Splash of Style...Macs, Photography, Design, and other Passions

Night Time Photograpy

November 17, 2008 by debbie T | Aperture 2 • Digital Photography

Long shutter speeds are great for ocean and sky shots. Also great for night shots.

cold night

Tonight my wonderful husband drove me to a nearby beach to take some long exposure photos. It was very cold and the wind was strong, but I had a great time!

My info:

The RAW photo was edited in Aperture 2, along with some “dodge and burn” – love the dodge & burn in Aperture 2.

There are 3 comments

  1. um, like, wow.

    so I have a tripod from 25 years ago – have they advanced in tech since then? what should I look for in picking one out? I assume you have one for an amazing shot like this?

    Comment by Allison Sheridan on November 17th, 2008

  2. Thanks Allison!

    I have a crappy tripod that I bought years ago. It’s rickety and crooked, but it does the job. I know they always recommend spending hundreds on a good tripod, but I dunno.

    Tonight was the first time it ever really gave me any real trouble. The wind was whipping, and it almost tipped over a couple of times, but I was holding onto my camera strap the whole time.

    If you are looking for a good tripod, I found this forum post to be helpful:
    http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=53864

    I did buy a pretty nice monopod recently, but I will keep my cheap tripod for a little longer. I would rather spend the $$ on something else.

    Comment by debbie T on November 17th, 2008

  3. As a pro photographer, +25 year studio owner, let me give you 2 “laws of logic”… DO NOT spend $700 to $1,500 for the best quality camera/lens that you can afford and then buy the cheapest filters. The best lens you can buy is a GOOD TRIPOD… do you all understand? Hang a weight from the center tripd column(that hangs just above ground) for max ballst the let you work in strong wind. A window weight, very dry sand, in double zip lock bags in fabric ‘tube’ , even a 5# or 10# dumbell attached by nylon cord or a bunge cord. If you do the extra work you will be winner.

    Comment by John B. on November 19th, 2008