Long exposures are taken with shutter speeds generally longer or much longer than one second, in order to capture stationary objects in low light while blurring or obscuring moving elements.
32
votes
4answers
6k views
Why do light sources appear as stars sometimes?
See for example this photo:
From my experience, the longer the exposure the stronger can this effect be observed. Is this correct? Are there any other factors that influence the creation of these ...
29
votes
6answers
1k views
What is the best technique for long-exposure photography in good light?
Can anyone offer any tips on achieving long exposures (with the intention of blurring water, clouds etc)?
23
votes
10answers
2k views
What settings should I be using to photograph fireworks?
As it's heading into firework season (with Thanksgiving, Guy Fawkes, and New Years), I've never been particularly successful at photographing fireworks. In previous years I think I've always had too ...
19
votes
3answers
2k views
How do I meter for long exposures (10+ minutes)?
One of my longstanding interests is long exposure night photography.
However, many of the situations where I am shooting require exposure lengths on the order of 10 minutes, which is far beyond what ...
18
votes
4answers
1k views
Why are there limitations to the upper limit of exposure time in digital cameras?
For example, my Canon 550D will only go as far as 30 sec (and then of course the bulb mode).
For measuring exposure, I think all the camera needs is a timer, and I have no doubt they would have to do ...
18
votes
8answers
2k views
How do I focus in low light for long exposures?
I've been trying to take some long exposure shots at night with my Canon 450D. The problem I'm having is that I can't seem to get a shot in focus. The low light conditions prevent AF from working at ...
17
votes
6answers
971 views
ND Filter not Dense enough - How do I get long exposures in very bright situations, where my ND filter isn't enough?
What is the best way to achieve very long exposures in very bright, sunlit conditions?
Right now, I have a Hoya ND-400 X filter (9 stops reduction), and even with my camera set to ISO 50, and F22, my ...
16
votes
4answers
615 views
How do I achieve fireworks pictures such as the hirobamboo method?
How do I achieve the abstract effect for fireworks that is sometimes referred to as the hirobamboo method? Specifically what types of lenses would work best for this, do I start in focus or out, ...
15
votes
3answers
677 views
why storing a long exposure photo takes almost as long as the exposure time itself?
last night I took some night sky shots, and I've noticed that with long exposure times [15s;30s] the time it took to store the images in the camera memory card (jpeg) took roughly as long?
Whilst the ...
14
votes
4answers
7k views
How can I avoid star trails without an expensive tracking mount?
I want to take pictures of the Milky Way or a lunar eclipse or earth glow on the moon, but I don't have an equatorial tracking mount, and don't want to spend that much money on one.
How can I get ...
13
votes
3answers
962 views
Is this a reflection in my photo?
I can't quite figure out what exactly is appearing in my photo. I was thinking it could be a reflection but I really don't know. This is the full size image, then a crop at 100%. No Photoshop has ...
13
votes
4answers
2k views
How can I simulate a long exposure photo using a set of shorter exposure photos?
I'm shooting towards the sky to capture the stars. The exposure time is 15 seconds, so I can see the stars still, without a trace. These photos are taken continuously one after the other, because I ...
12
votes
3answers
1k views
What are neutral density filters and how do I use them to create long exposures in daylight?
I've seen a few related posts on the site but nothing specifically on this point:
I'd like to be able to take long exposure photos during daylight (like the examples in this Flickr group). I'm told ...
11
votes
8answers
819 views
How can I prevent blurred images when using a tripod?
I'm doing panoramic HDR photography for work using one of those stupid cheap mirror balls mounted on a tripod (not my decision!) and I am noticing on my longer exposures that sometimes I'm getting ...
11
votes
6answers
1k views
Should I turn off optical image stabilisation when shooting long-exposure photos?
I have a Canon SX210 IS. With CHDK, I usually take photos of more than 10 minutes at night (using tripod of course). I read somewhere it is recommended to turn off the mechanical image stabilization ...
11
votes
4answers
684 views
How was this long exposure crowd shot taken?
How does one take a photo like this:
http://inapcache.boston.com/universal/site_graphics/blogs/bigpicture/2012part2/bp23.jpg
Can this be done without significant post-processing?
The people sitting ...
10
votes
5answers
3k views
Does “long exposure noise reduction” option make any difference when shooting RAW?
I can configure my camera (5D) to use long exposure noise reduction (dark frame is exposed and subtracted), but is this method really effective when shooting RAW? Or is the actual subtraction only ...
10
votes
3answers
272 views
ND filter vs stopping down for long exposures?
To achieve long exposures in daylight, one might need to stop down, or use an ND filter. By stopping down, the depth of field increases, but at some point the image quality/sharpness will suffer, due ...
10
votes
3answers
2k views
Will stacked ND filters perform as well as a single 10 stop ND filter?
I have the Tiffen 0.9 ND filter which gives me approximately 3f stops reduction. I like to really slow things down and although it's sufficient in low light it just won't do in daylight.
Should I ...
10
votes
4answers
513 views
Where does this reflection come from in a long exposure shot?
Using a long (10 second) exposure I found I was getting an odd "reflection" in the picture, where the brightest object leaves a residue in the opposite part of the frame.
You can see it here:
I ...
9
votes
4answers
607 views
What filter should I buy if I wanted to do 5 min shutter speed in daylight?
What type of filter would I need to create an image such as the following: http://500px.com/photo/10158205
9
votes
2answers
391 views
What filter should be used to lengthen exposure?
I would like to take long exposure shots in the day, but I just can't imagine how to do it because even fireworks (night shot) exposed for more than five seconds are too bright.
I did some research, ...
9
votes
4answers
912 views
Can stacking multiple exposure images in post-processing give the same effect as a long exposure?
I like to shoot daytime long exposures, where the exposure time is around two minutes. That shows the motion of the clouds in daylight.
I used a Hoya nd400 (which is 9 stops) stacked together with a ...
8
votes
4answers
1k views
Why is the lowest ISO always 100?
The lowest ISO on digital cameras always seems to be 100. It would sometimes be useful to have much lower ISOs, mainly for long exposure photography.
What isn't there any 50, 20, or even 10 ISO ...
8
votes
2answers
403 views
How can I recreate this glowing light effect?
How to have a glowing light ray effect outside some object like in this photo
Edit
Using photoshop to get this effect ?
8
votes
6answers
923 views
How do I set the focus in long exposure night sky shots?
I want to catch a good long exposure (5 - 15 seconds) shot of the International Space Station in the night sky as it passes over my city.
Setting the ISO higher (say, to 100) and the exposure time is ...
8
votes
2answers
334 views
What type of camera setup is required to take photos of luciferase?
I'm working with luciferase which has a wavelength of blue 480 nm and I want to be able to take a photo of it. The trouble is, I can see the luciferase glowing in all of its glory in front of me but ...
8
votes
3answers
1k views
Will long exposure night shots damage my camera?
I've been looking into long exposure photography for star tracking. How does it negatively (if at all) affect your camera?
7
votes
3answers
737 views
Does long exposure cause hot pixels in photos?
Today, I was taking some shots of night sky. For each, I had 20 sec exposure. During picture review, I found a red dot which is referred as "Hot Pixel" according to some people on the Internet. ...
7
votes
1answer
601 views
How to turn off the LCD while taking long-exposure photos?
I'm using a Canon SX210 IS with CHDK. I know that capturing long exposition photos is a "battery draining" process, but it could be better. Why should the LCD's backlight be on while taking the photo? ...
6
votes
4answers
3k views
What does “long exposure” mean?
Very often, when people are talking about photography, they use the expression "long exposure". Here's a quote from a recent answer:
A tripod and long exposure were required for this shot.
Where ...
6
votes
5answers
833 views
Does long exposure affect the sharpness of a picture, assuming no camera shake?
Assuming that the camera does not shake during long exposure photography, How does the sharpness of the image get affected? Would it be more sharp, less sharp, or remain the same?
6
votes
2answers
471 views
Where does the noise come from in a long exposure?
I created another test. This time I exposed for 36 minutes, because I wanted to test star photography. This is not meant to be a nice photo; I really just tested.
Camera was inside the house behind ...
6
votes
3answers
526 views
Do I need a special filter to shoot candles without damaging my sensor?
The guy from the photo shop pointed out to me that I need special filters if I want to shoot directly to the sun with long exposures in order to not ruin the sensor.
Is this the same when I shoot ...
6
votes
4answers
188 views
Situations you might use USB remote mode?
I hooked up the 50D to my MacBook Pro the other day at home and found it great to see exactly how a photo is going to turn out on the big screen before taking it and was wondering when such a setup ...
5
votes
4answers
2k views
How can I set an exposure time over 30 seconds with a DSLR?
Most DSLRs have an exposure time limit of 30 seconds.
Now I'm asking myself how is it possible to create images about over 1 hour or longer, like these two:
...
5
votes
1answer
301 views
Explanation please: Pictures look inverted while making long exposure photograph
I have a 5 year old Point and Shoot (Nikon 4600). Though it has very limited capabilities , I have been learning lot of things related to photography from it.
I was trying to make some long exposure ...
5
votes
2answers
333 views
What camera filter would I use to capture a long exposure seascape
Keith Naylor
Has managed to capture some stunning examples of seascapes, (see example below)
I fear that if I was there at the same time, my photo would be over exposed
I believe he is using some ...
5
votes
3answers
438 views
How can I avoid star effect on light sources on long exposure photos?
I'm about to make some long exposure photos, but I don't want them to have this star effect on light sources. Can I avoid that with any filter? For this shot I used a Canon 18-55mm lenses. Note that ...
5
votes
2answers
6k views
How can I take long exposures using a Nikon D7000 with wireless remote?
I have recently tried to take pictures of stars using my wife's D7000, but I couldn't get it to expose for more than 30 sec. In my old D70 I used the wired remote to do long exposures, but now I have ...
5
votes
1answer
269 views
What can go wrong with extreme long term exposure?
Ok, maybe I'm crazy, but I'm curious what will happen when I combine a ND400 filter (9 stops) with a zone plate or zone sieve "lens."
If I'm shooting a sunset, it I might get a 30 second exposure ...
5
votes
0answers
104 views
Long Exposures of Fireworks. How was this done? [duplicate]
Just saw these amazing long exposures of fireworks by Davey J. How did he do that? I'm assuming it's slightly more complicated than just taking a long exposure on a tripod?
4
votes
2answers
306 views
How do moving objects disappear when exposed for longer duration?
I was going through a tutorial that explained the use of an NDX filter. Pictures taken of a busy street at slow shutter speeds with the filter on had only empty streets without any vehicles. How does ...
4
votes
1answer
644 views
How to photograph star trails AND city lights?
I don't get how this picture was taken: http://500px.com/photo/5956842
I know this is a blended shot and that the city lights are brought out in post but my questions is, why don't the city lights ...
4
votes
1answer
247 views
Why don't we get hot pixels when using live view?
Why don't we get hot pixels while using live view mode, but do get then on a long exposure? I read somewhere that they appear due to the sensor being activated for too much time, but then, live view ...
4
votes
1answer
222 views
Is astrophotography basically pointless with a moon in the sky?
I want to take some astrophotography shots of objects in the sky while not keeping the moon in the shot. I have read in a few places that you need essentially a moonless sky to do so. Does that mean ...
4
votes
1answer
282 views
Long exposure water shots tutorial for dummies? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
How do I make the water silky in water/beach photography?
I want to start to do some long exposure shots of water like these:
picture from noticeeverything
So I don't ...
4
votes
2answers
2k views
How do I set my Canon 600D for Long Exposure?
I have a Canon 600d. I need to have a long exposure. What settings should be used to achieve a long exposure in my camera? I tried searching and most of them say bulb mode. I don't see it in my ...
3
votes
3answers
889 views
Long exposures without turning night into day
When taking Night Photography you will use long exposures. Sometimes these exposures can be very long. My question is this:
How can I take long exposures without turning a night scene into a scene ...
3
votes
4answers
436 views
Why are these light trails large blobs of light instead of nice thin lines?
I'm trying to shoot a traffic light trails with my point & shoot camera (Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ8). But the oncoming vehicle headlights are appearing as large blobs of light and not exactly thin ...
