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Digital Photo Tips: Discover The Ultimate Night Photography Manual
 Night photography can be very challenging but it can also be fun. You
get the chance to produce some of the most dramatic images. There's something magical about taking photos at night - pictures of
the moonlight sky and dazzling neon lights convey a
special something that daytime photos can't.
When I started out taking digital photos at night, I had problems! The issue is that many
digital cameras do not perform very well under
low-light conditions. To take good night photos,
there are some tricks you need to remember - so here
are a few of them.
Tip 1: Long Exposures
The key to successful night photography lies in a
long exposure. We’re talking about exposures
measured in seconds. When a long exposure is
used, more light is allowed into the camera,
allowing the details in your night photo to be
captured.
 Tip 2:
A Tripod is Vital
It is extremely hard to hold a camera still for
the length of time needed for a good night exposure, and any shaking
can result in blurred photos or completely blacked out subjects. The way around this is to use a tripod. I prefer to
install a tripod with a shutter-release cable to
ensure that I don’t jolt the camera at all. With a tripod, you can set your digital camera
to use a long exposure time, snap a photo, and not worry so much about
'camera-shake'.
Tip 3: Shoot Many Photos
Shoot many photos to help compensate camera shake.There may be times where you want to take photos
in difficult lighting situations and you don't have a tripod or other
stabilizing device handy. If so, don't give up! Remember, you have a digital camera, so bad photos can be erased. Take plenty of photographs of each subject in the hope that one or two photos may be usable.
Tip 4: Capture the Motion
With a long exposure, you have many creative options
when it comes to photography. This includes
capturing motion. For example, have you ever
wondered how those professional photographers shoot
pictures of trails of car lights as they zoom down
the highway at night? It’s all due to long
exposures. Try to keep this in mind the next time
you’re taking a night photo – you don’t have to
restrict yourself to still images. Take a look at this excellent technique
 Tip 5: Experiment with Aperture
In addition to shutter speed (which determines
exposure time), you can play around with the
aperture size of your digital camera. There are two
scenarios here. If you set a long exposure, try to
use a small aperture to avoid overexposing any
stationary lights. in the picture. On the other
hand, if you set a short exposure, try using a
larger aperture to avoid any motion in your shot.
Tip 6: Using the Flash
As a general rule, I turn the flash off when taking
night photos. There are some exceptions though – one
specific example I can think of is trying to shoot a
subject in the foreground, with motion trails of car
lights in the background. In this case, bring along
an external flash unit and shine it on your subject
manually. Set a long exposure, then have your
subject wait until the picture is taken.
Tip 7: Avoid Optical Zoom
If you can, avoid using your digital camera's
optical zoom when taking night photos, especially if you lack access to
a tripod or other stabilization device. The higher the optical zoom
magnification, the longer the lens has to extend to shoot a photograph.
This also causes the digital camera to become especially sensitive to
movement. With an extended lens, even on sunny days, the results of
'camera-shake' may be evident in blurry photos; at night, this effect
is magnified even more.
 Tip 8: Consider Taking Photos at Dusk
If you are looking for a great nighttime
cityscape picture, consider taking your photos at dusk instead of in
the pitch black of night. The sky is dark at dusk, but not so dark to
prevent some degree of sunlight entering your digital camera, making it
easier to take hand-held photos that do not result all blurry due to
'camera-shake'.
I hope that this
article is useful and informative to the reader. Photography cannot be taught
through just one article or by reading books. The best way is to learn from
experience, and hence proper recording of camera settings and description of
the scene would be helpful in reviewing images taken later on.
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