Night photography

It is often easy to feel as if photo
shoots need to end as the light dips
at the end of the day. However, you
can still take beautiful photos at
night-time.

Cameras today are
designed better than ever before to
handle low-light situations with
relative ease. Head into town as the
light begins to drop and make use of
the light from cars, lamps and shop
windows. For example, placing your
model by a shop window and
turning their face slightly towards
the light means you can still shoot a
well-lit portrait at night. Or you
could try to place the model so that
he/she is completely facing the light,
for a fl atter and more even light.
Keep posing very simple. The
smallest movement to the angle of
your model’s face can change the
look without adding too many focus
complications.

By bringing the
hands up to the face you can add
extra interest into your images.
Night photography looks
particularly magical when using a
shallow depth of fi eld. The bokeh in
the background will make car and
street lamps blur into beautiful
coloured orbs of light. Using a fast
lens is ideal for creating this effect.
You can also add colour to
manipulate mood. For example, a
blue light can be used to suggest a
melancholy feel. When working in
low light, increasing the ISO and
decreasing the shutter speed will
also help to utilise as much of the
ambient light as possible. However,
this can make focusing and
achieving a sharp image much more
challenging. If possible, use a tripod
if it’s not too intrusive at your
location. Failing that, ledges and
surfaces naturally available within
your surroundings can also be used
to steady the camera.
Mark says
‘Night photography is something I have
come to late on in my photographic
journey of 40 years. Shooting at night is
a fantastic way of getting atmospheric
photographs, and you only need simple
kit and some confi dence. Recently, we
have started running night photography
workshops, and they have quickly
become some of the most popular
workshops we run. As the light is often
changing quickly, you get real energy
from having to constantly adapt and
reassess your surroundings.’
Imogen says
‘From my perspective, the flexibility and
creativity of night photography is
something I really enjoy. Having to
adapt quickly to the changing light and
watching the photographer work is
really inspiring and helps me to be
creative with my own modelling