How to Shoot CityScapes Around Dusk or Dawn

This post will enlighten you on HOW I SHOOT city photos at dusk or dawn. Cityscapes aren’t best only at sunset but likewise the "golden hour" extends to sunrise times (this photo left was taken during sunrise.

First, there are two considerations, the “the planned shoot” and the “spur of the moment” shoot. I will mainly be talking about planned shoots, but the spur of the moment stuff can either be read through the lines or I will specifically note it.

Research starts at home – The Location

We live in an age that makes life easy in terms of researching locations. No longer does one actually have to GO TO THE SPOT but can research everything about it at home, while sipping a latte.

In a city I am unfamiliar with I would search the internet for “best places to photograph _______ (insert city here). This tells me what the main locations that MOST photographers will go to and shoot are. I usually avoid such places, but that’s just me. And if I do end up in such a place I usually try to do something different.

Sometimes I will type “best obscure (or some such descriptive) _________[city] shots. I will study locations. I will also use google earth and check out all potential locations. I look at the spot, zoom out and look at the city. I have to kind of assume the view of standing at that spot even if I haven’t.

Another consideration is time of day. City shots where the sky is black tends to be less interesting. Dusk or dawn, the golden hour, is usually the best when you can get the differing hues of blue, magenta and so forth. Allow extra time to get on location. Many places around cities, especially during months where the sun is setting between 5-7pm (1700-1900 hours) will have traffic congestion (and likewise morning rush hour). You want to arrive with plenty of time to get into position, set up, etc. I usually bring a small 5led flashlight that is very bright, and very compact. This allows me to set up with more ease.

One LAST consideration, after you’ve researched and decided where to shoot: Make sure where you are going is a safe area or you are bringing at least another person with you. Nothing screams mug me more than carrying expensive photographic gear into a shady area around some cities at hours when most people aren't around.

Equipment Minimums

A sturdy tripod is recommended. This will allow you to open up your shutter LONG enough to get good exposure. Without one you seriously risk blurry images. In fact it’s impossible to shoot proper night shots that require no motion without a tripod.

A digital camera (you can use film if you want) that you can manually control. A point and shoot won’t cut it. If you can’t change the aperture, shutter speed settings then you will be seriously hampered in your creative output.

A cable release is great because it allows you to attach a little cable to your camera and push the button at the end of the cable thus tripping the shutter. Why is this important? Because touching your camera and depressing the shutter causes minute amounts of shake which can create enough blur in the beginning of your photo that translates to a photo that is not TACK sharp.

Even more minimum – spur of the moment

For spur of the moment type shots where I didn’t bring a tripod or a cable release the only thing I really need is a camera. You can use a post, wall, or some other unmovable object to steady your camera. Sure you likely won’t be able to take a 10-20 second shot, but you can perhaps get a 1-2 second shot this way and depending on your aperture, ISO and how much ambient light is in the sky will depend on the results.

If you don’t have a cable release or forgot one, you can use the timer function. This of course, will take the shot 2-12 seconds after you click the shutter allowing you to settle and stable the camera as best as possible.

How to Shoot, What to Shoot – My Settings

Alright everything is set. My camera is on a tripod, my cable release is connected now I need to decide on the settings for my camera.

Typically, I usually put my camera into Aperture priority mode (or more rarely full Manual). I select an aperture based on what I am trying to capture.

First, if I am shooting a city straight on such as the photo below, I typically will choose the aperture that is sharpest with the lens I am using. You can take other people’s word for it, or do your own tests. I recommend you do your own tests. Shoot a subject, with you camera on a tripod where NOTHING changes except the setting of your camera’s aperture. Start wide open and shoot each photo moving the aperture all the way till it’s closed. I can pretty much guarantee that your “sweet spot” will be something around f4 - f8 when using a lens that has an aperture of f1.8 or somewhere around there.

So for a city shot where the buildings are pretty much on the same plane you don’t need to use an f/11 or f/16 or some such as you don’t have one building further back than say one building that is a lot closer to you.

If you do shoot a city at more of an angle, where the distance of the buildings to you varies greatly you will want to increase your aperture number to something like f/8 or above. The only real consideration with going above say f/11 or f/16 is that on some sensors you can create diffraction – which will in turn make your photos appear less sharp. You can do an internet search on “diffraction point of __________[camera].”

That’s aperture. I usually shoot at ISO 100 which allows less grain. Some cameras will have camera features known as “noise reduction” … I typically use noise reduction with my camera but not the highest setting as reducing too much noise can often result in a “softer” looking image and hence not as sharp. You can take a series of photos with and without it and see what your eyes like the best.

I always turn off the image stabilization feature when my camera is on a tripod. The only exception to this is when the ground I am standing on is shaky. And I usually only find this an issue on some bridges and in places where large vehicles are passing. Turning off the IS will make for sharper photos.

Lastly, I always shoot RAW though some will choose Jpeg. As it is, RAW allows more processing options when you get the images on your computer. Jpeg images degrade under processing. Think of Jpegs as prints and RAW as the negatives. You can do much more with a negative than you can with a printed photo.

Special Effects – Points of View and Breaking Rules

Do not be afraid to break some rules.

I found myself, with a friend, in a location where MANY other photographers shoot Seattle from. In fact, while I was there with her I counted 5-6 active shooters and a few others who had come and gone. That means in that span of 45 minutes or hour, up to approximately 10 people just took the same photo.

All cameras these days take good photos – with the right settings. So what’s the point of taking the same thing as 10 or 100 other people before you? I mean, yes I shot some “typical” shots that night but I also decided to break out of the box. I rarely show the “typical” shots (in fact they aren’t even on my website) where I typically show my rule-breaking city shot. Pictured here.

This was captured by zooming in and out and allowing particular zoom lengths to be exaggerated by leaving the new zoom length there for a few seconds thus allowing more light to burn in. Remember, photography means literally “light writing” … the city lights is the light and the camera does the writing. Move it around, try different things.

In terms of points of view, this was hinted at in the opening. I try to find unusual viewpoints. I hate doing the same thing as everyone else. Try to find places that are hard to get to, or require special privilege or access to get to. These are places of interest because they aren’t the cliché spots, forever attracting photographers. Go to any city, look around and you will see thousands of office buildings, apartments, condos, houses, whatever and each of these places offers a different view of the city.

In summary:

Use the aperture that will capture the most of what you are shooting. For buildings all on one plane, use the sweet spot for your lens. For differing distances between your camera and the different buildings, increase the aperture to f/8 or above without exceeding your camera sensors diffraction point (though rules ARE made for breaking).

Use the lowest aperture, usually iso100 (and oddly some camera’s iso 200 looks better than their 100, go figure).

Use your cable release, turn off your image stabilization, have patience. Stay warm, keep your eyes near and far when shooting in seedy areas. (I never leave my stuff far away from me nor do I lay anything out. I am prepared to move at a moment’s notice, I anticipate everything).

Shoot RAW or RAW + Jpeg, if you are satisfied with the JPEG output from your camera you can decide on saving computer space and discarding the RAW.

Last, think outside the box, mix things up when you get a chance and when the scene calls for something different.

Post-Processing – getting the most out of your photos

Post-Processing is as subjective as the photo-making-art process. It is simply the finishing touches YOU are putting on your art to make it the best it can be for your viewers.

Popular programs include Adobe Photoshop or Lightroom, Apple’s Aperture and if processing RAWs don’t forget about the proprietary software that came with your camera. There is the freebie Gimp program which is very similar to Photoshop and then there’s the “on every computer” program called MS Paint. That said, my workflow is 100% Adobe Lightroom with 5% of those Lightroom processed photos sent to Photoshop for an additional adjustment. If I shoot a cityscape where I take multiple exposures and want to combine them, or I am shooting a panorama then I often will use a different 3^rd party program such as Photomatix or some such.

Post-processing can also allow you to remove some noise from your image. This can be helpful but over-doing it can lead to very soft photos.

Additionally, with post processing you can crop an image giving it a different aspect ratio. You will notice sometimes on full frame sensors that there is some blurring out toward the edges. You can leave it or crop it. Cropping can also allow you, the artist, to emphasize a certain point of interest in your photo.

Those things aside, most of my city shots need very little, if any processing. If I do CHANGE anything in my photos it will be adjusting white balance (because I shoot RAW) or increasing blacks a little to bring more of a minute amount of contrast. I typically do not manipulate specific colors. I sometimes will crop if I want to emphasize something or adjust framing to conform to what looks best.

Presentation – Great photos can be lost on Cluttered websites.

Flickr is a sloppy medium for presenting your best works. To me Flickr’s look is closer to photojournalism or other such things as the site is just busy looking. I chose Zenfolio because I could really manipulate how things look, and because all ordered prints are printed by MPIX who do an outstanding job with printing.

With zenfolio, I have chosen a dark theme because I don’t think colors should interfere or influence a photo. Black is very non-influencing with a wide range of photos. Just imagine going to a movie theatre that isn’t dark but has random colorful elements pulling your attention away from the screen. That to me is what Flickr is.

So where you choose to display your photos is your choice. But people will enjoy them more if they don’t have to see 2 advertisements, and 6 photos from someone else right next to yours. Just saying.

Last subject is printing. Sure you can print at home and if you know what you are doing, go for it. But really try using an online printer. MPIX is my current choice. They are FAST, inexpensive and produce outstanding photos. I have NEVER had a bad product and neither has anyone who has ever ordered from my site.

In the future I may write something on HDR night photos or Panorama city photos.

Good luck! Happy Shooting.

Feel free to visit my website at:

Lifeinstill.zenfolio.com

Find me on Facebook at:

Facebook.com/lifeinstillimages