Archive 2020 · Comments welcome from a Dusk photo and a Landscape question please

terryeaton
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Comments welcome from a Dusk photo and a Landscape question please

I LOVE dusk photos... so moody etc. I'm new to landscape photography and looking to improve. We live by a Lake and Harbor that is just beautiful at night. We ventured out to take a few photos and learned a lot about what we can and can't do, and I want to try again and keep improving. one thing i learned REAL quick - tripod is a MUST. This was a hand-held shot and, shockingly, I was able to use my body as a tripod enough to get a pretty steady shot at 1/4 (17-40 lense), but the problem was, the NOISE. ugh! i set my camera at a max auto-iso of 12,800 iso (it goes way beyond that! No way) and even at far less than its max iso, there was WAY more noise than acceptable to me. I used Noise reduction but, as predicted, it's not really that great. But, I do love the photo and composition, and I reeeeally liked how the moon looked that night! It was partially eclipsed.

My main question is... let's say I had my tripod with me, and I set the iso to a reasonable amount. I worry about anything that might move a bit being sharp. I can make sure there aren't any boats around at the time, but what about things like even waves in the water?

And also... when I shoot with a longer shutter speed, the lights (such as the lighthouse and lamps in this photo) start looking hazy and weird - how do we deal with lights like that?

I love the colors in this photo, and ny comments welcome on the photo, but I know the noise and sharpness are horrible lol. I'm not posting it because it's awesome and I want to "share" but more to get technical feedback on my questions:

Apr 27, 2020 at 10:17 AM

junglialoh
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Comments welcome from a Dusk photo and a Landscape question please

Nice catch we missed. Moon and Venus (45-47 elongation) is line up

Apr 27, 2020 at 01:58 PM

xterra07
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Comments welcome from a Dusk photo and a Landscape question please

You need a tripod. Try ISO 400.
For powered things, if they don't move sideways, they might not look bad. At a certain motion to shutter ratio you may get a pleasant motion effect (try different ones). Those powered things will effect the water, so afterwards you wait for water to settle.

Higher shutter speed will water not move. Could be combined with another photo that makes all rest look optimal (like starburst, cars, planes) - you combine water from 1 picture with another one.

If it's Canon 17-40, it doesn't have a great starburst, but many other lenses do, and you start seeing the beams emitting from the center of the light sources
http://robertbody.com/images/1050/2008-12-25-mesa-temple-display-67025.jpg
http://robertbody.com/images/1050/2014-12-05-tubac-lights-1dx_6971.jpg

Experiment. On a tripod.
4s f/8 ISO-200
http://robertbody.com/images/1050/2008-10-29-tempe-lake-41643.jpg

4s f/5.6 ISO-200
http://robertbody.com/images/1050/2008-11-16-tempe-lake-48760.jpg

1/250s f/2.8 ISO-1600
http://robertbody.com/images/1050/2008-11-16-tempe-lake-48669.jpg

4s f/5.6 ISO-200
http://robertbody.com/images/1050/2008-11-28-tempe-sunset-56641.jpg

Apr 27, 2020 at 03:40 PM

gordon l
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Comments welcome from a Dusk photo and a Landscape question please

I agree with ISO 400 and experimentation. You'll get some motion with longer shutter speeds but less noise. You can try combining photos to get the optimal pic if you want.

Apr 28, 2020 at 08:43 AM

xterra07
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Comments welcome from a Dusk photo and a Landscape question please

To get water more smooth either try faster shutter speed or way slower.
Faster like 1/250 or 1/30.
Slower like 1/2 or 4s.
Numbers depend on light available.
Sometimes it’s just wrong conditions and water is too rough, and you should try, but if nothing works, come back and try again.

Apr 28, 2020 at 09:24 AM

terryeaton
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Comments welcome from a Dusk photo and a Landscape question please

Thanks for the comments that those photos are just gorgeous - did you do a combination in post for those? Also, are you saying the 17-40 isn't a good lense for night? I'm wondering how to not get the hazy lights when shooting with long shutter

Apr 29, 2020 at 09:58 AM

Chuck D
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Comments welcome from a Dusk photo and a Landscape question please

The comments about a tripod are spot on. Another way to possibly improve your twilight photography is to shoot during the "blue hour." When civil twilight gives way to the beginning of nautical twilight, the sky registers as a beautiful blue to the camera and the ambient light is nicely balanced with the warm tungsten lighting. An app like The Photographer's Ephemeris will provide the timing. I'd advise experimenting with the time you shoot. Google "blue hour photography."

Here's a blue hour shot of Buckingham Fountain in Chicago about 40 minutes after sunset.

https://cderus.zenfolio.com/img/s/v-10/p3698193076-5.jpg

It works for dawn as well. Here's a shot looking at downtown Chicago about a half hour before sunrise.

https://cderus.zenfolio.com/img/s/v-10/p2566862785-5.jpg

The 17-40 is a good lens. By hazy, I am assuming you mean that the artificial lights are blown out white blobs surrounded by a hazy appearance. Again, it you shoot at the right time during the blue hour, the intensity of the artificial lighting should be balanced by the ambient light, avoiding much in the way of blown out highlights. You can also take multiple exposures and luminosity blend.

Good luck!

May 01, 2020 at 08:42 AM

xterra07
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Comments welcome from a Dusk photo and a Landscape question please

If it’s Canon 17-40mm lens, its starburst is not to my liking. And a clean starburst, big or small, gives night shots a little or big touch. It makes a great image sometimes.
I would have to see the hazy blob to judge. Ideally I would repeat the shot with another lens.
That lens is not known to be great wide open.

No combining here, I am not against it, prefer natural if possible, and with enough time like 10 nights in a row at the same spot, you can get ideal opportunities.

terryeaton wrote:
Thanks for the comments that those photos are just gorgeous - did you do a combination in post for those? Also, are you saying the 17-40 isn't a good lense for night? I'm wondering how to not get the hazy lights when shooting with long shutter

May 01, 2020 at 09:49 AM

Orphoto
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Comments welcome from a Dusk photo and a Landscape question please

And when you are deeper into blue hour don't be afraid to go 20 or 30 seconds on the exposure. At those long times minor ripples tend to average out leaving crisper reflections.

There is though a maximum when you include stars, planets or moon in your images. For a full frame image try dividing 400 by the focal length of your lense and using that as a maximum duration time to avoid having the stars etc moving. Check the screen afterward and adjust to a shorter speeds if you see elongated bodies in the sky.

May 04, 2020 at 07:34 PM


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