This June 28th was the kickoff of Pride in New York City – and if there was any doubt before where this city’s allegiance in terms of marriage rights lay, NYC lit up their most phallic building with rainbow lights to show support of LGBT rights most grandly and proudly possible.
The lighting accompanied a nubilous rally to mark the beginning of NYC Pride, which spanned from the 28th to the 30th and included Lady Gaga’s appearance and numerous other performers and speakers on the Hudson River Park’s Pier 26.
Before starting to learn more about night photography you just have to learn about Dramatic portrait photography.
The Empire State Building lit up the skyline with rainbow glory – which, alongside being a symbol of equality and love for many, also provided a fun photo opportunity for LMS and presumably many others.
Photo by Google
I was lucky to be in town this Friday with an excellent view of the Empire State Building to put his night photography skills into action, exercise, and explain his techniques to get the best shots possible in this tutorial.
Of course, the complication of night shots is getting the right exposure to display the night sky and subject in the sharpest way possible, without being too light or too dark, and with minimal noise.
You have to make sure to stabilize his camera using a tripod to avoid motion blur to get this shot. (Note: Since 2008, laws have changed, and you can use tripods on NYC sidewalks without a permit). You can also refer to the photography tips to click stunning pictures.
TECH NOTES:
- Use lower ISO. Long exposure produces a lot of digital noise. The lower the ISO, the better.
- Override the light meter (or auto mode) open an exposure 1 to 2 extra stops
- To get the blue sky shoot during the blue hour. Blue hour starts after sunset and lasts for about an hour or two, or longer depending on the year’s geographic location and time.
- Use Tripod. To be able to shoot at low light and use a low ISO tripod is required.
- Post Production was done in LightRoom- Basic Settings tweaked:
- Contrast +50
- Highlights -10
- Shadows +80
- Whites -40
- Blacks -40
- Clarity +30
- Vibrance +20
- Saturation 0
Photo by Google
By setting this camera to a lower ISO (100,) shutter speed slowed to (2.5sec), and aperture at f/4), he was able to capture the Empire State Building’s proud coloured lights as well as the details of the sky and buildings in the foreground, making for an exciting photo.
By composing this shot so that the building was the focus of the photograph, with the angles of the other buildings complementing the center and drawing the viewer’s eyes toward the building, he achieved an excellent result that encompasses the simple beauty of the view without minimizing the political and artistic implications.
Read More: How to get professional-looking product photos on your own
Take advantage of warm summer nights, shoot some night shots, and remember your tripod.
