Light trail picture

Trev4

Trev4

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Trev
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Hi Guys

I have seen what I think would be a great spot for a light trail picture with a background of an illuminated city in the distance. I have never tried this type of shot before so realise I need a lot of experimentation.
As a guide, can anyone advise roughly what setting to start with. I was thinking of an ISO of 800, f22, maybe 1/4 to 1/2 second. Am I in the right ball park do you think.
Thanks
Trev
 
Trev4 said:
Hi Guys

I have seen what I think would be a great spot for a light trail picture with a background of an illuminated city in the distance. I have never tried this type of shot before so realise I need a lot of experimentation.
As a guide, can anyone advise roughly what setting to start with. I was thinking of an ISO of 800, f22, maybe 1/4 to 1/2 second. Am I in the right ball park do you think.
Thanks
Trev
Click to expand...

Keep the ISO low.
Experiment with the shutter speed, but 10-20 seconds sound better to me.
 
Good link from RJL2005 :thumbs:

Yes, you are in the right ballpark, but there's no need to risk the noise you might get at ISO800, and shooting at f/22 will ruin sharpness through diffraction.

The first thing you need to do is estimate how long the exposure needs to be to get the trails you want. A lot of fast moving trafiic needs far less time than a single car. Take a look at the scene and estimate how long it takes for each vehicle to travel through the scene. This should give you an idea of where you need to be, and calculate back the other exposure settings from there.

Usually with this kind of shot, even much longer exposures look okay, if that's what you need to get the background city lights correctly exposed. The beauty of digital is you can see what you're getting immediately, so suck it and see.
 
Thanks for all that info guys, I will study that link again in detail, and HoppyUK's comments make a lot of sense too, sort of helps to get the thinking right to allow a judgement to be made.
If its acceptable I'll post the end result here and see what you think.
Thanks again.
Trev
 
I think at f22 your goin to need something like 20+ seconds if the shot isnt that well lit. Keep the iso as low as you possibly can as well like others have said.
 
We are doing this in glasgow next week at college so i could tell you the exact seetings i used if your not doing this till after Tuesday. Obviously different location might need different settings but i will post results/settings if you want.
 
When I tried I used ISO100 F22 and between 20 and 60 seconds dependent on the ammount of traffic!!

Worth waiting for a lorry or two as they normally have extra high lights which make a really nice addition to the trails :)
 
Thats useful info, thanks everyone. Its the first time I have tried time delay photography but as I said, the place I came across looked so good, it was calling out to be taken.
If you dont mind posting the results scottduffy, I would appreciate it.
Once again, thanks to you all
Trev
 
2639082842_0de5207e5c.jpg


Basic shot, but you get the idea ....

Camera: Canon EOS 30D
Exposure: 15 sec (15)
Aperture: f/22
Focal Length: 21 mm
ISO Speed: 100
 
After reading this i went out and got this... My first ever light trail!

lt2.jpg


Matt
 
princeclan said:
After reading this i went out and got this... My first ever light trail!

Matt
Click to expand...

Well done Matt. Top result :D Stick that one in the portfolio.

Edit: extra brownie points if you clone out the pylon? And then drop in a crescent moon on the left hand third. It might make a talking point for your interview ;)
 
There's 3 nice shots there, I hope my first attempt is as good. The late sunset you caught adds to the picture too Matt, well done.
After all these replies, I have some ideas about making a start on light trails. Thanks all.
Trev :thumbs:
 
The settings i used Trev were :

ISO:100
Shutter:30 sec
Focal Length:30mm
Shutter Priority
Aperture:F22

Being my first i was really sceptical about it looking ok but was gladly suprised. Was bloody freezing on thatbridge though! :lol:

Matt
 
Some very nice shots!

One of the 1st things I did when I started playing with the camera was the city with light trails!

this was a merge of 3 shots,

30s, iso 400 and f25!
Cant remember why I used them settings but it worked okish! (was a newbie then and still a newbie now! :bonk:

Panorama.jpg


At least you get to shoot in summer, I hung out of the winter in about -3 degrees!
 
I did some last night, they weren't very good tbh, but my settings were aperture 22, shutter speed 30 seconds and ISO 100

This is what I got :( not very good, but first attempt and all that. There was definately far too much sorrounding light I think.

DSC00503.jpg


definately one to be monkey'd with on PS
 
Just so you know guys, setting your camera to f/22 isn't the best idea due to the fact that diffraction will set in. In a nut-shell, f/22 makes your photos, generally, not as sharp.

f/8 or f/11 is usually where your lens is sharpest. Stick to that. If you want to make the images darker, ND filters are a good way of doing this.
Getting a cokin set should only set you back around £30.
 
^^^ Lots of camera shake there - look at those street lights, which should be round!

Yes, there's too much ambient light showing through, but what you really need is a lot more traffic.
 
Best time is to get it when it's JUST dark.
I.e. it won't really get any darker, but it's only just turned that way. Find a nice area of a busy motorway and shoot.

Also remember to set that white balance as cool as possible unless you want the roads to be yellow.
 
Fantastic respose to my question, lots of advice and ideas. Thank you all so much. This next week I am getting a sturdier tripod, something I was planing anyway, then am going to give it a try.
Trev
 
Trev4 said:
Fantastic respose to my question, lots of advice and ideas. Thank you all so much. This next week I am getting a sturdier tripod, something I was planing anyway, then am going to give it a try.
Trev
Click to expand...

Hi,

Mine was taken with a £12.90 tripod off amazon.

Matt
 
HoppyUK said:
^^^ Lots of camera shake there - look at those street lights, which should be round!

Yes, there's too much ambient light showing through, but what you really need is a lot more traffic.
Click to expand...

yeh I know, annoying thing was the tripod seemed fine but none of the pics had round lights. :(


Thanks Montymint, definately think that Kingston Park will be a cool idea, not sure how feasable it is but if I can, I'll definately give it a shot
 
Which part of Staffs are you in Trev?
 
Not the best but you get the picture....

Low ISO, Tripod and remote shutter release locked open for about 1min.

Image011.jpg
 
foodpoison said:
f/8 or f/11 is usually where your lens is sharpest. Stick to that. If you want to make the images darker, ND filters are a good way of doing this.
Getting a cokin set should only set you back around £30.
Click to expand...

Cokin ND + Long exposure time = colour casts, from what I hear anyway?!
 
GarynLea said:
Which part of Staffs are you in Trev?
Click to expand...

Hi GarynLea

I'm in Burntwood, not far from you. The shot I spotted and thought would be good is on the new A5, the Hints bypass. Trouble is, there is no stopping and no bridges in the exact spot I want to take the shot from so it means a goodish walk from the nearest layby.
Trev
 
I know just what you mean Trev. There’s a spot on the a2 with four bridges crossing overhead ... can I get within a mile of it, not a chance.

I'm not quite sure what the slap is for wandering down a central reservation but I may have to go for it, I don't think I can keep driving passed for much longer....
 
Forbiddenbiker said:
I know just what you mean Trev. There’s a spot on the a2 with four bridges crossing overhead ... can I get within a mile of it, not a chance.

I'm not quite sure what the slap is for wandering down a central reservation but I may have to go for it, I don't think I can keep driving passed for much longer....
Click to expand...

Yes, it bugs you. Once you have seen the snap, every time you pass it, you want it. The one I am after has a dual carriageway winding away into the distance, and in the distance there's a large town, all lit up. The spot I want is on a hill, the banks of the road rise up high too, so the advantage point is just made for it.

If anyone sees a lone togger walking down the A5 at night carrying gear, be gentle with me please lol. :(
Trev
 
Lol.

Sounds very sweet with those bits Trev, nothing works quite so well as having the trail lines going somewhere I think.


This is one of my faves, very similar thought process for me as your having for yours.

Streaminghome.jpg


I needed 20seconds odd for the train to complete its run. So I went for ISO200 @f22 not worried about minimal diffraction and I was rather close to near stuff, but I also used a filter of some sort to reduce the light further and give me enough time to get the whole streak which was about 25 seconds in all I think.








.
 
I have always liked light trail photographs, and just looking this thread is making me want to try it!
 
Thats a good shot Forbiddenbiker, and apart from mine being a bit more rural, very similar ideas. You certainly captured the feel of the moving city there,Thanks for that.
Trev
 
Dont think I've seen a B & W light trail before, but then I am new here. I must say it works well for me and opens up another aspect and more ideas. Thanks Andy.
Trev
 
thanks :) night trails are my favourite as you get a different shot every time
 
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