The Most Important Photo Equipment In Photography

 

Equipment:

As in all subject areas of photography, you also need the right photo equipment for night photography. It goes without saying that you need a camera and a lens for this. Nevertheless, we would like to tell you the most important things that your photo equipment should definitely support and that you should have with you on your photo tours.

Then there are accessories that you don't necessarily need. But when you have it, it makes your work a lot easier. Make sure, however, that you don't carry too many "frills" around with you.

The camera:

The most important device in photography is definitely the camera. In this guide we will only cover the digital cameras. However, the basic rules and settings are mostly identical to those of analog cameras. The choice of camera is often determined by the budget available. As a rule, night shots are possible with almost any good camera. Only because of the image quality are cheaper cameras more likely to fail than more expensive ones.

So if you have a small compact camera, it's still worth reading on. But expect that the quality of the photos in low light is usually worse with cheap cameras than with more expensive models. Most cameras take very good pictures during the day. The wheat is only separated from the chaff when there is little light.

It should be noted that the camera not only has automatic programs, but also enables manual setting of ISO value, aperture and exposure. However, you will get the best results with a (digital) reflex camera or the new system cameras . Both cameras make it possible to change the right lenses for every topic. This allows you to react quickly to very specific circumstances with the right lens. We suspect that the system cameras will sooner or later replace the single-lens reflex cameras.

To help you find the right camera, here are some digital camera reviews . Each camera has different image qualities, depending on the model. But even without a DSLR, you don't have to give up right away. A standard digital camera can also provide good results at night. However, these devices quickly reach their technical limits, especially in difficult lighting conditions. This is particularly noticeable in the image quality.

If you are not sure whether your camera allows manual settings, it is advisable to take a look at the operating instructions. Or you ask the other readers in the comments and we will be happy to help.

It is best to use a digital single lens reflex camera (DSLR) or a system camera. These cameras allow you to manually choose all of the settings as needed. You can also swap the lenses. This gives you more flexibility and allows you to use the right lens for your photos.

The Lens:

If you have a DSLR or system camera, you have the option of changing the lens of your camera as required. There are no special lenses that you absolutely need for night photography. As a rule, you can also take photos at night with any lens. But it would make sense if your lens is fast. This means that it allows the aperture to be opened as wide as possible. Unfortunately, this also increases the price of the lens.

The light intensity of a lens depends on the focal length and the maximum aperture. The amount of light that the lens can absorb is regulated by the aperture. A bright lens therefore has a wide open aperture. The aperture controls the amount of light that enters the lens. One can compare the diaphragm with the pupil of the human eye. The incidence of light on the sensor can be regulated by closing or opening the aperture. You will learn more about this later.

The value on the lens, which is indicated by the letter f, indicates the maximum aperture. The lower this value, the brighter your lens is. Usually there is a value of, for example, f4.0 or f5.6. Very fast lenses have indications like f2.8 or f1.4 there. If there are two aperture values ​​on your lens, then it may be a zoom lens. The first aperture value indicates the aperture at a short focal length, the second value indicates the maximum aperture at maximum zoom.

Our brightest lens is the Sigma 24 mm f1.4 DG HSM . For example, it allows an aperture of f1.4, which is a very good value. With this lens, for example, we have to expose much shorter than with a weaker lens whose aperture can be opened less widely.

For example, if you want to photograph a beautiful landscape in the dead of night, where you can see thousands of stars twinkling in the sky, then it makes sense to use a particularly fast lens. Because an aperture of f1.4 or f2.8 allows you to capture a lot more light with relatively short exposure times.

With an urban night shot, however, it is no longer so important how fast your lens is. Because cities are usually still very brightly lit at night.

A fast lens is definitely a good choice. Therefore, make sure that your lens can open the aperture wide. Good lenses create open apertures of f1.4 or f2.8. Most lenses start at an aperture of f4.0 or f5.6.

Tip: If your lens has an image stabilizer, we recommend deactivating it as soon as you use a tripod. Our experience has shown that some image stabilizers, even though the camera is completely still, always try to compensate for something. The result is a completely blurred image. To avoid this problem from the start, it is best to disable the image stabilizer when using a tripod.

The tripod:

When shooting at night, there are often, if not always, longer exposures. In this case it is extremely important that the camera is still and not moving. The smallest movement causes blurring and the picture looks blurred in the end. This camera shake is immediately visible on the light sources in the picture.

In this case, the camera is attached to a tripod , which ensures that it stands still. Which tripod you use is up to you. However, you should pay attention to good stability, robustness and rigidity, because cheap tripods can sometimes not be completely fixed. It can then happen that your camera is on shaky legs despite the tripod.

Most tripods these days offer a variety of different functions. For example, you can fold out the center column on many models. A useful spirit level for aligning the tripod is already standard with many suppliers.

If it is not absolutely necessary, let the center column of the tripod retract and extend the legs and the center column only as far as necessary, because the longer the entire structure becomes more unstable. It often happens that extending the center column causes slight movements in the wind. These only slight movements are enough to make the image appear out of focus. First and foremost, the right perspective counts. So don't compromise on the subject because you don't want to extend your tripod any further. Do not extend your legs unnecessarily, this will ensure the best possible stability.

When setting up your tripod, make sure that the tripod legs do not touch any surrounding railings. If you or people standing next to you support yourself on the railing during the exposure, vibrations can occur which are transmitted to the tripod legs.

We use a robust Manfrotto 055XPROB tripod on our photo tours  . It's quite heavy, but it also stands firmly and securely on the ground.

The tripod head:

We also recommend using a ball head   or gear head that is attached to the tripod. With this you can move the camera quickly and safely into any position and align it exactly. Such a tripod head is a bit more expensive. If you don't want to spend this money, a normal tripod is sufficient, which for the most part also enables the camera to be precisely aligned using a simple 3-way head. But this is often a bit more tedious than with a ball head.

The so-called 3D pan heads or gear headers offer several advantages. They allow each individual image axis to be set separately by turning the set screws provided for this purpose, while the other two axes remain fixed. Such tripod heads are also often used by filmmakers, as this technology enables gentle swiveling movements to be implemented. The advantage of such a gear head is that the camera is almost always firmly fixed and can be moved by turning the adjusting screws. A separate detection is therefore no longer necessary.

A tripod is mandatory! Because in night photography there are often longer exposure times. We recommend a tripod head so that you can align the camera well on the tripod. This can be a gear head or a ball head.