Night Time Presented by Kerry Jarvis Southampton Art School ______

Night time photography opens up a whole new realm of image making for photographers. Night time photography is the “slow photography’ method. Setting up, composing, rendering of images, reviewing, re-composing and taking risks all takes time. The “slow photography’ method allows photographers to practice their compositional techniques and to practice patience.

Tips and Techniques:

1. Clean your lens.

2. Have your gear ready before you setup. (i.e., set up cable release, know how to use bulb setting, fully charge your spare batteries, flashlight, head lamp, etc.)

3. It’s all about composition!!!

4. Pre-scout your location in the daytime.

5. Shoot landscape and portrait modes. Mix it up.

6. Watch edges and backgrounds. Remember, cropping is your best post-processing friend.

7. . Remember to turn off image stabilization.

8. settings: a. Use Bulb mode for exposures 30 seconds or greater. If less than 30 seconds you can set on Manual mode and set to f/8 (this is a good starting aperture) b. Cable release or camera self-timer. c. Pre-focus with auto focus. Then switch to manual focus. d. Mirror lock up (or, live view) e. ISO: use lowest settings your camera allows (i.e., 100) f. Shoot in RAW g. Try bracketing your images (3 images: under, over and properly exposed) h. Lens: small or wide angle lens works great for night time photography (i.e., 24-70 mm)

“Night Time Photography” presented by: Kerry Jarvis www.kerryjarvis.com

i. f 16 creates star burst on lights

9. Additional light sources: flashlight, sparklers, camera , glow sticks, etc.…

10. Light Painting: a. Set camera on timer. b. Experiment with different settings and evaluate images. c. With a flash light, paint in what you would like to highlight.

11. Fireworks: a. Pre-focus with auto focus, then switch to manual focus b. Aperture f/8 as a start. Shutter: experiment with several seconds to longer times. c. Tripod, cable release d. Black card e. Wide angle lens

“Night Time Photography” presented by: Kerry Jarvis www.kerryjarvis.com

12. Composition: a. Visual the image you would like to take. Ideally, include, foreground, mid ground and background.

13. Post Process images: a. White balance: daylight b. Lightroom: increase Clarity, Vibrance, Saturation and Sharpening. c. Adjust white and black sliders

14. Sample images can be found at: http://www.kerryjarvis.com/night-time- photography.html

“Night Time Photography” presented by: Kerry Jarvis www.kerryjarvis.com