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Photography.94
Night Shots	Topic Home Topics Forum Home Forums Home Search Settings Help Exit

{Photography.94.1}: Coyote {coyote} Thu, 10 Aug 2006 01:54:54 CDT (2 lines)

I thought for sure we had a topic for night photography, but a search
proved me wrong. And, thus, a new topic is born...

{Photography.94.2}: Coyote {coyote} Thu, 10 Aug 2006 01:56:02 CDT (HTML)

Attachment: NowServingMargaritas2.jpg (81K)

{Photography.94.3}: David Burke {tualatin} Thu, 10 Aug 2006 14:25:08 CDT (3 lines)

Oh yeah. Nice impressionistic shot. Delicioso color. Looks like ya
maybe had a few too many a them Margaritas too. The two dogs and
their masters really complement the composition.

{Photography.94.4}: David Burke {tualatin} Thu, 10 Aug 2006 14:41:14 CDT (HTML)

Attachment: NightNieuws.jpg (60K)

{Photography.94.5}: Coyote {coyote} Thu, 10 Aug 2006 15:01:09 CDT (7 lines)

I took the margarita shot with my little point and shoot, without
resting it on anything, although if I'd had the time to look around
without missing that shot, I would have used a lamp pole or perhaps
someone's car to steady the camera. I thought I had the ISO set at 400
(the highest it goes), but the exif info says 200. Rats! 400 would
have frozen the action a bit more, but not entirely, because at 200,
the shutter speed was 1/8 of a second.

{Photography.94.6}: Carol R Strand {crs1} Thu, 10 Aug 2006 18:33:30 CDT (1 line)

This is an almost-night shot -- hand held like all my pics

{Photography.94.7}: Tom Dornhofer {tugboat} Thu, 10 Aug 2006 19:27:24 CDT (0 lines)

{Photography.94.8}: David Burke {tualatin} Fri, 11 Aug 2006 00:48:43 CDT (2 lines)

Can hear the owl hooting in Carol's pic and fire spewing from the
burner in Tom's.

{Photography.94.9}: Rich Mason {richpix} Fri, 11 Aug 2006 18:42:12 CDT (HTML)

{Photography.94.10}: David Burke {tualatin} Sat, 12 Aug 2006 03:26:08 CDT (2 lines)

Love it. So American, right down to the reflected parking lot and
apparent neon beer sign in the aluminum-framed windows.

{Photography.94.11}: Jenny Reiswig {jreiswig} Sat, 12 Aug 2006 13:42:10 CDT (4 lines)

Rich, your whole series is really really interesting.  I love the
otherworldliness of the skies - how do you manage to get the exposures
long enough to brighten up the skies without completely blowing out
the highlights in the pictures?

{Photography.94.12}: Martin Booda {booda} Sat, 12 Aug 2006 14:49:03 CDT (1 line)

Tom, where was that balloon tether?

{Photography.94.13}: Beth {beth} Sat, 12 Aug 2006 17:02:37 CDT (1 line)

From our trip to upstate New York last summer.

{Photography.94.14}: Rich Mason {richpix} Sat, 12 Aug 2006 18:01:12 CDT (40 lines)

David, thanks.  It looks traditionally American, yet it's now
surrounded by Korean-owned businesses.  I'm not sure who owns Heidi's
now, but the place next door is Korean-owned.  The neon reflecting in
the windows is on another business which used to be Dawson's Sporting
Goods--today I can't read the business name.  Adjacent to the former
Dawson's used to be a small deli which only served lunch.  Below the
deli was a shooting range which made sitting at one of the lunch
tables quite an experience when the range was active--both businesses
are gone, replaced by (?).

In the same neighborhood Sam's Pizza and Sal's Shoe Repair have been
replaced by Korean-owned businesses.  The Ace Hardware store is
completely gone, replaced by a small strip mall where I can read none
of the business names because I don't know Korean.  Most of the
businesses don't bother with the pretense of putting up an English
name and a Korean subtitle--it's either Korean with an English
subtitle or no English at all.

Jenny, they are definitely suburban skies.  The exposures generally
range from 30 seconds to 2 minutes and the skies are lit by the
ambient light being thrown up by various street lights and lit
shopping centers.  Basically it's light pollution.  Since moving my
attention to commercial areas I'm finding it much more difficult to
get the sky effects.  Things are generally too brightly lit in the
foreground to allow for the longer exposures.  I lucked out with
Heidi's because it was a bit foggy and there was a sodium vapor light
pointing the right way in the background.

I'll get different effects in the sky depending on the type of lights
bouncing off the sky, the amount of humidity, how far away the
background lights are, how brightly lit the foreground is, how cloudy
it is and how low the clouds are.

The funny thing is that all these lights are supposedly on for
security purposes but I've walked all around and between buildings
blazing with light and nobody has paid me any attention.  As far as
I'm concerned all the lighting is just a waste of energy and a source
of light pollution which does nothing but make the life of potential
thieves and burgulars easier.  Not to mention that it makes my life as
a photographer more difficult. ;-)

{Photography.94.15}: Rich Mason {richpix} Sat, 12 Aug 2006 18:03:04 CDT (2 lines)

Oh, and the last few nights I've also had to deal with a full or
near- full moon, which doesn't help with the sky effects...

{Photography.94.16}: Tom Dornhofer {tugboat} Sat, 12 Aug 2006 23:27:03 CDT (3 lines)

Rich - I was going to say "Twilight Zone" - very surreal. Martin -
the event was "Sky-Jam" in Jamestown NY. Here's one from the Gerry
rodeo a few nights ago.

{Photography.94.17}: David Burke {tualatin} Sun, 13 Aug 2006 02:57:10 CDT (15 lines)

>>Since moving my attention to commercial areas I'm finding it much
more difficult to get the sky effects.

The flatter more "difficult to get sky effects" in commercial areas
is a statement on excess commercialism itself. The sinister Lynchian
quality of the light fits so well. Am curious, is wasting energy by
such benign night lighting becoming an issue in USA? I remember when
sodium vapor lighting was introduced, in the more conservation-minded
1970s, because of its lower energy use. Far redder than the old blue-
green cast of metal hallide lights. Would imagine new less-energy
intensive illumination technology is emerging (as well as nuclear
power possibly making a comeback).

You ever accidentally set off an alarm at one of the joints you've
photographed?

{Photography.94.18}: T.J. McGovern {tj2} Sun, 13 Aug 2006 10:07:36 CDT (4 lines)

I remember in the '70s when they turned off a lot of freeway lights to
save energy. Stores even turned off their automatic doors. Seems kind
of funny today, now that gas is four times as costly as then, and
there are moee lights and gizmos than ever.

{Photography.94.19}: Jonathan {jonathan68} Wed, 16 Aug 2006 10:11:29 CDT (10 lines)

Am returning to the Cafe after a long absence.

With so many beautifully and skilfully composed photos to enjoy, I'm
surprised I manage to stay away so long. I've also appreciated all the
knowledgable folk prepared to be generous with their advice who help
make this the best place I know for learning.

I was pleasantly surprised by how well this scene was illuminated. I
have the street lighting to thank for that - though I've never cared
for that sodium glare.

{Photography.94.20}: Buffy {tajour} Wed, 16 Aug 2006 12:26:04 CDT (1 line)

The moonlight is beautiful!

{Photography.94.21}: Donald Dozier {donaldpd} Wed, 16 Aug 2006 13:05:24 CDT (HTML)

{Photography.94.22}: Carol R Strand {crs1} Wed, 16 Aug 2006 18:14:58 CDT (1 line)

Jonathan -- fabulous!

{Photography.94.23}: David Burke {tualatin} Thu, 17 Aug 2006 01:05:41 CDT (3 lines)

Both very poetic photographs. Something very English (Beatrix Potter
meets Ralph Vaughn Williams) about Jonathan's, and American on
vacation in Hawaii about Donald's.

{Photography.94.24}: Donald Dozier {donaldpd} Thu, 17 Aug 2006 10:36:32 CDT (3 lines)

Thanks, David.  Different state and ocean, but with pictures like
that you can place it almost anywhere.  That one came from my old
Minolta brick.

{Photography.94.25}: Jonathan {jonathan68} Thu, 17 Aug 2006 15:29:57 CDT (8 lines)

Taken with the help of my Canon G3's built in flash.

The only way I could satisfy myself I had the exposure about right was
by continuously varying the aperture. So this was not a quick picture,
and I had many over or under-exposed attempts at the same shot.

That trial and error process is ok for things like flowers that aren't
going anywhere. But for more transient subjects it's tricky.

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