Page 20 - Amateur Photographer - August 5, 2017

Technique MIXED LIGHT

City lights

Many cities look their best at night, but capturing
them in all their glory takes preparation and
persistence, says David Noton

here was a time night. A tricky thing to do, The Magic Fountain
in my career because until we see it for real and National Palace
when I seemed to it’s pretty much impossible to at night, Montjuic,
T spend inordinate envisage. Spending a night Barcelona, Spain
amounts of time hanging wandering the city looking at Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II,
around on breezy bridges or the fl oodlighting on key 70-200mm, 5 secs at f/14,
ISO 100
embankments, busting for a buildings and features is the
pee while waiting for dusk to best preparation; there is
become dark enough for the simply no substitute for
city lights to come on. ‘eyeballing’ a scene.
Many cities, in fact most, You’ve planned the shoot,
look their best at night. discerned how the scene will be
Darkness hides clutter and lit, scouted for obstructions
imperfections whilst artifi cial and are now beside the tripod
illumination highlights the waiting for the lights to come
best bits, such as castles, on. That’s the way to do it, as
cathedrals and bridges. So in city lights photography is all
this quest to investigate the about timing. You may think
nature of the light in all its you have all night but in reality
forms, which is the the decisive moment will only
fundamental building block of last minutes. The prime time is
our art, let’s analyse and when the artifi cial
deconstruct the challenges, illuminations match the
pitfalls, frustrations and twilight sky after sunset. That
rewards of shooting city lights. balance is the key, and
Successful city night endlessly variable. Much of it
photography is all about depends on how bright the city
preparation. As ever, fi nding lights are: the brighter they are
the location is the most the earlier we can shoot.
diffi cult part, and you will Sometimes I like the sky to be
need to scout out potential a deep blue with the artifi cial
shoots thinking through how lights appearing bright and
they’ll look illuminated at dominant. Other times I like to

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