Beginner Newbie alert

CraigBarry82

CraigBarry82

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Craig
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Hello all,

I just joined up and am looking to increase my knowledge of my camera and its settings and the different images I can capture and looking to set up my own online portfolio.

I am keen to start with some night time shots along with some landscapes so if there are any decent settings that will help me get some really good pictures I would really appreciate it..

I have a canon EOS 1200d with a standard lens and a zoom lens.

I tried some night shots last night and while it was my first attempt and I'm moderately happy with the images I got, I still think there is bags of potential to improve and it's the settings I'm using that's holding me back.

Any help advice please.

Thank you all
 
I haven't got much experience in nighttime photography but I can offer as much as I know. I would suggest shooting with 10 second shutter speeds unless you want star trails (but I doubt a 1200D can go for long enough for effective star trails). Try and shoot in areas with less light pollution as the stars won't be as clear if there's bright lights of a city near. Experiment with your aperture to fit what you want in focus but I would recommend the lowest f-stop as possible to let the most amount of light in. The best advice I can give you is really to watch videos on exposure and then experiment when you shoot.
 
Tripod for certain

Remote release or 12 second delayed release.

Stars need several seconds to register, read up About star trails and stacking, wide angle lens Asa 1600+

Planets need 1 sec or so, maybe considerably less if surface detail is wanted (Saturn & Jupiter). Medium to zoom Asa 1600+

Moon needs 1/250 Th at f8 medium to zoom Asa 200

600 rule says that the focal length divided into 600 is the length of exposure in seconds before star trails become apparent. I find that rule still shows slight trails......

Plenty of reading available. Keep on trucking and show us results. Many here will give practical advice

Good luck

MJ
 
Last edited:
Firstly; welcome to TP. There's masses of help here for you.

2ndly though?

You've asked for help without enough information. 'Settings' are odd things, they're pretty time/light/subject/intention dependant.

What kind of 'night shots', as you can see, some people have assumed astrophotographers, no ones asked, and we don't know what gear you have either. It might be unsuitable for what you're trying to achieve.
So the best start is to show us an image with settings, tell us what you'd like to improve and we'll give the right answer. And all the 'why' you could want.
 
As above, the camera settings depend on the situation, what you are taking and the image you want. Hovever, have a look online for the 'exposure triangle'. Understanding how aperture, shutter speed and ISO relate to each other and the effect each has on the final image will give you a better handle on what settings to use in different situations.

If you want to take shots of stars as points rather than trails then the 600 rule Mark mentioned above needs a bit of adjustment. It is -


Exposure in seconds before stars begin to show trails = 600/(focal length of the lens x the crop factor of the camera).


For a camera with a sensor the same size as the film in a 35mm camera the crop factor is 1 and Mark's calculation is correct. For example, with a 18mm lens the longest exposure becomes about 33seconds - 600/(18X1) For your camera with a crop factor of (I think) 1.6 the longest exposure is about 21 seconds - 600/(18*1.6). However, the rule is more what you'd call guidelines and, as noted above, trailing could be apparent with shorter exposures.

All photos are effectively free so just play around and post shots up here.

Dave
 
Where are you in country / world Craig
 
Thanks for all the comments so far.

I will add some photos when I'm back on my laptop.

It's not so much star photos more night shots of scenery sunsets etc

I'm in Hampshire just near reading (U.K.)
 
Craig, have a look at The Photographer's Emphemeris - http://photoephemeris.com/ - it shows the direction and time of sunrise and sunset for any day and is useful if you want to check out a location for a sunrise or sunset shot. It also shows the direction of the sun throughout the day which can also be useful.

Dave
 
CraigBarry82 said:
Hello all,

I just joined up and am looking to increase my knowledge of my camera and its settings and the different images I can capture and looking to set up my own online portfolio.

I am keen to start with some night time shots along with some landscapes so if there are any decent settings that will help me get some really good pictures I would really appreciate it..

I have a canon EOS 1200d with a standard lens and a zoom lens.

I tried some night shots last night and while it was my first attempt and I'm moderately happy with the images I got, I still think there is bags of potential to improve and it's the settings I'm using that's holding me back.

Any help advice please.

Thank you all
Click to expand...

'Settings' is basically a question about the 'exposure triangle' - the three main controls for shutter speed, lens aperture (f/number), and ISO (sensor's sensitivity to light).

Try this tutorial https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/t...xposure-theory-but-were-afraid-to-ask-101.39/

Welcome to TP :)
 
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