A Night Scene

[HTCahHTC]

Hi guys,

took this picture at the roof of Esplanade. I would like to know how you guys feel about the composition, and how it can be further improved. I tried cropping Mandarin Oriental building away, but the result do not seem appealing to me. Any comments or help?



Settings are:

Shutter Speed: 6 Sec
Aperture: f/16
ISO: 200

[m3lv1nh0]

The usual suggestions would be to shoot during the "golden hours" 6.30pm - 7.15pm where there is more colors in the sky. Also ISO can lower somemore to 100 or less. Maybe can do some USM on the photo too.

[sunboi80]

I seem to see some purple cast at the sides, Somehow the picture does not seem sharp enough to me to give a nice light trail.could be due to diffraction. Could be your lens? how abt trying f/11 or f/8?

Somehow i feel that this pic would look better in a landscape orientation...
I like the attempt though, the road and the light leading to the singapore flyer?

[lennyl]

Originally Posted by m3lv1nh0 The usual suggestions would be to shoot during the "golden hours" 6.30pm - 7.15pm where there is more colors in the sky. Also ISO can lower somemore to 100 or less. Maybe can do some USM on the photo too.

Yeah, the hotel seems to merge into the sky. I can see how shooting before the sky is completely dark might work better. Light trails may not be as distinct though. Also agree about lack of sharpness in the image.

If the emphasis is light trails leading to Singapore Flyer, there is too much distractions in the photo and Flyer is not prominent enough.

[HTCahHTC]

Originally Posted by sunboi80 I seem to see some purple cast at the sides, Somehow the picture does not seem sharp enough to me to give a nice light trail.could be due to diffraction. Could be your lens? how abt trying f/11 or f/8? Somehow i feel that this pic would look better in a landscape orientation... I like the attempt though, the road and the light leading to the singapore flyer?

the purple cast was actually PP. hmmm, i believe the lens was dirty at that point of time for it not to be sharp. thanks!

Originally Posted by lennyl Yeah, the hotel seems to merge into the sky. I can see how shooting before the sky is completely dark might work better. Light trails may not be as distinct though. Also agree about lack of sharpness in the image. If the emphasis is light trails leading to Singapore Flyer, there is too much distractions in the photo and Flyer is not prominent enough.

ok, gon' try out another shot later. thanks!

Originally Posted by m3lv1nh0 The usual suggestions would be to shoot during the "golden hours" 6.30pm - 7.15pm where there is more colors in the sky. Also ISO can lower somemore to 100 or less. Maybe can do some USM on the photo too.

my lowest ISO is 100. and sorry for asking, but how can i do some USM on the photo? sorry, new to this greek word, 'photography'. thanks!

[lastboltnut]

I find that the pic is underexposed....other than those lights (which are emitting lights), the rest of the objs which reflect light are very dark, like the hotel for instant....

[lennyl]

Originally Posted by HTCahHTC and sorry for asking, but how can i do some USM on the photo? sorry, new to this greek word, 'photography'. thanks!

USM = unsharp mask, the Photoshop filter that's the tool of choice in sharpening. It can be a bit daunting to use, so you may want to try Smart Sharpen first if you're using Photoshop. Google for all the gory details on sharpening. But a couple of tips:

1. Sharpen as the last step of your post processing.

2. View your image at 100% when sharpening. It allows you to accurately judge the effect of the parameters in real time (if you have preview enabled).

[calebk]

Originally Posted by HTCahHTC the purple cast was actually PP. hmmm, i believe the lens was dirty at that point of time for it not to be sharp. thanks! ...

A lens being dirty does not affect its sharpness, unless your whole filter is misted.

[Kit]

Looking at the exposure data; its underexposed but even if you exposed it for a longer time, it still wouldn't do much except over-exposing the lights. The scene, in general is just too dark. Details in the buildings were lost. The flyer looks too weak to have any visual impact.

Composition...... I just feel that this isn't a good spot to take the flyer. The only building on the left throws the entire composition off balance, even if it was shot earlier or perfectly exposed. This composition just doesn't work. So is the colour cast.

[iRaphael]

perhaps you could try a longer shutter speed? when i take night shots, i generally shoot at about 20s.

maybe you could adjust your white balance to cloudy? i shoot cloudy to get the slight orangey feeling.

i would also prefer if you zoomed in towards the merging of the traffic and not take the hotel at all. then the flyer would look much more outstanding, especially when you shoot at long shutter speeds.

[feetless]

hi, just to share. if u r usind USM... i read on some books theres some settings for cityscapes u can try applying.
Amount 65%, Radius 3, Threshold 2
if this doesnt work then i guess u hv to experiment urself.
hope this help

[HTCahHTC]

Originally Posted by lennyl USM = unsharp mask, the Photoshop filter that's the tool of choice in sharpening. It can be a bit daunting to use, so you may want to try Smart Sharpen first if you're using Photoshop. Google for all the gory details on sharpening. But a couple of tips: 1. Sharpen as the last step of your post processing. 2. View your image at 100% when sharpening. It allows you to accurately judge the effect of the parameters in real time (if you have preview enabled).

i didnt know USM was short for unsharp mask. haha. thanks alot.

Originally Posted by Kit Looking at the exposure data; its underexposed but even if you exposed it for a longer time, it still wouldn't do much except over-exposing the lights. The scene, in general is just too dark. Details in the buildings were lost. The flyer looks too weak to have any visual impact. Composition...... I just feel that this isn't a good spot to take the flyer. The only building on the left throws the entire composition off balance, even if it was shot earlier or perfectly exposed. This composition just doesn't work. So is the colour cast.

i couldnt find any better spots to take. thanks alot.

Originally Posted by iRaphael perhaps you could try a longer shutter speed? when i take night shots, i generally shoot at about 20s. maybe you could adjust your white balance to cloudy? i shoot cloudy to get the slight orangey feeling. i would also prefer if you zoomed in towards the merging of the traffic and not take the hotel at all. then the flyer would look much more outstanding, especially when you shoot at long shutter speeds.

yeah, i tried zooming in towards the merging of the traffic and flyer. but the traffic could not be seen. if i zoomed any out, there would be distractions on both left and right. thanks alot.

Originally Posted by feetless hi, just to share. if u r usind USM... i read on some books theres some settings for cityscapes u can try applying. Amount 65%, Radius 3, Threshold 2 if this doesnt work then i guess u hv to experiment urself. hope this help

okokok, gon' try it sometime. thanks alot.