[edgedemon]

So Im off on a mini-moon to Marrakech for 4 nights
The Riad where we are staying has a rooftop terrace so Im hoping for an opportunity to get a night-time cityscape, I have no idea how possible this will be, but I will try.
Im going to try and be good and only take 2 lenses, the 35mm plastic fantastic and my DA 12-24 as well as my tripod for the cityscape.
Any tips on getting a night cityscape will be welcome as it isn't something I have tried before so I can print them out and maybe even have a practice before I go..
Im planning on using the 35mm as the walkabout lens, the 12-24 for the cityscape and also use the 12-24 if we get into the Atlas mountains..

Any useful tips appreciated or anyone who has been before and can tell me some good places for photo's
Im so excited :-)

[shardulm]

A few things I encountered in night photography that may be useful to you
1. A tripod which you are already taking is a must
2. A tripod
3. A tripod
4. A couple of quart sized zip lock bags. (Not sure how the weather is out there never been there before) but if its too cold and you do in and out a few times you will want to let your gear acclimatize to the cold/warm temperature without causing the lens and camera to condense.
5. Use 2s timer or MLU as often as you can.
6. Use your 12-24 to take sky shots (like you see the sky when you lie down on the rooftop terrace). I would use bulb speed for these shots and adjust the tripod height just enough to sleep underneath and be able to operate the camera/pan head.
7. If you have an amazing tripod that has an awesome (damped and smooth) PAN head then try a few shots with a full circle rotation of the pan head in bulb mode. I believe this technique gets you a lot of dramatic result of the dimly lit stars forming concentric circles. It may not be right the first time but you can experiment. (Share a few shots here on the forum when you are back)
8. Last but not the least make absolutely sure there is no dust on the sensor. BULB shots reveal those dusts particles pretty badly (like morsels) in your photos. You can do PP but I am not a big fan of PP dust spots.

[edgedemon]

I thought Id better try some night time photography out as when I looked at my photo's I realised the only pics I had ever taken when dark were with my smartphone! I think that is because when going out for the night, I don't want to be carrying a full camera kit. So I figured it would be worthwhile to have a practice run so I can get my head around the technique.
I plan on taking my K30, DA 12-24 (with hood) tripod, spare batteries and that is about it, I don't own any ND filters.
From reading up a bit, Im planning to stop right down, (F16??) underexpose by quite a margin, to allow for the difference between dark sky and bright city lights and use the 2 sec timer.
No idea what white balance to use, will have to try a few and see what looks best.
Im planning on using Av mode as Im comfortable with that.
I might try some light trails as well, see how it goes...

Any other things to watch out for or consider as this is completely new to me

[ramseybuckeye]

I thought Id better try some night time photography out as when I looked at my photo's I realised the only pics I had ever taken when dark were with my smartphone! I think that is because when going out for the night, I don't want to be carrying a full camera kit. So I figured it would be worthwhile to have a practice run so I can get my head around the technique.
I plan on taking my K30, DA 12-24 (with hood) tripod, spare batteries and that is about it, I don't own any ND filters.
From reading up a bit, Im planning to stop right down, (F16??) underexpose by quite a margin, to allow for the difference between dark sky and bright city lights and use the 2 sec timer.
No idea what white balance to use, will have to try a few and see what looks best.
Im planning on using Av mode as Im comfortable with that.
I might try some light trails as well, see how it goes...

Any other things to watch out for or consider as this is completely new to me

The tripod is a must, an IR remote is almost a must and you can get the knockoffs very cheap, it is a better option than the 2 second delay because there is no physical contact with the camera, no chance to shake it.. Start with Av mode set you aperture to where you want it and set the ISO to 100. I prefer multi segment metering since your scene will have very dark to bright spots. And definitely use your lens hoods, a littler stray light in a night shot can create flare. You may want to have a small flashlight with you just in case. I think you will be fine with auto white balance with the K-30 as long as you are shooting Raw. Using the tripod is where live view shines, live view makes it easier to compose. I said to start with Av mode because you may want to switch to Manual after looking at your first shot, look at that first shot and the shutter speed that the camera selected. Depending on what your pic looks like, you may want to get less or more light into the photo.my manipulating the shutter speed or the aperture. Remember though that the smaller the aperture (higher number) you may get star effects, that's good in a lot of pics, but not always so good if the moon is in the sky. And the long shutter speeds will help with longer light trails. Practice now and practice some more.

[edgedemon]

I don't think that Im going to get what I want without a ND filter as underexposing didn't work that well.
Im looking at the cokin P153 ND x4 filter, as I have a wide angle lens, the adapter, holder and filter come to £41 and I can pick it up for tonight's attempt
I know at that price, quality wont be brilliant, but this is more about learning than getting a great shot. Plus, if I have the holder and adapter, I can buy a better filter later on to use once I have been paid.
My key question is over the x4 value, is that enough or should I be going higher as that reduces by approx 2 stops...
IF I take Tower bridge as an example, there is a big difference between the bridge and surrounding scene, Im concerned that 2 stops may not be enough and I dont have the experience to predict what set going to use, though Id like to get at least a 30sec shutter if not more...

[Timd]

If you have long exposure, especially with an ND filter, remember to cover the eyepiece to prevent stray light getting in "the back way". My best (limited) experience was at f11. Shoot raw. Experiment!

[edgedemon]

OK, so nowhere as easy as I thought it would b, but an important learning experience
Tower Bridge was the wrong bridge - the traffic is too slow for a start.
There are traffic lights 50mt down the road so the traffic flow was irregular, or just one side at a time.
Too many tourists
Shake reduction was off and I used the 2 sec timer, but the bridge was moving a fair bit with the traffic..
All good experience though, didn't really get any usable shots, but I didn't touch my auto setting so Im more than happy :-)

Im also confused - Im going to show some pictures to show what I mean.
First one with the DA 35mm F2.4 plastic fantastic



ISO 100, 20secs@F18, no flash, WB=auto

Then we have the DA 12-24



24mm, 4 secs @ F13, ISO 100

If I try to find one around the F18 mark, I can get this



24mm 6secs @ F18, ISO 100, tripod WB=Auto

All shots were with a tripod, I remember my 35mm performing a lot better than the 12-24, I would get a shot with the 35mm, think the exposure was right and then change to the 12-24 and try the exact same settings and I would get a horrible over-exposed mess, I spent 90% of my time with the 12-24 at F20 or F22.
I am right in thinking that if a lens is correctly exposed when stopped down, I should get a similar exposure if I use the same settings when I switch?
This was probably the best exposure I got out of the 12-24


21mm 2secs @F22!!! ISO100, WB=auto

I seem to have a major issue with over-exposure on the 12-24? I did check the lens was on correctly!

What is going on - do I need to take the lens in for a check up

[edgedemon]

Anyone?