Digital Photography: Photographing at Night (2024)

Lesson 5: Photographing at Night

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Photographing at night

Digital Photography: Photographing at Night (1)A photo taken at night

Taking photos at night can be a challenge because your camera doesn't have as much light to work with. Common problems include photos that are blurry (due to a slow shutter speed), grainy (due to a higher ISO number), or dark (if your camera can't compensate for the low light). If your camera has a built-in flash, it can add a lot more light but can also be harsh and unflattering.

In the photo below, the camera tried to reduce blurriness by increasing the ISO number. However, this added a lot of image noise (or graininess). Keep in mind that you may not be able to spot these types of problems with your camera's LCD screen; they are much more noticeable when photos are viewed at full size.

Digital Photography: Photographing at Night (2)A photo with a lot of image noise

Depending on what kind of camera you have, you may find that it takes pretty good photos even in low-light situations. However, if you notice that the photos are coming out blurry or dark, you can try some of the tips below to get better results.

  • Use your camera's Night Portrait scene mode. Using this scene mode may help your camera deal with low light.

    Digital Photography: Photographing at Night (3)Selecting the Night Portrait scene mode

  • Hold the camera as still as possible, or use a tripod. In low light, your camera will use a slower shutter speed, which means your photos may come out blurry. Keeping the camera still will help to keep your photos sharp.
  • Use the flash if necessary. Your camera's flash may not be the most flattering light, but it's often better than nothing. Many cameras also have a flash that is designed to reduce red eye, so check to see if this is an option on your camera. Also, keep in mind that the flash usually won't help if your subject is more than 15 feet away.

    Digital Photography: Photographing at Night (4)A photo taken with flash

  • Adjust the exposure compensation. If your photos are still coming out too dark, you can adjust the exposure compensation Digital Photography: Photographing at Night (5) to increase the brightness. Although this will make the photos brighter, it won't actually improve the quality, so it's not really a substitute for more lighting.

    Digital Photography: Photographing at Night (6)Adjusting the exposure compensation

  • Try increasing the ISO setting. If all else fails, you can manually raise the ISO number in your camera's settings. This may reduce blurriness, but it will also make your photo more grainy.

    Digital Photography: Photographing at Night (7)Manually raising the ISO number

Generally, DSLR cameras are better than point-and-shoot cameras in low-light situations. This is because they have larger lenses and sensors that can capture more light.

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Digital Photography: Photographing at Night (2024)

FAQs

Digital Photography: Photographing at Night? ›

Nighttime photography

Nighttime photography
Night photography (also called nighttime photography) refers to the activity of capturing images outdoors at night, between dusk and dawn.
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Night_photography
settings are a good place to begin: opening up your aperture, slowing down your shutter speed, or (controversially) fiddling with your ISO (the sensitivity of your digital camera — comparable to film speed in a film camera). But you can also look for ways to adjust the light on your subject.

What ISO should I use for night shots? ›

Most night sky photographers stay at or below (wider than) f/2.8. ISO — If you're in a very low-light area, such as out in the country, set your ISO somewhere between 1600 and 3200 (or higher if necessary). For areas with more light pollution, like a city, keep your ISO around 800 to reduce noise in the image.

What are the drawbacks to night photography with a digital camera? ›

Taking photos at night can be a challenge because your camera doesn't have as much light to work with. Common problems include photos that are blurry (due to a slow shutter speed), grainy (due to a higher ISO number), or dark (if your camera can't compensate for the low light).

What ISO should I use for dark places? ›

An ISO of 64 or 100 is low. The sensor is less sensitive to light light and the image will be fine with lots of clear details. Higher ISO settings are generally used in darker situations. This makes the sensor more sensitive to light and is good for shooting in dark places.

What shutter speed to use at night? ›

In order to get sharp shots at night, you will need a fairly fast Shutter Speed of around 1/125 sec - 1/200 sec. If you pick a slower value you risk the chance of getting blurry shots. If you go much faster, depending on your ISO value, you risk your exposure becoming underexposed.

Is f 3.5 good for night photography? ›

Getting sharp stars in your nightscape

As long as your camera has a lens that is f/2.8, or even f/3.5, you should be able to see that bright star/planet in live view at 100% magnification, allowing you to carefully focus on it.

Can you shoot 100 ISO at night? ›

100 film is daylight film. You can shoot it with good results at night with a tripod & a cable release.

Can you take photos at night without flash? ›

Adjust the Aperture

While ISO determines the speed of which light reaches your camera's image sensor, the aperture determines how much light it allows in – because if this, a wide aperture (small f-stop number) can also help you capture decent low light photographs without the use of a flash.

How do I take good night pictures with my phone? ›

For Android phones, open your camera and look for the night option in shooting modes. Once in the night ode, you can see an option to select the exposure time. Find more information on Android night mode here. When using long exposure times on your camera, you must ensure the phone is as still as possible.

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