first night shot on tripod

[d2xpeter]

1. in what area is critique to be sought?
comments on WB and shutter speed setting
2. what one hopes to achieve with the piece of work?
to capture the vibrancy along the river. added the lower left portion to give an perspective view of the river, without which one might not know that it is a river.
3. under what circumstance is the picture taken? (physical conditions/emotions)
very relax mood.
4. what the critique seeker personally thinks of the picture
shot at iso80, f8, 5s, not too sure if WB is ok and whether it is overexposed or underexposed. Aspect ratio set at 16:9

 

[tecnica]

the photo is underexposed to the extent of not being able to delineate the buildings from the background.

too much dark(black) sky also equates to excessive space which does not add to the photo.

try shooting at around 7.00 to 7.45pm for better results.

 

[Shizuma]

try f 11 @ 30seconds . the taller buildings are under exposed .

since you have a tripod might as well expose longer

 

[eggie87]

1. in what area is critique to be sought?
comments on WB and shutter speed setting
2. what one hopes to achieve with the piece of work?
to capture the vibrancy along the river. added the lower left portion to give an perspective view of the river, without which one might not know that it is a river.
3. under what circumstance is the picture taken? (physical conditions/emotions)
very relax mood.
4. what the critique seeker personally thinks of the picture
shot at iso80, f8, 5s, not too sure if WB is ok and whether it is overexposed or underexposed. Aspect ratio set at 16:9

Too late a shot..too short a shot..increase shutter timing....colors are fine cause it's too dark to know the natural sky color ..if u shoot earlier u would have proper color balancing...

 

[d2xpeter]

thkq for all valuable advices.

this is another one taken 6 min earlier at about 7.30pm, with the same settings

 

[shiosaki]

thkq for all valuable advices.

this is another one taken 6 min earlier at about 7.30pm, with the same settings

this looks slightly better than the orig but its still quite underexposed...

 

[d2xpeter]

thkq.
Night exposure seems quite tricky, esp outdoor where one cannot use a grey card, lightmeter etc.

How could one decide the "right" exposure?

 

[Kit]

The ambient light will remain constant for a period of time i.e. 5 to 10 mins. Take a few test shots with the camera reading and then dial in adjustments as you deem fit. Nothing complex. Taking the photo at the right time is more critical.

 

[Kit]

thkq for all valuable advices.

this is another one taken 6 min earlier at about 7.30pm, with the same settings

The ambient light is just too dark. Lights are too contrasty and even if you increase the exposure, the highlights will go through the roof, its not going to help. If you are just starting out to do night shots, set up your camera early and observe the ambient light change. Take a photo say..... every 5 mins or so to see which one you like best. Ideally, there should still be enough ambient light for you to record details in the buildings so you don't end up with a photo showing bright artificial lightings and nothing else.

 

[nitewalk]

The ambient light is just too dark. Lights are too contrasty and even if you increase the exposure, the highlights will go through the roof, its not going to help. If you are just starting out to do night shots, set up your camera early and observe the ambient light change. Take a photo say..... every 5 mins or so to see which one you like best. Ideally, there should still be enough ambient light for you to record details in the buildings so you don't end up with a photo showing bright artificial lightings and nothing else.

Aside from what Kit has mentioned, I find that shooting when the sky is too dark will not allow the edges of the buildings to be properly outlined. As mentioned, the lack of ambient light will means only the artificial (interior and exterior) light illuminating the building, but that may not sufficiently outline the structure of the building. You may be familiar with the piece of structure, but someone from another country may not. You would want to show up the design of the structure with ambient light as well. In fact, with better ambient light, the colours of the shops is far more impressive that the artificial lights from these buildings. I normally shoot up till 20 minutes after the sun has set, but some continue on, and some books will tell you to shoot up to 30 minutes after the sun has set. It really depends on the amount of light present in the scene and your preference. I am more comfortable with shots taken within 15 to 20 minutes after the sun has set, and that is my preference and I work with that. But a scene with dark sky for me is a no-no and I rarely keep such images nowadays.

 

[d2xpeter]

noted with thanks to all.

this one taken at 7.27 but with iso at 400, f8 and 2s...with a slightly different perspective and foreground a bit messy.
does this give the so-called better ambient light?

 

[nitewalk]

noted with thanks to all.

this one taken at 7.27 but with iso at 400, f8 and 2s...with a slightly different perspective and foreground a bit messy.
does this give the so-called better ambient light?

You could go down more. When I shot here, i went a few steps down the stairs below people. Usually people won't sit even lower.

 

[d2xpeter]

hi thanks. didn't dare to stand too near the water. LOL

How is the ambient light in this last pic? is it much better?

 

[eggie87]

hi thanks. didn't dare to stand too near the water. LOL

How is the ambient light in this last pic? is it much better?

Much better.=)

 

[zaren]

prefer to have the cleaner foreground from the 1st pic and the nicer ambient light from the last pic. suggest cloning away the branches/leaves at top left.
e.g.

 

[d2xpeter]

thank you all.

 

[Shizuma]

you are most meow-come. happy shooting!

 

[d2xpeter]

meow meow, got to find some time to go back to re-shoot, meow

 

[shortiz69]

noted with thanks to all.

this one taken at 7.27 but with iso at 400, f8 and 2s...with a slightly different perspective and foreground a bit messy.
does this give the so-called better ambient light?

Definitely better..

 

[d2xpeter]

prefer to have the cleaner foreground from the 1st pic and the nicer ambient light from the last pic. suggest cloning away the branches/leaves at top left.
e.g.

thkq Zaren. This is BEAUTIFUL!
do you mind if i use yr this piece of work as my Facebook cover?