Photo ideas: Capture a stunning landscape of city lights at dusk

Watch video: Photo ideas – Capture a stunning landscape of city lights at dusk

Light pollution is fast becoming a hindrance to photographers across the globe, but for this project we’re going to make it work for us. In the right setting, city lights can look great at dusk, and if those lights are illuminating an-already impressive landmark, they can give it a real lift. So with this in mind, we decided to try to photograph one of the UK’s most iconic bridges – the second Severn Bridge, between England and Wales – at twilight.  

• Landscape photography (opens in new tab) tips and techniques

For a shot like this to work, it’s best to shoot in the direction of the setting sun, as the sky in that direction will retain its color for longer. Timing is  also key: shoot too early, and the sky will be much brighter than the landmark (and  the landscape below), which means that if you expose for the sky, the landmark will be turned into a silhouette; shoot too late, and the sky will be black, without any color. 

What you’re after is that moment when the lights are all on, but there’s still a hint of blue in the sky. This is know as the ‘blue moment’, and part of its appeal lies in the fact that the warm glow of the lights complements the cool blue
of the sky. Here’s how it’s done…

Capture an after-dark landscape

Find a suitable subject

Rocking up in a city and shooting the first lights you see is easy. What’s more difficult, but essential to getting this sort of shot right, is to have a clearly defined subject. We travelled to Severn Bridge near Bristol, UK, as this large structure was perfect for this technique. 

Set up in daylight

You’ll be shooting in the dark (or late twilight), so it’s best to set up while there’s still daylight. Unless you ramp up the ISO, you’re going to need a slow shutter speed to get a decent exposure. Put your camera on a tripod to prevent camera shake blurring the image.

Time it right

The key to this technique is to wait for the daylight to fade and the street lights to power up – they take about 20 minutes to get a good glow. We tried to strike a balance between the sky and the street lights by shooting at late twilight, and then shooting until it got dark.

Set the exposure

To determine the correct exposure, set an aperture of around f/14 in manual mode, to ensure good depth of field. Then, with the ISO set to 100 or 200 (to minimize noise) adjust the shutter speed until the exposure level indicator lines up with the zero on the exposure scale.

Check the histogram

The best way to assess your exposure is to check the histogram. You want the graph to be slightly to the left (as the scene will be darker than mid-tone), but not clipped. If it’s too far right, set a faster shutter speed to darken the image. As it gets darker, you may need set it slower. 

Adjust the white balance

You could use Auto white balance, but night-time photos are often transformed when you use the Incandescent pre-set to change the color temperature. If you’re feeling adventurous, you could even create your own white balance. We chose 3100K with +50 magenta.

Use a shutter release

A camera remote or shutter release cable is really useful when doing low-light photography like this, as it prevents any movement from your hand transferring to the Nikon during the photo-taking process. Some releases even have built-in locks on the button, which (so long as Bulb mode is set) enable you to hold the shutter open for as long as it’s locked.

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