Night shoots for a novice!

[steveb23]

Hi,

I've seen quite a lot of these night shoots being organised now and I'd like to get involved... However, I'm a complete novice and my kit isn't brilliant, as my photography is very much on a budget. I have a Canon EOS 100D, with the bundled lenses.

I have a few questions which I hope the experts on here might be able to help me with:

1) With my kit, would it be worth my attendance at one of these events? - would I get decent photos?
2) I assume a tripod is needed. I also read somewhere that a digital shutter would also be useful? - can someone explain this?
3) After searching this forum it seems that F8 seems to be the most appropriate setting for night photos? - would this be the same with my kit, given its not premium?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Steve

[jalfrezi]

I think you should be fine with the kit you currently have, you'll definitely need a tripod, and some sort of remote shutter release is desirable. Generally a lens in the region of 18-70mm focal length would be OK for nightshoots.

The trick with nightshoots is getting the subject in focus, as often autofocus can struggle in low light, personally I tend to use manual focus with Canon's Liveview to get the subject sharp.

[wallace]

Why don't you go out one evening and take some photos of anything that interests you in the dark, make some exposures, makes some experiments, make some errors and above all learn from you mistakes!

The basics I'd say were a STURDY tripod not a cheap one. A cable release. A Stopwatch or timer. A working knowledge of the relationship between exposure and aperture and remembering that stops double in time, 15, 30, 60, 120 etc Seconds.
Work in full manual mode, switch off any image/lens stabilisation.

This blog post may be of use to you https://squawking7000.wordpress.com/2015/10/27/anatomy-of-a-night-shoot/

Just get out and practice.

[jalfrezi]

As Wallace has said, get some practice in beforehand, don't try and learn the basics at a night shoot that you've paid to attend, you'll likely be disappointed with your results.

[Pen Pusher]

Don't be afraid to ask the people around you on a night shoot for help if you need it. We don't bite.

Once you get the hang of doing night shoots you don't necessarily need to use a tripod. http://www.lowlightfotography.eu/14-ldn ... 4591286735

Brian

[flashman8]

I went to Coventry a few years ago for a night shoot there, and this is one of the results............



You will need a sturdy tripod.......

The settings for this image are as follows
Using aperture priority, 800ISO, F5.6, 1/2sec exposure, 20mm on a Sigma 10-20 lens.

hope this helps............

[MC hammer]

You should be fine with your kit.
I've only done the Northolt night shoots but the aircraft are generally close and well lit and therefore won't expose the limitations of a kit lens.
Review your last shot each time you take one. Zoom right in on the review to see if your image is sharp and to ensure the exposure is correct. Take two or more shots from the same spot to maximize your keep rate.
Getting a bit more sky in one shot and a bit more ramp in another, by tilting the tripod head, will alter the exposure, due to the ramp reflecting light towards your camera, whereas the sky does not. Remember it is dark, although light is available in the hangars close by, but you might want to practice using your exposure compensation button by feel alone, as this is a quick way to brighten/darken your shots.
Apart from when an aircraft engine runs, when there tends to be a surge of snappers to that aircraft, you will have plenty of time to work on your shots.
A sturdy tripod is desirable, especially if there is some wind on the night but mine only cost me £20, as I thought I would hardly use it when night shoots were in their infancy. However it does have a hook low down where you can hang your camera bag for extra weight and stability and not extending the neck too far also helps but you need to pray that it is not too windy on the night.

[tankbuster]

I went to Coventry a few years ago for a night shoot there, and this is one of the results............



You will need a sturdy tripod.......

The settings for this image are as follows
Using aperture priority, 800ISO, F5.6, 1/2sec exposure, 20mm on a Sigma 10-20 lens.

hope this helps............

I would say 800 iso is pointless on night shoots if you are using a tripod. Your lowest ISO will invariably give you best results.

[jalfrezi]

I would say 800 iso is pointless on night shoots if you are using a tripod. Your lowest ISO will invariably give you best results.

Sorry, but I have to disagree with that statement, in an ideal world you would shoot at the lowest ISO possible, however, if your subject could move at any time then I'd go for a shorter shutter speed to make sure I got the shot. Depending on the camera, the noise at 800 ISO is easily manageable in post processing.

[Pen Pusher]

This might be of help - http://duxfordfotogallery.co.uk/night-s ... ?preview=Y

Brian

[wallace]

800ISO at 1/2 sec equates 100 ISO at 4 seconds or 8 seconds at f/8, ISO 100
The ability to think exposures using the three elements ISO, aperture and shutter speed pays dividends when you are out in the dark, on a cold night, wishing you were somewhere warm.

Shooting at a fast ISO is good for making test shots, sometimes saving minutes, so it has its uses.

Another wee trick is to use a small piece of Blu-tak to cover the eyepiece on long exposures to stop light getting into the camera through the back door.
Another is to keep the use of a torch to an absolute minimum, shielding its light with your fingers to keep light levels as low as possible - all to save your night vision. Being able to operate your camera by feel will also pay dividends.
Another is turning the in-camera noise reduction off as it effectively doubles your exposures, one tends to loose the momentum of night shooting when one is waiting on a blank exposure running its course. In saying that, it does have its uses, so don't rule it out completely.

It's all just practice and experimentation... and learning from ones mistakes.

In the end it does not matter what ISO one uses so long as you get a result that you are happy with.

[AndyXH558]

This is what i do. i put it on AV and set it on F8 which seems the sweet spot of the Canon cameras and ISO of 200. that will reduce any noise you might get. If you look at the themed page Night owls. you will see what can be done with that setting.

Get yourself a good tripod and if you can and a shutter release cable too.

Hope that helps you out. and i hope you will enjoy it. Any more help just pm me.

[Maisie]

Everyone is different.. I wanted to shoot at f/10 for this, so it was nice and sharp... but due to other people being around using large lamps for a calendar shoot I had to be quick as all my shots were getting ruined, so I had to shoot at f/4 for a quick exposure. Best advice is above, go out with a tripod & learn your camera. Shoot what ever you can find, a church, a motorway, a lit up building.... it's the best way. Use liveview if the 100D has it (I can't remember), it helps with framing.. You don't *need* a remote, I use the timer on the camera, but a remote is good to use.