter open to until the stars begin to arch. So with a 15mm lens you can display safely for 40 minutes)

Focal length -- As broad as it belongs. Ideally, 24mm or over a complete frame camera.

Aperture -- As broad as it belongs. You may wish to look at leasing a lens in case your maximum aperture is f3.5 or higher.

SHOOTING AND SUMMARY

If you do not, do not be worried about it for today, Look it up before you begin shooting again. That is all there's to it!

By following my directions precisely, I GUARANTEE that you are going to find a remarkable Milky Way photograph of your own. So grab some hot clothing, your equipment, and a few buddies and give it a shot!