Recently I was stuck on hold with a major airline here in Australia and remember seeing a cool 3D inspired portrait that was used for a commercial advertising campaign in Melbourne. It got me tempted to have a go at trying to deconstruct the concept and put something together myself to kill the time. I must profess that I’m actually quite ordinary in Photoshop but it turns out it was a lot easier than I thought and I’d love to share how it was done even if the final image is a little gimmicky.
One of my favourite photos made by possible by using various neutral density filters
Neutral density filters are a favourite tool of my photography tool set and admittedly most of my shots have been taken using at least one. I must be honest, neutral density filters were the turning point for my photography. I actually found it quite frustrating as I wasn’t getting the images how I wanted them in camera until I started playing around with graduated neutral density filters. Once I got hooked on these I started taking other aspects of my photography more seriously, learning about composition and how exposure affects your image. This lead me on a path of exploring the use of neutral density filters from graduated types, strong neutral density filters and even playing around with welding glass.
For this reason I wanted to put together a simple guide on how to use ND filters, explaining the different types out there and why they are a great to have in your camera bag while also looking at when they are needed/are good and how they are generally used by photographers. But neutral density filters do have their shortcomings which I’ll also explore in this article. You never know perhaps you might get hooked on them too? 😉
What are Neutral Density Filters
Before we get started though let’s look at what a neutral density filter is and what purpose it actually serves. A neutral density filter reduces the amount of light coming in to your camera. This is great for photographers who want a longer exposure time or a larger aperture which may not be possible due to lighting conditions at the scene. The light entering the camera is reduced by the darkness of the filter used. When we look at different neutral density filters we look at how many stops of light they block out. By this it means how many f-stops the filter blocks. In English the higher amount of F-stops the neutral density filter blocks out, the darker the filter will be and the longer the exposure time required to get the correct exposure time. Simple enough right?
Neutral density filters come in all shapes and sizes from screw on types (more common) to rectangle glass which is mounted to the camera lens through an adapter. Below shows my setup which I normally shoot with which consists of a .9 Cokin Z-Pro graduated neutral density filter, filter holder, lens adapter to fold the filter holder and a B+W 110 10 stop neutral density filter. Good fun screwing it all on when shooting in freezing conditions 😉
An example of a solid neutral density filter (Filter in picture – B+W 110 ND)
Sold neutral density filters are your more common neutral density filter on the market. These come in various strength levels ranging from blocking out 2 stops of light up incrementally up to filters that block 10 stops of light. The 2 stop filter is quite useful for shooting waterfalls when you’re not quite getting the exposure time you need or when shooting portraits in harsh sunlight and you wish to capture at a higher aperture which may not be possible due to the harsh light. While the 10 stop neutral density filter is a lot more specialised and will allow you to capture exposure times beyond a minute which can drastically transform a scene. If this is something that interests you, give my article about capturing daytime long exposures a read which goes into more detail about the use of strong neutral density filters.
If you’re looking to get started with a solid neutral density filter I would personally recommend a 4 stop neutral density filter like this Hoya filter as this is a good middle ground without being too weak or too strong.
One word of advice though, avoid screw on graduated neutral density filters and screw on filters that allow you to change the strength of the neutral density filter. A few friends have purchased these and have had awful results from them and said how inconsistent they are. Perhaps others have had good experiences with them but from most people I’ve spoken to, they regret the purchase and ended up purchasing either a proper solid neutral density filter or a graduated neutral density filter kit.
Graduated Neutral Density Filters
Graduated neutral density filters are where it all started for me when I started experimenting with ND filters. The purpose of a graduated neutral density filter is to gradually darken part of the image depending on the position of the filter. This results in a gradual shift in darkness from solid to clear and allows you to position the filter based on where you want the graduation to occur. A common use for the filter is when capturing landscape photography where shooting a scene that is not evenly lit as the sky will be bright from the sunrise/sunset and the land quite dark. By using the graduated neutral density filter this will allow you to under expose the sky (avoiding highlights and slightly darkening the sky to create some mood) which results in a more even exposure.
Graduated neutral filters come in various graduations or step types. The type I refer to in this article are your typical soft edge graduated neutral density filter where the top half of the filter is a solid dark and gradually loses its darkness to become clear. The setup I use is the Cokin Z-Pro kit which is ok however has issues of a purple colour cast when multiple filters are stacked. For this reason I prefer to recommend the Lee setup which doesn’t have the same colour cast issues which the Cokin setup can be prone to (however easily corrected in post processing). Another style is a hard edge neutral density filter where half the filter is solidly dark and the rest is clear. Another but less popular style is the reverse graduated neutral density filter. This is popular for sunset photographs where the sun is sitting around the horizon. I’ve not used these personally as they’re quite expensive and feel their usage is limited and doesn’t justify the cost (see this Hitech reverse graduated neutral density filter which doesn’t come cheap) but I’m sure are no doubt handy to have in the kit if you can afford one.
An example of graduated neutral density filters (Filters in photo – Cokin Z-Pro graduated neutral density filter, lens adapter and filter holder)
While not limited to various types of graduation, these filters also come in various colours which allow the photographer to add colour to their scene. Generally grey (neutral) filters are what photographers use but others have been known to experiment with the blue, yellow and sepia colour filters. These work just like the normal graduated filters do with the colour being strong at the top and gradually becoming clear at the bottom. I’d recommend against these as they do not provide an accurate colour representation of the screen and if you really must the effect is quite easily achieved in Lightroom using the graduated filter as part of that.
How to use graduated neutral density filters
As technology advances and processing techniques become more defined, some would argue that a graduated neutral density filter isn’t as required as much as it once was and actually create more issues than their worth by degrading image quality and unwanted darkening parts of your scene. I’d argue they still very much have their place in your photography kit but admit they aren’t suitable for every shooting situation.
Generally I will use a graduated neutral density filter to partially darken part of the sky but it can be quite difficult when an object is in part of the sky (i.e. a cliff face that takes part of the sky). For these situations I won’t use my neutral density filter as it will result in the cliff face gradually darkened which looks unnatural and degrades the quality of your final image. Lightroom and other photography editing applications now allow you to overlay a graduated neutral density filter within software and is a great way to experiment with graduated neutral density filters without making the costly outlay of purchasing some.
However I still think that physical graduated neutral density filters do have a place in the photographers kit even with the rise of software programs like Lightroom becoming increasingly capable. This is due to the physical filter darkening the brighter regions of the sky in camera which will result in a longer exposure time. However if you attempt to do the same with a digital graduation filter in post processing this can create noise around the area. One could get around this issue by taking multiple exposures and using layer blending in Photoshop to selectively blend them in. I’ve written about this in a previous blog post which provides more information about layer masking areas from multiple exposures. One might argue that this is the way heading forward for landscape photography as it allows greater control over the final image and avoids any image degradation that may occur from placing a filter in front of the lens. But for the moment I’m happy using my graduated neutral density filters as they work for me.
If you do decide to purchase graduated neutral density filters, I’d strongly recommend the Lee filter setup. I personally shoot with the Cokin Z-Pro graduated neutral density filter kit however they have a slight colour purple colour cast which can result in a hint of purple being added to your image when you use more than one Cokin filter. The Lee filters don’t have this issue and provide a true graduated neutral density filter without any colour cast issues.
For most shots I will use a intervalometer to manually set the exposure time which is especially useful for shooting long exposures beyond 30 seconds.
When (and when not) to use neutral density filters
Neutral density filters can be used for many different circumstances which can include:
Blurring objects of a scene. Some popular things photographers like to blur include capturing the movement of clouds or the smoothing of water. But don’t limit yourself to this. I like to watch a scene and watch for gradual movement that occurs over the space of a few seconds and ponder how it may appear in a long exposure. An example of this is a shot I took at the Huon Valley, Tasmania of a moving jetty to create an interesting effect
Balancing a bright sky against a dark land/foreground. By using a graduated neutral density filter on the sky, this will allow you to darken the sky to balance it against the dark land
Adding some mood to the sky can instantly lift your photo in camera without the need for any burning in Photoshop when you return home
Allowing you to use an aperture that may not be possible due to bright lighting conditions therefore allowing you to capture a shallower depth of field
Blurring of people in a busy scene like this brilliant photo captured by Tom Carter in Tokyo of a busy intersection
The list is endless and neutral density filters allow for a lot of creative expression. I’ve compiled a list of long exposure photography ideas in an earlier post which might give you some ideas how you can use ND filters around your area
When to not use neutral density filters
Avoid using neutral density filters when:
Mountain tops or other objects overlap part of the sky. For this photo taken at Cape Schanck I did not use a graduated neutral density filter as the cliff face took such a major part of the sky. If I was to of used a graduated neutral density filter on the shot I would of lost considerable dynamic range on the cliff and also the shot would of appeared unnatural
Shooting waterfalls where you can get a long enough exposure without the use of filters. Obtaining the smooth water effect when shooting waterfalls only requires a 2-3 second exposure which is quite easily achievable if shooting in overcast conditions. If you introduce a neutral density filter this will drastically increase your exposure time, getting your silky smooth water effect however will blur the surrounding foliage of the waterfall
Looking at how filters can affect your photo
My Canon 5D Mark II with a graduated neutral density filter and B+W 110 solid neutral density filter attached
All this talk about solid and graduated neutral density filters is best explained by using some sample photos I took especially for this post to demonstrate how filters come into play. The setup consisted of a Canon 5D Mark II, Canon 17-40, intervalometer, Cokin Z-Pro graduated neutral density filters, 10 stop B+W 110 filter and a tripod (setup shot in case you’re curious).
I’ve not processed the images and for the first 3 images, the exposure time is the same and it is only when the strong 10 stop B+W solid neutral density filter is used that the exposure time changes. This is due to the B+W 10 stop filter being so dark that shooting at the same exposure time as the first 3 images would result in a black image. Instead the camera sensor needs more light to get a proper exposure which is why I had to lengthen how long the shutter remained open (in this case 1 minute).
Image 1 – Base image where no neutral density filters have been used. As you can see the exposure is quite even however the highlights (white parts of the sky) are starting to blow out (Exposure – 1/4 sec at F18)
Image 2 – One Cokin Z-Pro .9 graduated neutral density filter has been added. You can notice that it has balanced the exposure of the sky and added some very slight mood to the sky (Exposure – 1/4 sec at F18)
Image 3 – Two Cokin Z-Pro graduated neutral density filters are used (.6 and .9) which adds a lot more mood to the sky however has introduced darkness over the jetty. This is one downside to using graduated neutral density filters where there is an object overlapping part of the sky (in this case the railings for the jetty) (Exposure – 1/4 sec at F18)
Image 4 – Going nuts and using the same Cokin setup (one .6 and .9 graduated neutral density filter) and also the solid B+W 110 10 stop neutral density filter. As the 10 stop neutral density filter is being used, this darkens what the camera can see considerably (imagine looking through welding glass) which as a result requires the camera to use a long exposure to capture a correct exposure. I love using the B+W 10 stop filter as it allows you to capture long exposures during the day which blurs the clouds and water however one down side of using so many filters is the colour cast that is introduced. This is mostly from using the Cokin Z-Pro filters which have a purple colour cast to them which you can see in the sky. For this reason I’d strongly recommend the Lee filter kit which doesn’t suffer from the same colour cast issues (Exposure – 1 minute at F18)
Comparing how neutral density filters can come into play
Example photos from using neutral density filters
As mentioned at the start of this post, I won’t deny that I’m a sucker for neutral density filters and use them for a lot of my images. They’re a great tool to have in any landscape photographers tool set and well worth the investment. Below are some images that I’ve taken using a mixture of the Cokin Z-Pro graduated neutral density filters and the B+W 110 10 stop neutral density filter. Now that you’ve read about neutral density filters you should be able to identify where they have been used. In most of the shots a graduated neutral density filter has been used to darken the sky which has brightened the foreground and a stronger solid neutral density filter has been used to blur the movement of the clouds and water.
I hope this guide has been of use to you and has answered any questions you may have had about using neutral density filters. Please feel free to send me an email if you have any further questions as I’m always happy to help or alternatively if you have any feedback on what you would like to read about in future articles I’d also love to hear.
Thanks for reading,
– Alex
Photographs taken with neutral density filters referred to in this article
Related Reading
How to photograph waterfalls – This article looks at the basics of waterfall photography by discussing what conditions work best for waterfall photography, how exposure time can affect your photo, what equipment you will need for waterfall photography and more.
Neutral density reference chart – Stuck on what exposure time to use when using neutral density filters? This printable chart tells you what exposure time you will need based on the filter you are using
How to capture daytime long exposures – During the day it’s difficult for your camera to take long exposures without the need for filters or very low light conditions. This article explores what equipment you need to get started for shooting long exposures from 30 seconds to 5 minutes during the day.
Long exposure photography ideas – Stuck on ideas on how to use your ND filters? This article looks at the many uses for ND filters with some long exposure photography ideas to get you started.
Create your own 10 stop ND filter – A fun little weekend project which shows you how to create your own 10 stop neutral density filter for under $10.
The magic cloth technique – Use a cloth to create your own graduated neutral density filter during a long exposure.
My first post for 2014! Hard to believe that January is almost over. This year I wanted to share some behind the scenes before/after photos to give you an idea of how some of my photos look in camera and the process I follow to edit them. Starting the series with this photo from Cape Woolamai on a moody sunset.
This is a photo I took a couple of years ago now at Cape Woolamai which is situated along the stunning Phillip Island coastline. I had an idea in my head of how I wanted a photo to look of the scene which captured the stunning orange lichen rocks while using the giant rock as a backdrop with a long exposure to capture the blur of the clouds and water. To capture the image I used a Canon 5D Mark II, Canon 17-40, B+W 110 and Cokin Z-Pro graduated neutral density filter.
The original shot came out quite flat and had its flaws that required some tinkering in Lightroom and Photoshop to get right. Here are the steps that I followed to get the image to its final state. Before you read, you might want to watch a video I prepared earlier that goes over using Curves in Photoshop 5. I apologise that it may be a bit long winded and confusing at times but feel free to send an email if you have an queries but basically the general jist of the editing went something like:
I always shoot my images with auto white balance and find towards the end of a sunset, the camera will often go for a colder lower colour temperature which results in a blue to your image. To correct this I boosted the temperature to warm the colours slightly. It was important at this stage not to increase the temperature too much as I wanted to retain the blue of the water. Normally I make most of my changes in Lightroom and that’s it but for this image I wanted to tinker quite a bit with the colours so exported to Photoshop
Once in Photoshop I had to remove the gaping gash that formed across the rock. It turned out that my graduated neutral density filter had got scratched in my bag (something had managed to dig through the case and scratch the filter – bummer). I didn’t realise I had scratched the filter until I got home so thought the whole trip had been a waste of time. Fortunately though, I was able to use the cloning tool to and slowly remove the scratch from the rock
At this stage the image was looking quite flat still so I created a Curves layer which would be the first of many curves layers used over the course of the editing process. Curves are amazing and something I’ve talked about in the past but just to quickly remind you, they allow you to make selective adjustments to the red, blue and green channels of the highlights, mid tones and shadows of an image. At this stage I’ll make a general adjustment to the overall image and then make more selective adjustments later on through the use of layer masks
For the image, I wanted to selectively bump up the highlights of the water to make them appear more brighter while darkening the clouds to make them appear moody. To do this I used a Curves layer once again but this time introduced a layer mask. By using layer masks, you can paint over areas where you only wish to make an adjustment. For example, if I’m only wishing to adjust the tones of the sky I would use a layer mask and paint over that area which then means any changes you make in Curves will only be to that specific area which you painted over. The same principal applies for when making adjustments to the water of the photo. Through using this method I’m able to selectively bump up parts of the image without blowing out the rest of the image. Following this technique I used the primary channel and increased the midtones and highlights of the water and decreased the shadows, midtones and highlights of the sky to create some mood.
When editing the sky it was important not to accidentally darken the surrounding cliff and rocks in the area. To avoid this, I used the feather tool and selected the sky using this tool. Initially when I first started using Photoshop, I was hopeless with the feather tool and it really took some practicing until I got the hang of it. So if you’re struggling, don’t give up and possibly look at some tutorials on YouTube to get a sense of how others use it. It’s a great tool but at the same time, quite painful and difficult when you’re unfamiliar with it
As the exposure of the water was now bright and the sky was dark, I had to balance the exposure of the rock area so created another layer mask to selectively adjust this area to balance it against the rest of the scene by using curves with some minor dodging and burning
Once I was happy with the exposure of the overall scene, I was once again in curves making adjustments to the different colour channels (red, green and blue). Basically the reason for this is that I wanted to play with the blue channel a bit selectively around the water to make it appear more blue and also reduce the colour cast introduced by using filters. I find using the RGB channels in Curves a great and quick way to colour correct your image to fix any issues like colour cast
Final adjustments to the image was a resize for web (800×600) and sharpened using ultra sharpen mask
I hope this makes sense and gives some insight into how the final image was reached. For me the most important thing is to go in with an idea of how you want the image to look in your head and work according to that (something that is easier said than done).
It’s hard to believe that another year has already flown past. I feel like it wasn’t that long ago that I was putting together a similar post for my 2012 Retrospective.
2013 was an interesting start to the year with me being stuck down the Tasman Peninsular as the bush fires tore havoc through the area. Fortunately for us we were in a safe location but were trapped down there for a week. The most frustrating part was knowing my camera was back home in Hobart so I wasn’t able to get any photos of the stunning sunsets during the week I was down there. The first photo in this 2013 retrospective was from the day I finally got back to Hobart and taken from the Eastern Shore looking towards a hazy Mt. Wellington on sunset.
This year was a quiet year for me landscape photography wise but I mixed things up by picking myself up a Fujifilm X100 that rides in my bike bag and generally carried around wherever I go. It’s a great little camera and most of the photos are featured towards the end of this post. For anyone that only ever lugs around a DSLR I’d strongly recommend picking yourself up a little capable camera like the Fujifilm X100. It’s great having something with you that’s portable but doesn’t come with the high price tag that your DSLR has.
For a while now I’ve been putting together small articles about long exposure photography with a how to on waterfall photography and another on daytime long exposures. It’s one thing to learn technique but what good is it if you’re struggling for ideas on what to take photos of? This guide should help you with some ideas for long exposure photography. Some styles touched on include:
Traffic and night long exposure photography – Using traffic to your advantage with the best angles and time to take this style of photography
Waterfall long exposure photography – What to look out for when taking waterfall photographs. Little secrets to make yours stand out from the rest
Star trail long exposure photography – Capture spirals of stars in the sky with these tips that will help your star trail photography
Sea long exposure photography – Takes a look at what things I look out for when taking seascape photographs and how to combine these various elements to create a great photograph
Bonus ideas that don’t fall into the above – Did you know you can use a long exposure to make a busy location like a busy pedestrian crossing appear a ghost town? This and other neat ideas are included in this section
This list of photo ideas isn’t a definitive list and only touches the surface of what’s possible through long exposures. I love that long exposures offer photographers the ability to transform a scene to how we normally view it. People are always pushing the envelope and finding ways to use long exposures like this beautiful series from Jakob Wagner entitled Urban Zoom that captures long exposures of cities. During the exposure he zooms the camera to create beautiful streaks. Although not necessarily new, it’s been executed perfectly and a neat little trick that shows the possibilities of long exposure photography. Don’t forget to check out another post that includes a free neutral density chart that’s a must for any photographers bag.
What You Will Need
Rather than go into great detail of the various equipment you will need for long exposures, I’ll try keep this short and a rough guide on what equipment I recommend. It is by no means the only equipment you can use (other brands are more than fine) it’s just based on the brands I personally use. A few things that I would personally recommend include:
Canon 5D Mark III – This thing is a work horse, handling noise perfectly and compliments the 17-40 nicely with its weather sealing
Canon 17-40 – An ultra wide angle lens suits long exposure photography perfectly especially with its weather sealing
Manfrotto tripod – Essential to having your camera remain still and avoid any shake during the long exposure
B+W 110 neutral density filter – A strong neutral density filter is great to have in your kit as this will allow you to take long exposures (2-5 minutes) during the day
Intervalometer – These remote controls are great as they allow you to manually dial in the exposure time you want, program it to take an exposure every X seconds (great for timelapse) and are generally just great for long exposure photography. There’s cheaper Asian brands on the market which I’d also recommend searching for if you’re on a budget
As I mentioned this is by no means the essential equipment for long exposure. Use whatever is available to you financially. I’ve seen people take some great stuff even with an iPhone so it goes to show that you don’t necessarily always need great gear but it does help 😉
Traffic and Night Long Exposures
One of my first long exposure night photos
Long exposure night photography is where my photography all started with this photo taken looking towards the Tasman Bridge in Tasmania. It’s what started it all for me and gave me the long exposure bug.
Some ideas and tips for capturing long exposures of traffic:
Look for a high vantage point that will allow you to look down on the passing traffic (see the first photo below as an example)
Timing is key. Try to base your timing around peak hour traffic to get a consistent flow of traffic at all times. There’s nothing worse than standing around in the dark waiting for cars to come by. Instead if you’re shooting at peak hour you’ll never have any issues with waiting for cars to come through
If you can’t get a high vantage point, try get close to the action. Sometimes I find setting the tripod on the corner of a busy intersection and zooming in a little will create a sense that your camera is only centimeters away from the action
Experiment with varying exposures from long exposures so the traffic creates red and white lines to shorter exposures where you can almost make out the detail of the passing cars. Melbourne is quite iconic for its yellow taxi’s and trams. In the two images in the bottom left hand corner below I wanted to capture the movement of these in a long exposure but to avoid blurring them out completely I opted for a shorter long exposure
Aim to take your traffic long exposure photographs around sunset, sunrise or blue hour. Your aim is to photograph the tail or front lights of passing cars and it’s only obvious that this will be more around time when light is limited and cars will need their lights on. The bonus of this is that your camera will be able to obtain a long exposure without the need for neutral density filters and you will get some beautiful colour in the sky. My first traffic long exposure photo taken above was taken late at night so the sky is lost and a dull black. If i was to of shot this on sunset or blue hour I would of had a lovely sky against the traffic streaks. It’s little things like this that can make a photo
When scouting locations suitable for long exposures of passing traffic I’ll try to base it around major entry/exit points of a city. For the top two photographs below, both are major entry and exit points to Melbourne. It was important that I timed the photos for peak hour to ensure there was a steady flow of traffic to capture
Traffic Long Exposures
Waterfall Long Exposures
A while ago I put together an article that touches on what settings to use for waterfall photography. The article looks at how to shoot long exposures in daylight for waterfalls, demonstrates the effect shutter speed can have for waterfall photography and other little tips. That aside let’s look at some ideas for waterfall long exposure photography:
It doesn’t have to be just about big waterfalls. Sometimes streams that come further down from the main waterfall can create great composition points for you photo. Take the second photo on the top row for example, the main waterfall is a lot further up stream but the two rocks created a nice composition point for my photo
Look for little swirls of foam or water coming off the waterfall or further down stream. When shooting waterfalls I’ll try to keep an eye out for little pockets of water doing interesting things. Try to study them for a few seconds and imagine how they will look if you were to use a 3-5 second long exposure. To give you an idea what I mean, check out the bottom two photos on the third row where little lines of spray were flowing down off the waterfall and created an interesting effect in the long exposure. This adds a nice touch to your composition and makes it stand out a bit more from the rest
Get side on to the waterfall. Most people will generally shoot a waterfall looking directly front on. Why not try something different and go to the side? Just be warned though your lens will quickly accumulate spray from the waterfall if you’re not careful. It’s a matter of quickly planting the tripod, looking through and lining things up, firing the shot and moving the camera out of the spray. Rinse and repeat until you get a shot you’re happy with
Long exposures are great but make sure it’s not too long. Photographing long exposures of waterfalls looks great with its blurred water but be mindful that over-doing the exposure time can introduce blur to other parts of the image where you may not want it. One example of this is the blur a long exposure can introduce to the foliage area of a photo. Instead of the foliage appearing sharp and crisp, it instead looks blurry and dull. Try to be mindful that 5 second and onward exposures is where this starts to become an issue
Waterfall Long Exposure Ideas
Star Trail Long Exposures
Admittedly star trail photography is something I’m still very much learning about but here’s some things that I’ve learnt from my experience of standing out in the cold for hours on end.
Get out of the city and head out for a drive somewhere that’s not near surrounding housing or industry. This will allow you to get a better view of the stars due to less ambient light from houses and industry.
Star trails are best photographed on a moonless evening or when the moon is not above the horizon. When the moon is at it’s peak, it creates too much light in the sky and lightens the stars.
Use a torch to focus on your composition element. For the shot below I shined a torch on the tree below, focused and then turned the camera into manual focus. Don’t fall victim to my common mistake of leaving the camera in auto focus and have the camera try to find focus again after I’ve preset the exposure. Alternatively you can set the camera into manual focus and set the focus to infinity. This technique works best with an ultra wide angle lens
Capture the stars spiraling in the sky as the earth naturally rotates. An example of this is the shot below which is achieved by using a long exposure (30 minutes) facing the northern direction (assuming you’re in the northern hemisphere) that captured the stars moving and appearing as concentric rings. What’s that you ask? To break it down a little… As you set up the camera on the tripod facing northerly (pretending you’re in the northern hemisphere here for a moment) and you fire your long exposure, the camera captures the stars spiraling in a circle due to the earth rotating on a north-south axis. It’s a little confusing and I must confess something I’m still very much learning but don’t be put off. It’s not as daunting as it sounds
Bring a long a torch or head light for some light painting. Being out of the city and in a dark environment it might be hard to see composition so why not use your head torch to light up your composition midway through the exposure. I used this technique on the trees in the shot below to brighten them during the exposure
Seascape Long Exposures
Star Trails
Seascapes offer so much potential for photographers looking to capture long exposures as there’s so many changing elements which come alive with a long exposure. One of my first articles when starting this blog was about daytime long exposures. I love being by the sea and one of my favourite long exposure photos I’ve taken is this photo at Howden where the long exposure created a lovely blur on the clouds and captured the reflections perfectly. Some of my favourite ideas and tips for seascape long exposure photography include:
Depending on the location, clifftops make a great vantage point for long exposure photographs especially if there’s a wild sea with waves constantly crashing.
Not much water movement? Look up and take in the sky. Sometimes I’ll arrive at a scene and there won’t be much water movement but the clouds are a mix of overcast and fine which create a nice patchy cloud coverage. I find this type of coverage great as when there’s a bit of breeze about (which there normally is if shooting by the sea) they create a blur to add an extra element to your composition. Check out the two photos on the second row to give you an idea of what I mean. Both scenes had limited water movement but lots of patchy cloud to balance out the shot in the long exposure
Keep an eye out for things with that have aged over time. Some of my favourites include old jetties that are still in use and even better, ruins from jetties and other things that poke out of the water. They create a great composition element through the rough textures and leading lines they can sometimes create. Generally I’ll scout around coastal towns or areas popular for fishing as there’s bound to be some old jetties or boat launch ramps that were once used for fishing. Unfortunately these seem to be slowly getting pulled down over time so get in while you can
Lookouts make a great vantage point for your composition. Tourist lookouts offer a great view of a location making them a great spot to setup your camera for a long exposure. Try to be courteous of tourists and others coming to admire the view by not getting in other people’s way too much or setup elevated out of the way
Seascape photography ideas
Finding Beauty in the Unexpected
One thing I love about long exposure photography is that the possibilities are endless. We could go on all day about long exposure photography ideas but here’s a couple more of my favourite ideas not listed above:
Patchy skies create a great composition element. Wandering around Hobart a few years ago I snapped the second photo on the top row below. It’s not a great shot by any means but the clouds blurred from a long exposure against the old architecture of Hobart add a diffferent touch to your average photo
Dial your camera into a long exposure and stick your camera out the window to capture a sense of speed
Grab some sparklers or a torch and run around in front of the camera for some long exposure night photography. This style of light painting works best by grabbing a torch and placing some coloured cellophane or even coloured cd cases over the front of the torch. It’s a neat little trick but has nothing on the beautiful work of Denis Smith with his Ball of Light project. A must for anyone looking for light painting inspiration
Use a long exposure to exaggerate fog of a scene. I hate to admit this but the forth row photo beneath a bridge on a foggy morning there actually wasn’t that much fog as the photo leads you to believe. By using a long exposure I was able to capture the fog as it moved down the river which exaggerated the fog in the photo. Although be mindful that using a long exposure during foggy conditions can fog up your camera lens if you’re not careful. Try to check your lens often throughout the shoot to ensure you don’t get home with a card full of unusable images
Remove people from a busy scene with a long exposure. Living in a busy city (Melbourne, Australia) I’ll arrive at a scene to take sunset photos (like this one at St Kilda Pier) and it will be crowded with tourists. Rather than take a photo with people cluttered all through my photo I’ll set the camera up for a long exposure. It works perfectly and I’m able to take a photo of a scene with no people getting in my shot. Just be mindful that you need quite a long exposure for this effect to work well and also for people not to stand and stop too long in your frame. This post-apocalyptic photo series by Lucie & Simon captures major cities appear as ghost towns by using this effect
Playing around with other long exposure ideas
What’s your Favourite Long Exposure Subject?
As I said in the introduction to this post that the possibilities of taking long exposure photographs are endless. What do you enjoy taking photos of using long exposure that I’ve missed?
If you found this article useful I’d be super grateful if you shared it via your favourite social networks to others who might be also interested in the topic. Feel free to follow me on Facebook, Twitter or Google+ for future posts like this. You might also be interested in a previous post called the magic cloth technique that is a very effective and easy DIY neutral density filter trick.
Have any questions or comments about the article? Feel free to drop an email as I’m always happy to help 🙂
