How to Shoot Night Photography

Taking photographs at night can be one the most difficult situations a photographer faces. Flash will often kill ambient light, and low shutter speeds can cause blurry pictures. Setting the film speed--or ISO--to a high setting will cause grain in the photographs. The secret to shooting at night is learning how to balance all of these aspects to get the perfect picture.

Things You'll Need

• Tripod,
• Camera,
• low light

Instructions

1. 

   Try shooting without a flash. To get the most from ambient lighting, the flash should be the first thing to go. Flash flattens shadows and kills the moody feeling that ambient light creates. Some digital point-and-shoot cameras can shoot in "Auto" mode without a flash.

2. 

   Make aperture a priority. Set the aperture on you camera as high as it will go. A high a aperture is 1.7 to 4.5. The higher the aperture the larger the opening in the lens will be. The larger the opening in the lens, the more natural light can be let in.

3. 

   Lower the shutter speed and get a tripod. The lower the shutter speed, the more light you will get. One-fifth to 1/30 of a second are commonly used shutter speeds for shooting in low light without a flash. Shooting with a low shutter speed can cause "camera shake" or blurry images. This is an ideal time to bring out your tripod to avoid blur.

4. 

   Use a higher ISO or film speed. The film speed controls the film's sensitivity to light. On digital camera this is called ISO, which mimics the effect of changing film speeds. For regular daylight an ISO or film speed of 100 to 400 should do the trick. Night photographers generally start at ISO 600 to 3200. The higher the number the grainier the picture will be. Most photographers stop at 800; the 1600 to 3200 range is where you will get the most "grain" or pixalation. However, digital cameras and programs such as Photoshop can reduce the amount of grain in high-ISO photos.

Resources

• Megan Dodge Photography