If you are planning on doing some night photography I have a few planning tips you will need to keep in mind prior to taking your evening shots:
First, you need a good viewpoint;
The second thing you will need is either a tripod or a solid base to place your camera on. Your viewpoint will depend a bit on what kind of shot you are after. I usually try to aim for somewhere that is above the ground (a set of steps, for example), but not always. There are many times that the best photos are taken at ground level.
You need a tripod or solid base because your camera's shutter will be open for several seconds, and you need to make sure the camera doesn't move during those seconds.
Then, if you have a tripod, secure your camera upon it. If you don't, find a solid surface to rest your camera on; propping it up with something like a bag or jumper.
Once you have figured out how to secure your camera you want to set the shutter speed for a few seconds. I recommend starting with about 15 seconds.
If you can't control your camera's shutter speed, set it to "night" mode.
Once you have everything arranged (camera on a solid surface and self timer primed) you are ready to take your pictures.
First, check your scene. Is everything in it that you wanted to be in it? If you are aiming to get streaking car headlights, is there any traffic around?
Once you are happy with things, press the shutter button.
Your self timer will count down. Special Note! - If you are waiting for something to appear in your scene, you will need to remember that your shutter speed will have to count down first - time for this.
When the shutter clicks it is actually opening up so you will need to wait. And wait, and wait . . . until it closes again. Remember that this could take a few seconds.
Then wait some more. Because of the long exposure digital cameras take longer than usual to process the photo, so your preview on your camera's LCD screen may take a while to show up.
This is just my opinion, but here are a couple of things that I think make a good night photography shot:
Neon lights Streaks of car headlights and tail lights Available light For all of these you do need to plan a bit in advance. You want to find an area where you can safely photograph neon lights.
Again, you will want to find your solid spot, or put your camera onto a tripod, and then take a few shots. Since neon lights flash you will want to keep the shutter open for a while in order to catch all the flashes.
And for photographing streaks of car headlights and tail lights - find a spot with a lot of traffic, but again, be safe in your choice of locations.
One thing to try is to use something in the background as well; usually streaks of light photographed on their own can be a bit boring!
Then take your shot.
Please know that the longer your shutter is open, the more streaks you will capture. And of course, the more traffic there is, the more streaks will appear too!
The available light also has a part to play in making a good night photography shot.
You will find that there are times when a scene looks its best when you set it amongst inky-black skies. By playing around you will also find that there are times when a little light works best, so photos just prior to dark really sets in are worth a try too.
The best bit of advice is to try both and see which captures the effect you are after best.
You also will want to play around with your shutter speed since there are times you will find that a 10 second exposure gets the look you are after. Sometimes you may need up to a minute.
If you practice you will soon get a feel for what you will need for any given situation.
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