How to capture: HK night lights.

Hiya

 

I have yet to get my tripod. So basically I am curious about how

pple take those (1) amzing photographs of Hong Kong night lights, and

(2) when the street lights become like laser strings and (3) likewise

when the two buses cuts via each other and the camera is able to

obtain two curved light strings .....

 

My question is, is metering used?? If metering is not used would the

pix be over or under exposed??

 

In regards to http://www.pbase.com/accl/hong_kong Just amazing!!!

Credits to the photographer.

The "laser string" is done by zooming while the shutter is open.

Thanks for that. So one use long exposure and zoom out ... together? How about the meter thing?

Not sure how sensitive your meter is, etc. I tend to bracket night shots a lot. One suggestion is that you familiarize yourself with your film's reciprocity. As shutter speed get into the seconds, film will need longer to expose than a meter would indicate. It can be very dramatic, like an indicated 10 seconds should be a minute, etc. Check out your film manufacturers website and you should be able to find a chart with reciprocity times.

 

That's assuming you are using film.

I should of said this before.

I am using a D70 Nikon digital SLR.

Raym

For night shots I normally use a handheld meter and MF transparency film. Set your camera on a tripod and use a cable release. (avoids camera shake and thus blurry shots) - simply set up your camera - meter with your ambient light dome up and sitting right under the front of your lense. This should get you in the ballpark. Then bracket a half stop either side. In MF you should be able to knock out 3-4 rolls in the magic few moments (given you have a loaded second back).

 

Night shots or probably more properly 'dusk' shots can go anywhere from 6 second exposures to the 2-3 minutes. The curved light strings are just a result of a light source traveling somewhere in your frame and sinces it's exposing it comes out on the tranny as a light path.

 

If you do these kind of shots avoid inky black skies. Especially if your trying to show any kind of skyline. I always see night shots where the building get lost into a black sky with no detail.

 

Much nicer if you shoot at the magic couple of minutes at dusk and in doing so manage to retain building detail and some color in your sky - all while getting some cool light trails.

 

Though beware in Hong Kong when shooting from the peak that you will have to elbow your way in - lol - on a clear night there is usually a good crowd up there. And besides it's a shot that has been done to death. There are many great areas around Hong Kong for night shots that are not as typical as that one.

 

Enjoy.

I am a local but I believe the same technique is applicable to all cities in the world.

 

(1) You need to know the the right spots to take the best photos. Study tourist guides, walk around or ask a local for suggestion.

 

(2) street light like laser is done by a long exposure (usually over 2 sec) and zoom during the exposure. You need a good tripod to make your camera steady during the zooming. It also works better for a lens that zooms by turning a ring rather than push/pull type. You need to experiment the speed and extend of turning the zoom ring to acheive the effect you desire. Since you have a D70 you can review the result instantly and adjust for the next shot.

 

(3) curved light strings after the buses is due to the long exposure time (over 10s) that captures the movement of the light from the inside of the bus as well as the headlight.

 

The key for night shot exposure is try it out yourself and learn the technique. Use matrix metering as a starting point and then bracket your exposure either way. (In my experience matrix metering is usually close enough in many situations) For (2) and (3) you may need to adjust the aperture to get the long exposure time you need. The major benefit of a digital camera to me is the ability to review the shot instantly and then adjust.

You need to worry about safety. Some of the photo areas are gang-areas. For example, the photo with words "flower city" and the one with characters "men + women" are all connotations to brothels. At parts of the city, crime rate can be high. Gang would be underestimtement.. Mafia, black-society are more appropriate. Some of those are crime syndicates ran by families, generations, of crime lords.

<<You need to worry about safety>>

 

This is true regardless of where you are, even at home.

 

<<Some of the photo areas are gang-areas>>

 

This is exaggerated. Yes these are brothels (they are in every major city) but it is very safe and absolutely no problem to take photos on the street. The flower city photo is taken in Tsimshatsui East, a tourist district with many top hotels. The man+women photo is taken along Nathan Rd, a busy and major shopping street. I go to these 2 districts often and never have any problem at all.

 

I am not saying these because I am a local. I just do not want others to be misled.

I am not going to HK. I just came back from a trip of Japan. I titled this HK because HK is 'famous' for those photographs so readers knew what I was on about .....

 

I tried this at my lounge's window lookking down the hill ..... Its a piece of cake. Metering worked. Trial and error method also worked ... sometimes did over and under exposed thou... Did not even need to move the camera. Thou when moved the street lights get streaked too ..

You exaggerate a bit here. I have lived in Mongkok for going on 6 years now - and before that in Sham Shui Po. I've run around with camera gear both day and night and never ever had a problem. My building alone is brothel central the only thing there are more of than hookers and triads are CID cops.

 

Use your head and you'll never have a problem. Admittedly I may be a bit removed from it all at 6'2" 190lbs and an ex Muay Thai boxer - but more importantly - I am a Westerner. Triads tend only to vicitimize other Chinese.

 

Besides most of them don't give a *bleep* what you do as long as your not impeding their business - drugs, gambling and mainland hookers.

 

Ray the shots that guy has on his site are well done - but nothing that you can't achieve. I have probably about 10 of the exact same shots from the exact same locations. Nice shots none the less though.

the advice above is very sound. Pop the SLR on a tripod, select an apreture around f/11 and mess around with shutter speeds from a few seconds upwards. You must shoot with some ambient blue light left in the sky, or with ND grads at sunset - and you'll get lovely dramatic shots. As for safety, any big city, after dark with £1000's of camera kit, you need to be vigilant! I've shot the city skyline at HK and I wouldn't worry, there are 100's of people about.

 

<a href=http://www.photo.net/photo/1577776>here is a fun example</a>.

 

Enjoy, and post some results when you're done!

 

Neil

<img border="0" src="http://www.geocities.com/~kenghor/hongkong/hk1.jpg" width="254" height="400">

<p>

A good place to capture the street at night is at Nathan Road. One particular stretch of road is all filled with neon sign boards.

I recently stopped over in Hong Kong for a couple of nights on the way to

Europe. What a great city, spent most of my time wandering everywhere. I felt

very safe even after midnight. Didn't have my tripod with me so took all my

night shots hand-held. Got some good results. I am looking forward to

spending more time in Hong Kong.<div></div>