Bala Night Lights

This was a bit of an experiment with night photography, it didn't turn out

quite as well I planned, I think mostly because of light pollution, but I

had a mess around with it in photo shop, and errm well what do you

think ?? Your comments and opinions are always appreciated, Thank

you

Well, I think it turned out pretty cool actually. The light pollution certainly did it's own thing. Just depends on what you were hoping for I guess. This is very surrealistic, as opposed to being realistic. I can see realistic anytime I want, but I'd only see this through the camera, and that makes this more unique. That's my .25 anyway.

All the best,

Neil

Thank you Neil !,

 

I think I expected too much for a first attempt at something like this, and your comments certainly puts things in perspective, much appreciated!

 

Kind Regards

 

Alf

 

I totally agree with Neil's comment and as a surrealistic image it is quite attractive. I particularly like the blue stars in the sky. Now what follows is a personal taste and there is no right or wrong: the branch type clouds are slightly distracting for me - the absence of which would augment my appreciation for the image. Trying to make my comment as constructive as possible. best regards,

This was a real first for me and, after being dissapointed at the initial results I found that by adjusting the levels in photoshop, I could produce a half decent looking image, I then discovered that by erasing some of the darkened sky I could produce the branch like streaks you were referring to, I must admit that I got a bit carried away and one of my biggest faults is, I just don't know when to stop!

Thank you sincerely for your imput Tony I really do appreciate it!

 

Kind Regards

 

Alf

Interesting picture and idea , colors too . Dan

Thanks for taking a look and leaving a comment Dan, much appreciated

 

Regards

 

Alf

Attractive image, I like it.

Thanks for taking the time to stop bye and comment Jorge, much appreciated

 

Kind Regards

 

Alf

I really like this one also Alf.......kinda of surrealistic....interplanetary....the sky seems to draw one in....like something out of a 'Sci Fi Flick' nice work! Very cool! sincerely, gail

Always good to hear from you, your response to Ray under your image ENLIGHTENMENT had me almost standing on my chair wooping, and shouting at the top of my voice "GO GIRL GO! I think you answered in a well considered and mature way. and I take my hat off to you.

 

I'm really glad you like this, it's bit of a Sci Fi experiment this one Gail "Going where no man has gone before" ......well ok maybe a few have...but hey! a bit of fantasy in a world of stark reality can sometimes help!

 

Thank You Sincerely Gail

 

Warm Regards

 

Alf

Welsh lights

i think this is very good aesthetics and is composed really well. Was it guess work on the concentration of stars. Not sure what you mean about erasing to get the streaks. have you allowed the background to show through. what is it like as a straight shot with just the levels squeezed.

I really like the concept. it has potential for some fabulous shots in the right countryside for me in the moors round Rochdale.

cheers

N

What I did here was wacked up the ISO on the camera to a very high setting (3200 on the D90) I set the camera to manual focus and set focus to infinity, I then used a cable release and timed the different shots 20 seconds then 30, then 40 etc. to see what worked best ( I think this was about 32 seconds).

In photoshop I created a new layer, then on the levels adjustment made the image darker. I then used the eraser set at about 80% opacity to allow the background to show through the streaks in the eraser marks.

I think you would have a great chance of a nice photo up on the moors Norman, in fact you might also consider one of the wind farms at night, i think one of the turbines would look really dramatic, I tried one of these recently and the results were quite good.

Thanks for the visit Norman, hope this was of some help

 

Regards

 

Alf

An excellent experiment gone right.  I like it. Blue stars, strange clouds and cool reflections.

Yeah it's all a bit mad, but I suppose one has to push the boundaries sometimes and see what happens, Glad you liked it Vicki and sincere thanks for your visit.

Regards

Alf

This is so interesting.  I just rated it 7 and 7 not only for the work, but for the lesson on how you did this in one of your responses.  The learning was woth the 7's.  Thanks.

Many thanks for your visit, and ratings. It wasn't very long ago that I needed a lot of help and guidance in the what seemed like, insanely complicated world of photography, and yes quite often I still do, learning is a never ending process, but I'm very pleased to be able to repay my debts by helping others when I can.

Thanks again Dana

Alf

Alf,

  I don't no I over looked this one.  It is a wonderful creative image. Great work.  Take care, Patsy

Many thanks for your interest and kind words. I keep meaning to get out and do some more similar to this, but so far this year I have been unlucky with the weather and every time I've attempted it, there has been cloud. But theres always next time!

Cheers Patsy!

Regards

Alf

Gods bust have been with you that night since you created pure magic. Beautiful!

Hello Alf,

I just came across this one whilst browsing around your page.  I do like it alot.  I was wondering what ISO you used.  I was recently sent a night photo from a friend of a friend which was using ISO of 51,200.  This was incredible to me.   He was using a Nikon D3s and told me it goes up to 102k.

Were you ever able to do this with the D90 ?  If so, what shutter speed and ISO ?

Thanks...

Jerry

ANDREW

Sincere Thanks for your very generous comments and feedback, very much appreciated!

Kind Regards

Alf

JERRY

Glad you like it Jerry. This was an experiment based upon information recieved from Mark Adamus as he described how he went about photographing a certain waterfall at night. The results were mind blowing! Mine didn't turn out anything like Marks but it did turn out interesting all the same. If I can find the image I will send you a link. However as I remember the settings for the D90 were  ISO 3200 and 33.10 seconds at F4. If you do decide to try this, find somewhere without any light pollution if at all possible. The lights you can see to the right of the image are cars that drove past while I was shooting. It is an experiment that I am keen to try again, but to be honest I just haven't had a chance this year, and when I have had time it's been cloudy or raining. A clear night, with no light pollution, and don't forget a torch and a spare battery for your camera if you are planning a long  session. I Hope this info will prove helpful.

Cheers Jerry

Alf

Hello Alf.

Beautitul image and very well done. I have never seen anything quite like this. Very striking image. Wish I was able to see it larger. And yes I agree, night photos can be difficult. I recently made my first attempt at star trails. I was out for 3 hrs, shot about 120, 30 second exposure's at my max 1600 iso. Finally I went inside only to find that the lens had been fogged for who knows how long. Better luck next time. Thank you for your recent comment and rating on my photo and I will be back to see more later. FS

Many thanks for stopping by, I really appreciate your thoughts and comments. This was one of my first attempts at night photography, and I cranked the ISO right up to about 3200 if I remember rightly and gave it about 30 seconds. For actual star trails I use a cable release and open the shutter manually for anything up to 20 mins. I think the most difficult part of this operation in the UK is finding a clear sky with no light pollution. I can empathise with your experience regarding the lens fogging up, I can't count the amount of times I've been taking seascapes and got a fine mist of sea spray on the lens which has totally ruined every image taken thereafter. The key is to get into "good habits" and one of them I have developed through the aforementioned disasters, is simply wiping the lens at almost every shot.

Cheers Frank!

Alf