Noise, blur, and subject are three very real challenges photographers can face when trying to capture images at night. There are many ways to work around the obstacles and create interesting images both while taking the photo with your camera and during post-processing. Let me explain.
In order to photograph at night, you need to set the camera to much higher ISO levels, and that can generate noise. Various photo editing programs and filters can reduce that somewhat, but one way to solve the problem is to work with the noise to create a particular effect. The image below was shot at ISO 16000, a shutter speed of 400, and at aperture f/20. When processing the image, I edited the moon by separating it from the background and worked with sharpening and noise reduction/blur filters in Photoshop to get the effect I liked. I was not concerned with having an absolutely sharp image.
In order to photograph at night, you need to set the camera to much higher ISO levels, and that can generate noise. Various photo editing programs and filters can reduce that somewhat, but one way to solve the problem is to work with the noise to create a particular effect. The image below was shot at ISO 16000, a shutter speed of 400, and at aperture f/20. When processing the image, I edited the moon by separating it from the background and worked with sharpening and noise reduction/blur filters in Photoshop to get the effect I liked. I was not concerned with having an absolutely sharp image.
Blur can be a real problem. Using a tripod may be fine for certain night shots, but it is not always practical. You need to set a very high ISO and sufficiently high shutter speed so that the exposure is adequate and that blur is minimized.
In this image from Lisbon, I was mostly interested in the streetcar and the hotel. This was ISO 1600 and a shutter speed at 100. The people walking show some blur, and the man with his arm outstretched has a blurred and unrecognizable face. The solution is to shoot at much higher ISOs and faster shutter speed and deal with the noise issue as with the moon shot above. Or make blur part of the overall effect.
In this image from Lisbon, I was mostly interested in the streetcar and the hotel. This was ISO 1600 and a shutter speed at 100. The people walking show some blur, and the man with his arm outstretched has a blurred and unrecognizable face. The solution is to shoot at much higher ISOs and faster shutter speed and deal with the noise issue as with the moon shot above. Or make blur part of the overall effect.
Finally, finding a good subject for a night shot can be a challenge. You can often take your nighttime photo and improve it in post-processing and eliminate extraneous elements by cropping and focusing on the core subject matter of your image that has sufficient light.
In the photo below, I was most interested in the interaction between the grandfather and the granddaughter. Her face is not large and all the features are not shown in full detail, but there is enough sharpness to show her smile and line of sight. I dealt with the noise issues as discussed above, but felt this worked because what I wanted to show was sufficiently sharp, in focus, and discernible. This is also a situation where I used selective sharpening over parts of the image and did not crop too tightly. I didn’t care if some of the things were soft focus.
In the photo below, I was most interested in the interaction between the grandfather and the granddaughter. Her face is not large and all the features are not shown in full detail, but there is enough sharpness to show her smile and line of sight. I dealt with the noise issues as discussed above, but felt this worked because what I wanted to show was sufficiently sharp, in focus, and discernible. This is also a situation where I used selective sharpening over parts of the image and did not crop too tightly. I didn’t care if some of the things were soft focus.
Night photography encompasses many subjects, and problems in one area may be solutions in another. A certain amount of noise, blur, or softness can add to the effect. The final product doesn’t have to be perfect. Know your camera and take advantage of one of the many editing programs to make your image even better.