Question about long exposure and filters

[shutterwideshut]

Try applying the 6400 rule. That means 1s at ISO 6400 = 1 min at ISO 100. Nice first attempt on long exposure. Here's one ultra long daytime exposure I'm sharing with you. Cheers!

Déjà vu
Canon EOS 5D Mark III ı Canon EF17-40mm f/4L USM ı Hoya R72 IR Filter ı 17mm ı 239s ı f/8 ı ISO 100

Déjà vu by shutterwideshut on Flickr

 

[Hobby Shooter]

Hey, thanks for the words. It's a start, I know they are sub par, but as I've said, it's a starting point and I know I have a lot of work to do.

Thanks for the tip about the 6400 rule, I will read up on more about how to calculate exposures and try to settle for a few basic pointers that I can keep in my head while doing it, which eventually becomes instinct as one gets more experienced.

It's a great pic you posted there, perfect sharpness and the sky is very nice.

I found it very difficult to focus manually, I can't see well enough to nail the focus, I will need to work around that somehow.

Please see another one of the pics from yesterday, it is taken into the setting sun just after it has settled below the buildings. To the left is the famous Independence Monument of Phnom Penh and in the centre is the PM's mansion.

My pictures have very little artistic value at this point, they are work in progress and I feel motivated to learn more. Hopefully I'll be able to post some good stuff here eventually

thanks
J

 

[Rienzphotoz]

I finally made the decision to go in for the LEE filter system and things are way much better.

I know you were the only person who got the LEE big stopper from B&H recently, so stop making the rest of us jealous ;D

 

[J.R.]

I finally made the decision to go in for the LEE filter system and things are way much better.

I know you were the only person who got the LEE big stopper from B&H recently, so stop making the rest of us jealous ;D

Ha ha ... but I must correct you, I was one of the two CR members who got the Big Stopper. There was another CR member who saw my post the other day!

 

[paul13walnut5]

This sounds like a job for 'the photographers ephemeris'

What you need to do is use the above app to show you when the 'magic hour' is, and where you need to set up to be facing towards the trajectory of the sun just after it has set.

Filters will give you more exposure options in terms of duration, but unless you use an ND grad they won't help with bringing the sky and foreground within contrast range do you have detail in both.

For this kind of shot a good guide is to use 'lighting up time' i.e when the streetlights come on. This is usually dusk, so buildings will be illuminated and car lamps on.

Then its a waiting game. You don't need 30s for the efffect you seek. 10 would be ample, even 5s with a bust road in the foreground. Although using a cpl will give you say a 10s exposure where the camera is metering 3s.

You'e over filtered or left it too late and so lost the detail in the sky.

Google 'tpe' its free for your desktop and available at a very modest cost for smartphones and its the landscapers best friend.

Good luck!

 

[Hobby Shooter]

This sounds like a job for 'the photographers ephemeris'

What you need to do is use the above app to show you when the 'magic hour' is, and where you need to set up to be facing towards the trajectory of the sun just after it has set.

Filters will give you more exposure options in terms of duration, but unless you use an ND grad they won't help with bringing the sky and foreground within contrast range do you have detail in both.

For this kind of shot a good guide is to use 'lighting up time' i.e when the streetlights come on. This is usually dusk, so buildings will be illuminated and car lamps on.

Then its a waiting game. You don't need 30s for the efffect you seek. 10 would be ample, even 5s with a bust road in the foreground. Although using a cpl will give you say a 10s exposure where the camera is metering 3s.

You'e over filtered or left it too late and so lost the detail in the sky.

Google 'tpe' its free for your desktop and available at a very modest cost for smartphones and its the landscapers best friend.

Good luck!

Paul, thanks for the input. I checked the app out and will download it and try it out. As I'm moving back to Europe in a few weeks I will wait with getting the paid for smart phone app until I get settled there. It's for responses like this and from the other guys that I posted here and dared to expose myself.

Yes, I thought of the graduated filter also as the foreground was so dark and the sky much lighter. I was definitely over filtered a little later in the session, but we had a couple of beers and kept chatting so we lost track of time and things to do (clearly I'm not a pro but doing it for fun). I took the CPL off, but should have probably also taken the grey filter off also. It's a learning process and I will keep trying. I lack a lot of fundamental knowledge of photography as it's a hobby I have taken up only the last few years so I am still adding that.

On the other hand, there are a couple of areas I feel quite comfortable with that I have done more of. Now I am trying to learn a new technique to have some fun with.

Big thanks for your advise!

cheers
J

 

[shutterwideshut]

Hey, thanks for the words. It's a start, I know they are sub par, but as I've said, it's a starting point and I know I have a lot of work to do.

All of us start from scratch and I, myself, is also an amateur just like you. Photography is just my hobby and passion although I occasionally get some proceeds from Getty Images. We learn each day and practice is our friend.

Thanks for the tip about the 6400 rule, I will read up on more about how to calculate exposures and try to settle for a few basic pointers that I can keep in my head while doing it, which eventually becomes instinct as one gets more experienced.

The 6400 rule is very easy. It is simply 1s@ISO 6400=2s@ISO 3200=4s@ISO1600=8s@ISO 800=16s@ISO 400 and so on. If you have basic understanding with exposure, it is easy to grasp actually. This method helps you figure out exposure especially if you are struggling on which shutter speed to use.

I found it very difficult to focus manually, I can't see well enough to nail the focus, I will need to work around that somehow.

Focus manually in liveview and zoom in for more precision. You should meter on the foreground, about 1/3 of the frame.

Please see another one of the pics from yesterday, it is taken into the setting sun just after it has settled below the buildings. To the left is the famous Independence Monument of Phnom Penh and in the centre is the PM's mansion.

My pictures have very little artistic value at this point, they are work in progress and I feel motivated to learn more. Hopefully I'll be able to post some good stuff here eventually

thanks
J

The sky in the your image is amazing and so are the light trails. But the foreground is underexposed. You can overcome this by using an ND grad filter(as what have Paul mentioned already earlier) or by exposure bracketing then merging it later in the post via HDR or you should have waited a little bit later for the twilight wherein the light in the sky and foreground is about the same. Well, it's also about planning and scouting the location before shooting. The Photographer's Ephemeris is one good app for planning and figuring out the sun's position/golden hour/blue hour timings. Other options would be the Helios and LighTrac. Here are some of my examples using the ND grad filter method to enhance the cloud movement at twilight and HDR technique at times when I decide not to use any filter:

20.12.2012
Canon EOS 5D Mark III ı Canon EF17-40mm f/4L USM ı Lee 0.3 Soft ND Grad Filter ı 17mm ı 30s ı f/14 ı ISO 100

20.12.2012 by shutterwideshut on Flickr

Memories of Kuala Lumpur
Canon EOS 7D ı Canon EFS10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM ı Three exposures at 10mm, f/14 & ISO 100

Memories of Kuala Lumpur by shutterwideshut on Flickr

 

[Mick]

A daylight shot with Lees big stopper.

 

[DIABLO]

Looking to do more landscape photography. Shooting with a 60d at the moment and looking to buy a 17-40 in a few days. Will be moving to full frame soon so the EFS 10-17 is out for me.

As far as filters go I'm looking at Singh Ray and Lee. The warming filter and ND reverse filter for starters.

The 17-40 is 77mm thread, so do I need to get the regular screw in filter and screw in adaptor ring to stack filters that way? Or will this cause vignetting?

 

[Hobby Shooter]

Looking to do more landscape photography. Shooting with a 60d at the moment and looking to buy a 17-40 in a few days. Will be moving to full frame soon so the EFS 10-17 is out for me.

As far as filters go I'm looking at Singh Ray and Lee. The warming filter and ND reverse filter for starters.

The 17-40 is 77mm thread, so do I need to get the regular screw in filter and screw in adaptor ring to stack filters that way? Or will this cause vignetting?

The filters I got, I can just stack them on each other, no adaptor rings or similar. Vignetting, yes in the wide end. I had some serious vignetting at 24 on my 24-105. I had only two filters stacked.

thanks
J

 

[shutterwideshut]

As far as filters go I'm looking at Singh Ray and Lee. The warming filter and ND reverse filter for starters.

If you are looking into stacking filters then the good combo to consider for a start would be: Cokin Z-Pro Holder + Singh Ray LB Warming Polarizer(Z sprocket mount) + 0.9 Singh Ray Reverse ND Grad Filter. For the record, Lee doesn't produce any Reverse ND Grad.

And yes, there will be vignetting at focal lengths wider than 24mm on FF.

Watch this comparison by Landscape Photographer Darwin Wigett to know the reason why you should consider the Cokin Z-Pro Holder instead of the Lee Filter: http://darwinwiggett.wordpress.com/2011/06/28/lee-holder-vs-cokin-z-pro-holder/

 

[DIABLO]

Looking to do more landscape photography. Shooting with a 60d at the moment and looking to buy a 17-40 in a few days. Will be moving to full frame soon so the EFS 10-17 is out for me.

As far as filters go I'm looking at Singh Ray and Lee. The warming filter and ND reverse filter for starters.

The 17-40 is 77mm thread, so do I need to get the regular screw in filter and screw in adaptor ring to stack filters that way? Or will this cause vignetting?

The filters I got, I can just stack them on each other, no adaptor rings or similar. Vignetting, yes in the wide end. I had some serious vignetting at 24 on my 24-105. I had only two filters stacked.

thanks
J

At what mm do vignetting start? And what filters are you using.

 

[DIABLO]

As far as filters go I'm looking at Singh Ray and Lee. The warming filter and ND reverse filter for starters.

If you are looking into stacking filters then the good combo to consider for a start would be: Cokin Z-Pro Holder + Singh Ray LB Warming Polarizer(Z sprocket mount) + 0.9 Singh Ray Reverse ND Grad Filter. For the record, Lee doesn't produce any Reverse ND Grad.

And yes, there will be vignetting at focal lengths wider than 24mm on FF.

Watch this comparison by Landscape Photographer Darwin Wigett to know the reason why you should consider the Cokin Z-Pro Holder instead of the Lee Filter: http://darwinwiggett.wordpress.com/2011/06/28/lee-holder-vs-cokin-z-pro-holder/

I've read on another forum that the 77mm thin mount warming filter doesn't cause vignetting? But it doesn't have front threads though. And will probably cause uneven polarization as will.

 

[shutterwideshut]

Looking to do more landscape photography. Shooting with a 60d at the moment and looking to buy a 17-40 in a few days. Will be moving to full frame soon so the EFS 10-17 is out for me.

As far as filters go I'm looking at Singh Ray and Lee. The warming filter and ND reverse filter for starters.

The 17-40 is 77mm thread, so do I need to get the regular screw in filter and screw in adaptor ring to stack filters that way? Or will this cause vignetting?

The filters I got, I can just stack them on each other, no adaptor rings or similar. Vignetting, yes in the wide end. I had some serious vignetting at 24 on my 24-105. I had only two filters stacked.

thanks
J

At what mm do vignetting start? And what filters are you using.

I use both the Lee Filter and SIngh Ray Filter System. At focal lengths wider than 24mm on FF, vignetting will start but this can be corrected easily on PP. Here are some of my filter combinations for shooting long exposure:

Sundown at Lingayen Gulf
Canon EOS 5D Mark III ı Canon EF24-70mm f/2.8L II USM ı Singh Ray 0.9 Reverse ND Grad Filter ı Singh Ray LB Warming Polarizer ı 24mm ı 13s ı f/16 ı ISO 100

Sundown at Lingayen Gulf by shutterwideshut on Flickr


Symmetry
Canon EOS 5D Mark III ı Canon TS-E24mm f/3.5L II ı Lee Big Stopper ı Lee 0.9 Soft ND Grad Filter ı Singh Ray LB Warming Polarizer ı 24mm ı 170s ı f/8 ı ISO 100

Symmetry by [shutterwideshut] on Flickr

At 10mm on a cropped sensor camera, vignetting is obvious but I don't mind though:
Another day ends
Canon EOS 7D ı Canon EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM ı Lee 0.9 Soft ND Grad Filter ı Lee Big Stopper ı 10mm ı 79s ı f/8 ı ISO 200

Another day ends by [shutterwideshut] on Flickr

 

[bycostello]

love my 10 stop filter