Tip of the Week: Photographing Cities at Night
- In most nighttime cityscape situations, a low ISO, Aperture Priority Mode, and using a tripod and remote shutter release will get you the best results.
- If photographing a skyline, use a moderate aperture in the f/8-f/11 range to ensure you’ve got a good depth of field that will keep all the buildings in sharp focus.
- If photographing a sign, use spot metering and get your reading from a mid-tone area of the sign to get the best exposure.
- If photographing a bridge, use a small aperture (at least f/16) to keep the entirety of the bridge in focus while forcing the camera into using a longer shutter speed that will blur lights from cars.
While the vast majority of us live in an urban jungle, the fact remains that capturing the essence of our cities at night is a pretty difficult task. There’s all the artificial lights with which to contend, the hustle and bustle of the streets to work around, and, of course, the decisions to be made about which elements of the city to capture at night.
With all that in mind, this week’s Tip of the Week focuses on some great nighttime cityscape subjects and what you need to do to improve your photographs of them.
Look to the Sky(line)
Nighttime photos of a city’s skyline are among the most mesmerizing cityscape shots you can take. You can opt for a sunset shot, with the fiery sky serving as a backdrop for the dotted lights of the cityscape. You can also try for a purely nighttime shot, with all the artificial lights of the skyline looking like a sky full of stars.
Optimize your images of nighttime skylines by setting your camera on a tripod and dialing in a healthy aperture, in the f/8-f/11 range, so that you have good depth of field. Don’t worry about the aperture being too small; your camera should be able to pull enough light from all the artificial lights of the city.
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Next, ensure you’ve got a low ISO to keep the image free of noise. Try ISO 100 first, but if your camera struggles with exposure, bump it up to ISO 200. Then, put your camera in aperture priority mode so it will select the best shutter speed for the aperture you’ve selected. After that, using a remote or the camera’s self-timer, fire the shutter so that you get an image that is free of blur.
Look for Signs
There are lots of interesting signs in cities that make for awesome visuals in photographs. Of course, the issue with photographing signs is that they are incredibly bright and the surrounding environment is dark. This will give any camera fits when it’s trying to meter and will often net you an image that’s either badly overexposed or badly underexposed.
To get around these issues, try spot metering. That will give you control regarding the area from which your camera gets a light reading. When spot metering on a sign, choose an area of mid-range tones to get the best exposure. In the image above, you might select the red or blue lettering from which to meter. Remember as well to use a tripod and remote shutter release so your image is tack-sharp.
Cross a Bridge
With their lines, angles, and curves, bridges are excellent subjects for daytime shots. But at night, with the addition of thousands of lights, bridges become an even more potent subject for nighttime city photographs.
The first step for stunning nighttime bridge images is to find a vantage point from which you can take advantage of the lines created by the span of the bridge. In the image above, for example, the Golden Gate Bridge creates a strong visual with its roadway traveling at an angle from left to right. It’s also helpful if you can include other elements like water (for the reflection of the bridge’s lights), as well as some skyline elements or, as in the image above, far-off lights, just to add some depth and dimension to the shot.
As is required for other nighttime shots, you will need to set yourself up with a sturdy tripod and remote shutter release. Again, select Aperture Priority Mode, but this time, use a smaller aperture, say, f/16. This will get you the depth you need to keep the entirety of the bridge span in focus. It will also force your camera into using a long shutter speed to compensate for the small aperture. This will get a silky smooth effect on the water’s surface and will also blur the lights of cars on the roadway for an awesome long exposure shot.
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Conclusion
Even if you don’t live in an urban area, you can still dive into nighttime cityscapes. Find well-lit signs in your town or village to photograph. Visit your town’s main street and practice taking photos of streetlights illuminating nearby buildings. The point is that cityscape photography isn’t just reserved for people living in urban areas! It’s just a matter of finding the right elements to photograph in your location.