wondering about upgrading

[mnfire]

i currently have a Nikon D5000 with AF-S DX Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR and AF-S 55-200mm f/4-5.6 G ED.   i still fairly new but i cant seem to get night shots do i need a new camera or better lens.   thanks for all the help in advance

Edited May 11, 2023 by mnfire

[William Michael]

39 minutes ago, mnfire said:

i still fairly new but i cant seem to get night shots

You need to provide more details and describe what exactly you want to achieve and can't.

Posting one or two images which you consider fall short of your expectations would also help provide targeted answers.

From experience, I expect that you need more education, guidance and practice and not a new camera or better lens.

WW       

[mnfire]

i like taking scene photos but i only do day ones because my night ones just dont turn out.  here is a couple of my night shots most of my shots endup like these.  using a flash is not a option.  thanks again

[William Michael]

Both images have Motion Blur.

The first image appears to be of a static scene, it appears to have blur caused by only camera movement - perhaps you did not have the VR operative or you did have VR engaged but the shutter speed was too slow for VR to be effective AND you were hand holding he camera.

The second image appears to have both Camera Movent Blur and Subject Movement blur. Perhaps the VR was not engaged AND the Shutter Speed was too slow.

For a precise diagnosis I need to know from the EXIF details of the two images - the Shutter Speed; ISO; Aperture and if VR was engaged.  

WW 

[Dustin McAmera]

I use an EOS M50; an APS-C mirrorless, introduced in 2018 I think, so a few years newer than your camera. It represented a big jump forward for me, and the ease with which I can carry on photographing in the dusk is one of the things I noticed.
I got the camera with a kit zoom quite like your shorter one: a 15-45mm f/3.5-6.3, with image stabilisation - it claims to have 3½ stops-worth of IS. I also got some prime lenses: a 22mm f/2, a 50mm f/1.8 (probably Canon's cheapest lens) and a manual focus 35mm f/1.2. I find I'm most comfortable with the prime lenses when it gets dark, although the IS on the little zoom 'ought' to give it the edge.

I'd think about getting one or more prime lenses with wide aperture, to let you use hand-holdable shutter speeds. My 50/1.8 and 35/1.2 were each less than 200 uk pounds (the 35 is a 7Artisans lens).

Your problem in the pictures you posted seems to be just camera shake during a slow exposure. I tend to leave my camera in aperture-priority auto almost all the time; that means in bad light I have to keep an eye on what shutter speed the camera is planning to use. If I'm intending to stay out in the dark, I take a bean bag (literally a zip-lock freezer bag full of dried beans) so I can rest the camera on walls and posts for slower exposures without scratching it; I have a little tripod too, but the bean bag is easier to use, in town.

[William Michael]

I re-read my first response: I think it could be misinterpreted.

I understood your phrase "i still fairly new" to mean that you were a 'beginner at photography'. 

For clarity I encourage you buying new gear if it will result in better experiences and better photos.

My initial response was to identify exactly what was problem and then if possible remedy the problem with education rather than spending money unnecessarily.  

WW

[Gary Naka]

At NIGHT, in LOW light, FAST glass wins.
Your kit lenses are simply not FAST enough for night time LOW light photography.

In LOW light, your camera also has to have better LOW light performance.
Your D5000 has a max base ISO of only 3200.  The latest D5600 will go up to 25600.  The D5600 has 3-stops better low light performance than your D5000.

You can improve your results least expensively by getting a FAST prime, a 35/1.8 or 50/1.8.
Next would be to upgrade your camera with a camera with a max ISO of at least 25600.  Maybe a used D5600.

As has been mentioned, you need to learn how to shoot in LOW light.  It is NOT easy.
And there will be a point where the light is SO LOW that you CANNOT shoot, without a flash.

Gud Luk

[za33photo]

A new camera is unlikely to help , save your money and learn to shoot in low light as mentioned by others (not so easy).

Your existing equipment is plenty good enough , just don't expect to capture moving subjects with any reliability.

 

 

[SCL]

A faster prime lens, a good tripod, and learning how to use your camera will result in much better low light shots. FWIW my Nikon DSLR is quite old (around 2005 or so) but I can get good evening and night shots because I took the time to learn about the camera and its characteristics and capabilities and got good prime lenses for those special occasions. Even with relatively slow zooms, though, I still got good late evening and night shots while traveling in Europe shortly after getting the camera. My best advice is education and practice and especially RTFM again and again!

[glen_h]

It does seem that most of the EXIF details are not in the posted image.  Night photography is a challenge with film or digital. Most digital cameras are more sensitive than the usual film, and so usually easier.  Without EXIF, it is hard to say, though.  You need the highest ISO the camera allows. (Or in film days, the highest ISO film you can find, or at least have nearby.)  You need full aperture, and then shutter speed set based on meter, or other metering system.  (That includes what worked last time.)

And then you need to keep the camera still.  A tripod is nice, but often not available.  Another solid object often works.  I have used fence rails, walls, or other object to lean the camera, or sometimes just me, against.  If none of those, then stay as still as possible, hold your breath, and slowly press the shutter release.

As noted, cameras with higher ISO values, large aperture lenses, and VR, help a lot.  But at some point, it will get even darker.

 

This one, while reduced in resolution still has the EXIF data. 

 

You can see that it is taken on a D200 with ISO 3200, 8 seconds at f/3.5 and 18mm focal length.

You can also see that the lens is a Tamron 18-270 zoom, with f/3.5 the maximum at 18mm.

It was taken at 21:54:43 on Sept 1, 2020. 

That turns out to be minutes before the full moon at 22:22.

https://www.moongiant.com/moonphases/september/2020/

(I didn't know I was that close!)

As I didn't have a tripod, I put the camera on a fence rail, and then held it as tightly to the rail as I could.

(Though not so tight as to get other motion from my hand.)

I might have used the self timer, so I could hold the camera with both hands.

There are stars visible in the sky.

 

In any case, the most important part of low-light photography is keeping the camera still.

(Second most important is keeping the subject still, when you can.)

 

 

[glen_h]

 

Taken about the same time, on TMax3200 film in a camera with slowest shutter speed of 1.

I didn't bring a cable release, which helps for long exposures, so used 1s, and full aperture.

Well, the actual reason for this was to test the push of TMax3200 to (so they say) 25600.

 

It is again lit by the full moon, with a smaller aperture than I would have liked.

Again held on a fence rail to keep still. 

And stars are visible, though harder to see through the grain.