Nighttime Photography

[kentauros]

Okay, since the subject has come up, I'm posting my few images I have online. I'll try and describe each one as I remember. My camera is the 10.1MP Canon EOS 400D Rebel XTi and I still don't know how to use all the functions on it! :P I think I need a class in it and the Pixma Pro 9000 printer...

I have posted one nighttime image in the panorama thread, and I have a few others from that night in the cold and mists ;) In fact, I think all of them are from freezing cold nights! :o


One of the better skyline images I have of Houston. I've always liked those low clouds when they obscured the tops. Reminds me of the early 80s concert, Redezvous Houston by Jean Michel Jarre.





I like nighttime photography because of the weird lighting you can get, like this rather ordinary bush. I just liked the contrasts of light and dark on the branches and the skyline in the background.





Now this one is from over a year ago, Christmas 2007, I think, and I didn't have my tripod with me. I don't know why I forgot it, but I did, and had to use what was available for holding the camera steady. In this case, a wood railing to the garage apartment I stayed in at my parents' Dripping Springs, Texas, house. It was a full moon, so everything was well-lit :)





A vantage point further down that same hill above and looking back at the main house. My parents put up Christmas lights on the patio, so they all over-exposed and made it look like it was on fire.






I do have some better ones of their house than this, but I don't have them online like I was thinking. I'll prep and upload some more tonight :)


So-o, does anyone else do nighttime photography?

[Fumesucker]

1. Yep..

[kentauros]

2. I really like the first one up there :)

The chairs are a nice composition, too.
I would like to know if you were doing the traffic shots handheld?

The only traffic shots I have are the more abstract blurred shaky-handheld types:









Technically, this is a traffic-shot ;)

[Fumesucker]

3. I have quite a few blurry ones too.. :)

All handheld, my pocket cam has a pretty good OIS system, I can take over 1/2 second shots with it handheld if I'm just doing snapshots and am careful to hold it steady.. The shots don't blow up very well often but for a snapshot they look fine..

I also tend to turn the ISO up pretty high, 800 or even 1200 sometimes and then I use Noise Ninja to take out a lot of the noise. Again if you're doing snapshots the noise is not objectionable but for blowups or strong cropping it becomes noticeable.

[kentauros]

4. That's pretty dam good for handheld!

No OIS for me, but I may look into that for a pocket version. There's also that little bendy "Gorilla Grips" I think it's called. Another little tool to have, though I do have a vacuum-base camera/tool holder (surplus item, probably not originally intended for a camera, though it does have the proper screw threads.)

Now then, what is Noise Ninja, even though I can guess? ;)

I know I could search the group for it, but have you ever considered making a thread just for image-manipulation/adjustment software? If you could get it pinned at the top that would be even better :)

[Fumesucker]

5. Neat Image and Noise Ninja are two image noise reduction programs..

Ninja is somewhat more sophisticated, IMO, but Neat Image has a freeware trial version that can be used for non batch processing of images with no watermark while NN trial version puts a watermark on any resulting image.

I've run through a lot of software in my time, I'm constantly trying out new stuff for photography, video, audio and other things that interest me.

If the mods are interested perhaps an image manipulation software sticky might be something worth doing, I have several contributions I could make and I'm sure others have some expertise in these matters that I lack.

Once you have your data in the digital realm you can process it to your heart's content, mathematics is a powerful tool and math algorithms are becoming more powerful and yet more accessible to the layman on an almost daily basis.

One interesting application I have found for digital camera video is what I like to call "virtual steadicam", take already shot video and digitally stabilize it in the computer, I've taken video while riding my bike and made it look like it was shot with Hollywood equipment, this particular ap works astoundingly well. Oh, and it's free. Like much free software though it's not particularly intuitive or user friendly and takes a bit of playing with to get the hang of using it. The latest editions of Adobe Premier do this but Premier is quite expensive.

[Maeryanne]

9. I have shots of the Sydney Opera house

pretty much like that!!!! :) I just couldn't bring myself to delete them, because there is beauty in their flaws. I shall post them too, oh, and I just recalled some other night time shots around Darling Harbour that I consider are pretty cool. So off I go to see what havoc I can wreak ...

:popcorn: anyone????????

[Maeryanne]

10. Ok, so here is what I have found so far ...

the blurry images that I have in mind may be stored on cd, which my comp seems to have taken a "blue screen dump" aversion to lately, so not sure if I will be able to share from here. Anyway, found this from Darling Harbour shot, a fav place for my sister {!!!} to get her jollies, and something I would NOT go near for my own!!!!




size isn't everything, right? Especially when I have no idea how to resize right now!

What do you think/feel???????????????

:popcorn:

[Fumesucker]

11. That is a very nice shot, I like it a lot..

Once it is resized and sharpened a bit it is surprisingly sharp too.

[Maeryanne]

13. WOW

did you just do that???? ThankYou!!!!

This was taken from a ??? goodness, just trying to remember, my sister, and her longtime NZ bf had taken me across the harbour to Manley, and this must have been on the return trip back to the Harbour where we started out from, post dinner posssibly. It was 2006, and I had just completed my Angel Intuitive tm training workshop with Doreen Virtue, Ph.D at the Hyatt Coolum, on the Sunshine Coast. So, I had a very new camera, that my brother Christopher had given to me, and this shot was taken from one of the ferries.

I was struck by the inherent wickedness ...

ThankYou!!!! It looks amazing. :)

:popcornn:

[Fumesucker]

14. That you took it from a ferry makes it even more special..

A perspective that is not readily available on that structure, an extremely serendipitous shot.

Take a look at this site for free Photoshop alternatives, with which you can resize/sharpen/brighten/darken/etc your images..

http://www.lifeclever.com/10-free-web-based-alternatives-to-photoshop/

If you would like help in choosing or learning to use any of these just shoot me a PM, I'll be happy to assist you.

[Maeryanne]

29. ThankYou!

I shall take a look, and go play with my pictures! :)

:popcorn:

[kentauros]

26. That is an amazing shot (and cool entrance "face")

Well-done, Maeryanne! :D

[Maeryanne]

33. Oh gee

why thankyou kind sir! ;)

It really is iconic, and eternally gleeful :+ probably hints at what lies in wait, inside! Hee hee hah hah!!! :crazy:

:popcorn:

[Maeryanne]

37. I have something similar

an Artistic abstract rendition in glowing primary colours! ;)

PARTY ON SYDNEY HARBOUR


Also taken from the ferry :) Sydney Opera House as never seen before! Or maybe it was another ferry passing in front of the Opera House ...

:popcorn:

[Maeryanne]

8. I have some Sydney traffic shots

{not quite so colourful} that yours remind me of, still need to sort out my upload prog before I can post ... will do asap. Is that early morning light in some of them? Or maybe it is nightfall?

:popcorn:

[Fumesucker]

12. Those are all nightfall..

I'm up early most of the time but I spend my mornings usually getting chores done and reading the news, etc.

Check out my "Georgia Sunrise" OP's for a some early morning shots, I have two up on the forum.

[Maeryanne]

35. I call this Sunset Lights

as I was trying to capture the setting sun, and the traffic just got in the way!



Maybe I see these now with a new perspective ... especially as I was hanging out the window in the back seat driving!!! :bounce:

:popcorn:

[kentauros]

39. Wait a moment! Did you reverse that image?

Oh that's right; y'all drive on the wrong side of the road over there in NZ :P
'Course I thought both you and Australia had gotten rid of all the traffic intersections and gone with roundabouts instead. (Like the one I can't like to here but is with this link-text: Aerial view looking southwest, interchange location, Eastex freeway at Loop 610)

It is a nice sunset pic, even with the traffic :D

[Maeryanne]

45. Did you say roundabout?

you'll have to talk me through that link ;) Way too many signposts for this rightside driver on the left side of the road :crazy:

:popcorn:

[Blue_In_AK]

6. Here's one from 5:30 a.m. last Saturday

This is Fourth Avenue in Anchorage. HullBoss volunteers helping to park the Iditarod mushers as they come into town for the ceremonial start of the race. He has to be there by 5:30 a.m. to receive instructions and then assist with the parking as the teams begin to arrive.

So, anyway, this is how it looked.

[Maeryanne]

7. OMG

it looks freeeezing!!!! That crisp air makes for popout shots, right? Am I right? Like a New Zealand Southerly after weeks of February humidity. Love it.

:popcorn: {and I am sticking to it Kentauros}

[Fumesucker]

15. Your camera does a good job of suppressing noise..

I looked at the EXIF data, that was ISO 1600, if I shoot that fast my images are noisier than yours is.

Did you stop the lens down to get depth of field?

Oh, and BTW, BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!

The proper place for ice is in a drink.

[Blue_In_AK]

17. I took this with the Canon 5D and the 24-70 L lens

at 70 mm, 1/20th of a second, at F/7, and, yes, I pushed the ISO because I wanted the depth of field with a minimum of camera shake. I did some color adjustment in PaintShop to take out the orange tinge from the streetlights by using the "fade correction" slider under "adjust" "color" which is one of my favorite "go-to" tools for whitening up snow, too.

[kentauros]

16. I like this shot, too.

The color balance is perfect. What kind of lighting were you having to compensate for?

I notice the traffic sign about "street cleaning". Well, it doesn't look like they did a very good job! It's still got snow on it :P

[Blue_In_AK]

18. We have snow and ice on the streets through most of the winter,

but they always haul in extra for the sled dog races so the puppies don't hurt their little feet on the pavement.

[kentauros]

24. I figured as much for leaving the pavement covered

Makes sense about having to bring in snow for the dogs, and the sleds :)

[Fumesucker]

20. High pressure sodium streetlights..

They have a really awful orangy tint to them which makes getting good color a real pain.

And if you have to shoot flash in combo with HPS lights it's nearly impossible to color balance the two light sources, your shots will have the foreground one color and the background something quite different and almost always awful.

[Blue_In_AK]

22. We're in the process of converting our street lights to LED

which I think will be great. http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/07/led-streetlights-anchorage-alaska-16000.php . I really hate that orange glow from the old lights.

[Blue_In_AK]

19. And I realize I didn't comment on your shots KenTauros

The first two especially are great. I used to live in Houston many years ago. It's quite a bit different from Anchorage. :rofl:

[Fumesucker]

21. Yeah, but take away the snow and it looks a lot like Dallas..

Dallas, GA that is..

Seriously, that looks a lot like the main drag in the little town I live in.

[Blue_In_AK]

23. Anchorage is about 30 times bigger than Dallas, Georgia,

but Fourth Avenue, at least, is still on the quaint side. :)

[Fumesucker]

32. LOL, we don't have a "tongue in cheek" smilie...

I know Anchorage is a fairly good size place, Dallas strongly resembles Mayberry RFD.

I didn't see any igloos in your shot. ;)

[kentauros]

25. Yeah, I'd say we're a bit different in climates,

though we do sometimes get precipitation measured in feet on our roadways, too





Glad you liked some of my images; I'm just happy to see other examples here, and discuss techniques and such :D

Here's another from the land in Dripping Springs, at sunset:

[Blue_In_AK]

27. The Dripping Springs photo is beautiful.

My brother-in-law and his wife have a new home there, and my husband's going to be down there in May to visit, but I'm staying in Alaska. My "vacation" this year is to Santa Monica next month to help bring my fourth grandchild into the world. :)

[kentauros]

30. That's cool about having relatives in Dripping Springs

:)
And I read recently that Johnny Cash wrote a song about the town :D

I hope you have a good vacation with your grandkids and children, too :)

This is one of my favorite images from spending time in Dripping, the few times a year I visit. And I noticed when I posted it that those might be lenticular clouds just above the treetops. I'll have to check the larger image to make sure. Lenticular clouds are sometimes mistaken for UFOs.

[Maeryanne]

36. Looks like I might need my gumboots!

or a small rowboat for Houston!? ;) The Dripping Springs picture is Magical! Looks like a rich tapestry ...

:popcorn:

[comrade snarky]

28. Love night photography!

Here are a few from a couple of years ago.

A passageway in Orvietto


Orvietto Cathedral


And a really Big Venetian Head

[kentauros]

31. I like your compositions

:)

And as I got to the last one (though I've never seen the movie) my first thought was, "Wait a minute! Is this Cloverfield?" :P

The middle one (don't ask me to name even the most famous churches ;)) is good, especially for the windows on the left. It's a good contrast bwteen the well-lit front and still getting an idea of lighting from within. That little circle of light pulls your eye over and then back up to the Moon, or you go from the Moon to it.

The other nice bit about nighttime photography is: no people cluttering up the composition ;)

[comrade snarky]

48. Thanks! I love your cityscapes of Houston

City that gave birth to me. OK, my mother was involved as well...

The lack of people is actually one of the things I love about late night work. It can bring a timeless, almost otherworldly feel to a photo. That big head would be a lot less creepy if you saw the kids playing in it the next morning. :D

[Maeryanne]

34. Very nice!

I love the intimacy in the first picture, there's something about lanterns, and lit doorways and windows at night ~ makes me wonder about what goes on inside :)

The Cathedral is kind of giddying to look at, was that your aim? Accenting the scale?

The last picture is almost Dali esque if I can use that! :) Freaky



:popcorn:

[comrade snarky]

49. I'd like to take credit for the weird angle

On the cathedral. I really would, I could tell you that I saw the light play on the facade and the moon above and was inspired to find the angle at which it would loom over the viewer.

That would be a big fat lie. :P

I didn't have a tripod so I had to hunker down and balance my elbows on my knees while leaning back on another building. That was the only place I could get both sides of the cathedral and the moon. Total luck!

[Maeryanne]

50. See how necessity leads to invention!

and that discomfort ;) translates in the impact of the shot ~ the "looming."

I love that you shared that, this is the image behind the image. More creativity than luck imo :)



:popcorn:

[Maeryanne]

38. Simply stunning

and I hadn't yet given my unbiased fb! :)

The first cityscape has a breathtaking beauty to it, and the tree in the second image looks superimposed, I don't think I appreciated how beautiful either of them were!

The lookthrough shot has that rich tapestry feel to it, the colours seem warm too, yet it was a crispy winter's night, right? Is that the effect of the yellow moonlight?

The blazing porch throws the icy lighting on the roof tops into stark contrast, and the colour of the sky is divinely starsprinkled :)

:popcorn:

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

40. i have done it a bit...

here is a slideshow...

http://www.flickr.com/search/show/?q=night&w=37645348%40N00

[kentauros]

42. You certainly have!

:D

Most of your images come across as quite professional. I don't know if you do this for a living, but I could see you selling many of them in your slideshow :)

Maybe make a calendar of nighttime images...

[ConsAreLiars]

47. WOW!^3.

I see some photos and think, well, if I had unlimited drive and energy, megabucks and a will to match, I might do that. And there are some that I just have to admit I could never do that. Those fall in that second group.

[Maeryanne]

51. I see you are a Master of the UnderStatement ...

as well as NightTime Photography! ;) Tell us your secrets ~ {just between you and me} :)

:popcorn:

[JeffR]

41. Nice work, kentauros

The first Dripping Springs shot is especially good, like a glimpse into a hidden world.

Great thread. Nice to see other people's night shots here too. Could be a heck of a contest theme.

[kentauros]

43. Thanks Jeff :)

I forgot to point out that the one that's at an angle was because I tried a shot on the wooden railing of the outside stairs. I simply held the camera solidly on the rail and took the pic. I guess the image info will tell how long I left the shutter open, because I forget how long now.

Hey, maybe the winner of Doors & Gates will make this the next contest theme ;)

[JeffR]

44. 8 seconds at f4. I peeked.

I figured that's how the angle came about. It really enhances the shot, IMHO.

[Maeryanne]

46. It is OtherWorldly

isnt' it? Magical mystical night creatures ... unicorns and centaurs ... djinn and fairies too :)

What do you feel Kentauros ;) ???

:popcorn: