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Position:Home>Visual Arts> Night Photography Newbie?Question: Night Photography Newbie!? I want to start exploring night photography, but I am having a mental block as to what my subjects should be!. I live near Detroit, and I'm pretty close to a highway overpass as well!. I was thinking maybe getting a shot of the "8 Mile Rd!." sign off of I-94!.!. but really that's the only idea so far!. Any pointers, suggestions!?
Equipment on hand: Nikon D40 Tripod Eyepiece cover Remote shutterWww@QuestionHome@Com Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: From an old Flintoid who has been to the Auto City on many occasions, abet years ago for I moved to Tucson in 1986 I would have to say the Old Cobo Hall (what, the Joe Louis Arena now!.!.!? or Cobo Center) and the Detroit River Front Project, the Renaissance Center would be MY choices!. Then you have the things on Belle Isle and the docks and Ferris that chug around!.!. Are the Big Wheel boats, the Paddle Boats still in operation!.!.!? They be cool day OR night!.!. The Omni Detroit River Hotel area would be killer too!. How about the Windsor Bridge!.!.!? How about the skyline of Windsor it's self!.!.!? Go across into Canada and shoot the sky line of Detroit from many angles!.!. Pick a stormy night for ANY of these and maybe get low clouds or lightning in your pics!.!. Does the Detroit Zoo still have night hours at times!.!.!? Good shots there with the colored lights and lit fountains they USED to have!.!.!. Go to the downtown section, find a busy intersection around the ol' Fox Theater or Hart Plaza and get time exposed images there!. Set your camera to the LOWEST ISO, add a polarized too to hold back more light and to richen the colors and get time exposures of the cars moving as well as what people may show up in the brighter areas, as smoky colorful blurs!. In fact, use the polarizer in ALL your night images to enhance the night colors!. It does work!.!.! Because your working with digital and can see your results so quickly I would range my exposure from some where less than 1 second, depending on the light, to 30 seconds and Bulb!.!. Many of the shots exposures could be started by the one the camera picks it's self when on P or Auto mode!. From there bracket your exposures to acquire what you like!. My Fuji S-2 and S-5 do quite well at times when I go ahead and let them drive!. A tripod and a cable release are of course, needed!.!.! If you do a 30 second exposure and it is too dark, you will need to do a full minute to gain 1 f stop in exposure!. After that it is double the exposure time, each time you wish to make it lighter!. 2 minutes!.!. then 4, then 8 and so on!.!. Just the reverse if too light!. If 30 is too bright, your next setting is usually 15 seconds, then 8!.!. I know digital cameras have numbers between the 'prime' numbers but often in time exposures adding 10 seconds to a 30 second exposure does hardly anything, but go ahead and experiment!.!. Shoot in RAW too, your editing will give 1000% better images than in a jpg fine!.!. Now, with all this said and done, EXPECT to be confronted by the Home Land Security Nazi's!.!.!.!. Taking pics of the like and nature above AND at night will raise flags in some people and our rights as FREE Americans are going more and more every day!. If you DON'T get confronted, I would be shocked!. I do out here in Tucson when out with my cameras, not all the time tho and often not at the same place, but I have been and have been asked for my - papers!.!.! Papers!.!.!? PAPERS!.!.!.!! !? I don't need no stinkin' papers!.!.! What, you think I am a dog or something!.!.!? I have no passport nor do we need one here in our own country!.!.!. But, they have the guns, radios and helicopters so it is best to comply the best you can!. However, do NOT give up your camera or memory cards!.!.!.! Make them arrest you first, then live very well later on the money a lawyer will get you from the city, county and maybe state!.!.!.from the bogus arrest !! Bob - TucsonWww@QuestionHome@Com You are set !.!.!. just take 15 to 30 second exposures until the head/tail light streams look just right to you!. You will have to adjust your f/stops to get the colour saturation just right of course!. You may even find that using the "B" bulb setting and locking the shutter open for a few minutes, that you like those shots even better!. Compose your images in both vertical and horizontal planes!.Www@QuestionHome@Com What about wild life, nocturnal animals , foxes, badgers, owls, bats etc!.!. Animals are always the best subjects for this hobby!.!.!.Www@QuestionHome@Com |