How to Shoot Photos at Night

Taking photos at night requires a patient photographer and working under low-light conditions with long shutter speed, requires time, experimentation and will power. However, night photography can result in beautiful and surreal images, even when shooting the most mundane objects. Here's how to approach night photography.

Difficulty:

Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• 35 mm SLR camera
• Slow to medium speed film
• Shutter trigger
• Tripod

1. Choose the right camera. Night photo shoots are best performed with a manual SLR 35 mm camera. If you decide to work digitally, be sure that you have the ability to hold your shutter open, attach a shutter trigger and control aperture and shutter speed.

2. Carry the proper tools, which include a tripod and a shutter trigger, so that you do not shake the camera while tripping the shutter during long exposures. It is also important to carry and hand held timer to track exposure time.

3. Use medium or slow speed film to produce quality images. Even fast films will require long exposure times, however medium and slow films, with a bit of patience, will create the most perfect grain quality.

4. Bracket your shots to insure the perfect image. This means that you should guesstimate the exposure time for your shot, and then shoot at least two more photos, adding and subtracting time. For example, if you believe you can take a nice photo with one minute exposure time, shoot another at 30 seconds and another at two minutes.

5. Capture motion by taking advantage of your long exposure times. Catch light trails of cars zooming down a freeway, or track the movement of stars in the night sky.

6. Play around with the aperture setting. You have bracketed your photo, now try it again with a different aperture setting. A smaller aperture can help prevent stationary lights from overexposing the film, while a larger aperture can help prevent the presence of motion on the final image.

7. Trigger a flash during exposure to create a surreal glow to your subject matter. This will make the background more obscure, while illuminating the subject you are shooting.

Tips & Warnings

• Shooting photos at night means standing around for long periods in the cold, so dress warm and bring along a hot drink.

• Bring extra batteries for all your photo equipment, as batteries tend to burn out faster in cold temperatures.

• Consider your personal safety when shooting photos at night. Carrying valuable photo equipment at night, especially in big cities, can be a hazard. Choose your location well, and try to shoot with a buddy or a group to help protect one another.