Welcome to the Night-time Photography forum where we will cover a variety of topics related to photography during the dark hours. This can include astrophotography, light painting, and the technicalities of taking photos during these dark hours. This forum will also act to advertise upcoming photoshoots and night-time photography events, and will aim to provide advice on taking photos of the night sky in the local area.
In addition to the excellent Milky Way photography guide posted by Steve below.....
Here's a link to a very useful YouTube video by Canadian photographer Simon D'Entremont on the subject. https://youtu.be/hz0fcW7rcpg?si=wADom7fzI2ah44q9
Milky Way Photography Settings for Beginners
A Comprehensive Guide to Capturing the Night Sky
Introduction
Astrophotography, and particularly photographing the Milky Way, is a magical pursuit that allows you to capture the grandeur of the cosmos. For beginners, the process may seem daunting, but with the right information, equipment, and settings, anyone can bring home stunning images of our galaxy. This guide is designed to walk you through the essential camera settings, equipment, and techniques to start your journey into Milky Way photography.
Essential Equipment
Before delving into camera settings, it's crucial to understand what equipment you'll need to achieve the best possible results.
· Camera: A DSLR or mirrorless camera with manual controls is strongly recommended. Full-frame sensors perform best in low light, but APS-C cameras can also work well.
· Lens: A wide-angle lens (14mm to 24mm) with a large maximum aperture (f/2.8 or wider) is ideal. The wider the aperture (the lower the f-number), the more light your camera collects.
· Tripod: A sturdy tripod is essential to keep the camera stable during long exposures.
· Remote Shutter Release or Timer: This reduces vibrations caused by pressing the shutter button.
· Headlamp/Red Light: For navigating in the dark without ruining your night vision.
Planning Your Shoot
Proper planning is as important as your technical settings. Here are a few key considerations:
· Location: Find a dark sky area, far from city lights. Use light pollution maps or apps to scout suitable spots.
· Timing: The Milky Way is most visible from late spring to early autumn, around midnight. Check moon phases—new moon nights are best.
· Weather: Clear skies are essential. Clouds or haze can obscure the stars and the Milky Way core.
· Foreground: Consider including interesting foreground elements (trees, rocks, buildings) for more compelling compositions.
Recommended Camera Settings
Now, let’s explore the fundamental camera settings beginners should use when photographing the Milky Way.
1. Mode
Set your camera to Manual (M) mode. This allows you full control over exposure, aperture, and focus.
2. Image Format
Set your camera to shoot in RAW format. RAW files capture more data and allow for better adjustments during post-processing.
3. Lens Aperture
Use the widest aperture your lens allows (a low f-number, like f/2.8 or f/1.8). This maximizes the amount of light hitting your sensor.
4. Shutter Speed
Because the Earth rotates, stars appear to move across the sky, and too long an exposure will result in star trails. To find the longest usable shutter speed without star trails, use the “500 Rule”:
· 500 divided by your lens's focal length = maximum shutter speed in seconds.
· For example, with a 20mm lens: 500 ÷ 20 = 25 seconds.
· If you’re using a crop sensor (APS-C), factor in the crop multiplier (usually 1.5). For a 20mm lens on APS-C: 500 ÷ (20 x 1.5) ≈ 17 seconds.
Start with a shutter speed of 15–25 seconds, and adjust as necessary.
5. ISO Setting
ISO determines the camera sensor's sensitivity to light. For beginners:
· Start with an ISO between 1600 and 3200. This range is usually sensitive enough to capture the Milky Way and most stars.
· If your images are too dark, increase ISO; if there’s too much noise, decrease ISO or use noise reduction in post-processing.
6. Focus
Manual focus is essential, as cameras struggle to autofocus in the dark.
· Set your lens to manual focus (MF).
· Turn the focus ring to infinity (“∞”) and fine-tune by magnifying a bright star or distant light in live view mode until it appears sharp.
· Take test shots and zoom in to check focus; adjust as needed.
7. White Balance
Set white balance to “Daylight” or manually adjust to around 3800K. Avoid “Auto” white balance, which can introduce inconsistent colours.
8. Noise Reduction
Turn off in-camera “long exposure noise reduction” for now, as it doubles the time between shots. Instead, apply noise reduction in post-processing.
Step-by-Step Shooting Process
· Arrive early to set up and allow your eyes to adjust to the dark.
· Frame your shot, considering both the Milky Way and foreground interest.
· Set all your recommended settings (manual mode, RAW, wide aperture, shutter speed, ISO, focus, white balance).
· Use a remote shutter or 2-second timer to take your shot.
· Review the image for focus and exposure; adjust settings if needed.
· Take several shots, experimenting with slight changes in settings and composition.
Troubleshooting Common Problems
· Photos too dark: Increase ISO, widen aperture, or lengthen shutter speed (without creating star trails).
· Photos too bright: Lower ISO, shorten shutter speed, or narrow the aperture.
· Stars not sharp: Double-check manual focus and use live view with magnification.
· Star trails: Lower shutter speed using the 500 Rule.
· Too much noise: Lower ISO or apply noise reduction during editing.
Tips for Better Results
· Scout locations during daylight for better safety and composition planning.
· Mark your tripod position with tape or rocks if you want repeating shots.
· Bring extra batteries—long exposures drain power faster.
· Be patient and experiment with settings; conditions can change rapidly.
· Join astrophotography communities to learn and get feedback.
Post-Processing Basics
Editing is a crucial part of Milky Way photography. Even the best-exposed photos benefit from some adjustments.
· Use software like Adobe Lightroom, Photoshop, or free alternatives (GIMP, RawTherapee).
· Adjust exposure, contrast, and clarity to bring out the Milky Way.
· Use the noise reduction tool to manage graininess from high ISO shots.
· Enhance colours by carefully adjusting white balance and saturation, but avoid over-processing.
· Cropping can help correct composition or remove distracting elements.
· Improved images can be achieved by stacking images but a good image can be achieved from a single image in good conditions.
A very atmospheric shot Paul. You have captured the foggy view very well. Just a thought, if you had a bit more space around the abbey you could have used the geometry correction tools to reduce the leaning verticals effect. Just a personal thing.
I was also out in Sherborne on Wednesday night for a trip to Waitrose. I could not resist walking over to The Sherborne and snapping this shot with my phone.
A foggy night at Sherborne Abbey
Quickly popped into Sherborne last night (15th Jan 2025) hoping that the fog might provide a photographic opportunity at the Abbey.
The results are quite pleasing but proving a challenge in post processing for a relative newbie on the editing side.
Below is an image I think has a story to tell but I sincerely hope the stranger sitting alone on the bench didn't have a sad story for being there.... I didn't ask which I thought best!
I would be interested in any feedback as I am keen to improve my skills.
I, too, was out on the evening of 3 January but without the same photographic success!! For a start I had difficulty even finding the moon in my viewfinder (bit like when you use binoculars: it's sometimes hard to find the subject!). I have taken some quite good images of a full moon before, but never tried a crescent moon so this was something of a "first". I have a Canon 80d and was using my Canon 100-400 zoom lens at 400mm F/5 ISO 500 at 1/125s with a tripod. Clearly my settings are wrong: I think I was in too much of a hurry (freezing cold) and rather forgot to take things slowly and properly concentrate. However, it was a good learning curve and hopefully, there might be another occasion when I can emulate the more masterful examples featured on the forum!!!
My attempt at capturing Venus in close proximity to the moon in the night sky on 3rd January 2025 at about 17:50.
This was taken with a 5D Mkiii using a 70-300mm lens at 300mm on a tripod. Manual exposure of f/20, 1/8s at ISO 400. The exposure was adjusted by looking at the live view to avoid burning out the highlights on the illuminated moon crescent. Autofocus was used by placing the focus point on the moon in live view and back button focus.
I cheated a bit with Venus as I blended in a different exposure for the planet which showed a better starburst.
Aurora no-show at Glastonbury Tor.
On 1st January 2025 there was an alert of a strong geomagnetic storm with the possibility of seeing an Aurora anywhere in the UK.
In the Sherborne area there was lingering rain and cloud as darkness fell but was due to be clearing from the north.
I travelled to Glastonbury Tor and found a clearing sky but little evidence of the Aurora, well maybe a slight green tinge on the horizon to the right hand side of Tor Hill.
Here is my image of the Tor taken at ISO 800, shutter speed 8 secs at f/2 on a 12mm APCS lens.
On the plus side I have found a good spot with public access and nearby parking for future attempts.
The following day the BBC News app carried spectacular photos from around the UK as far south as South Wales…. with hindsight I should have driven a bit further than Glastonbury!
…………
Update after working with the RAW files I was able to enhance a bit more colour (see below) but it is far from the displays seen further north on that night.
Dont forget to join us for an evening photoshoot in Sherborne on Monday 2nd December. We will meet up at 7pm at the front of the Abbey. As most of us know Sherborne offers some excellent opportunities for night time photography - wether it be in colour or mono.
Anyone wishing to learn how to take images during the hours of darkness may find this event useful as we can always buddy you up with someone who can talk you through the settings that you will need to capture great images.
Great evening spent in Weymouth earlier in October with many members capturing some amazing images. These can be viewed within the photoshoot gallery at this time.
CAPTURING THE AURORA
Here is a basic how to guide for cameras and phones to capture the auroras, northern lights
A tripod is recommended for everything below. These settings are subject to chance based on conditions so adjust as needed.
CAMERAS:
- Find and select manual mode on your camera
- Shutter speed: Around 10 seconds is best if the auroras are far away and not moving fast. If the auroras are directly overhead and moving fast, 2 - 4 seconds is best.
- F stop: As low as it possibly goes for the lens that you are using. For example, my primary aurora lens goes down to F 2.8, and that's what I keep it at.
- ISO: This will depend on the quality of your camera. My ISO is normally between 800 - 1600 but you might have go higher if your images are darker. Be aware that the higher your ISO is, the "grainier" your picture will look.
- RAW vs JPEG. I always use RAW if you are doing any real editing. JPEG is fine for those who don't plan on doing much to the photo.
- Turn off autofocus. Manually focus your lens to just below the crosshairs of infinity. This will give you better control to get sharp images.
- Unless you have a remote shutter, turn on a 2 second timer to avoid any camera shake.
That is the basic starting point for your cameras. From there, you can adjust the settings to get your images perfect.
IPHONE SETTINGS:
- Use Night mode (iPhone 11 and later) or manual mode (third-party apps).
- Set exposure: 3-10 seconds
- ISO: Start between 400 - 600 and adjust as needed
- Turn off flash
- Focus: Manual or Infinity
- Use a 3-second timer to avoid any camera shake
- Turn on RAW Max if it is available on your phone to get the best quality
ANDROID SETTINGS:
- Use Pro/Manual/Night mode
- Set exposure: 3 - 10 seconds.
- ISO: Start between 400 - 600 and adjust as needed
- Turn off flash
- Focus: Manual or Infinity
- Use a 3-second timer to avoid any camera shake
- Turn on RAW if it is available on your phone to get the best quality
CAMERA SETTINGS FOR BASIC NIGHT PHOTOGRAPHY
For those wishing to know what settings to use to capture great night-time photographs here is a piece I recently distributed to members. These are particularly relevant to night photography in urban areas.
SETTINGS
I will give you what I consider to be the ideal settings for photography with and without a tripod. These are however only my recommendations and I am aware that others may prefer to go a different way. I apologise to those who already know how to take photos in these conditions, but the below will act as a user guide for those who have never practiced low light photography before.
In both cases it is best to shoot in RAW.
WITH TRIPOD
Using a tripod in these situations is by far the best way to capture clean and sharp images in my view,
But the first thing to remember when using a tripod is to turn off your image stabilisation on your lens, and for those using mirrorless cameras also within your camera. Then set a minimum 2 second shutter release delay if your camera has this option. This will allow the camera to settle after the shutter is depressed.
Put your camera into Aperture priority and set your aperture. This will then leave your camera to set the shutter speed. The aperture that you set is very much one for you and depends on the depth of field that you may want to achieve. It is quite good to go to F16 or higher at times as this will introduce some spectacular starbursts from all the lights to your images. A word of warning though, this is just one technique and whilst effective can be overdone.
Set your camera to a low ISO. I usually set this to the base ISO for a basic non moving photo. But where aspects of the image are moving you may wish to increase your ISO setting to reduce the shutter speed to an acceptable level. If there is movement on the water at night it may be necessary to ensure a shutter speed that is fast enough to freeze any movement of the boats. This will most likely introduce some noise to your images but for those who use Lightroom to process their images the AI noise reduction tool is now extremely effective.
Focus using the auto camera focus, but in some cases the area will be too dark to allow this to happen effectively. If this is the case then revert to manual focussing.
You may wish to experiment and to capture light trails. These are fairly easily achieved but will just need you to set an aperture and ISO to achieve a shutter speed of at least 5 seconds. There is no hard and fast rule on the length of time your shutter will need to remain open as each situation will be different. You will just need to monitor the situation as it presents itself and then I usually end up obtaining the correct setting through trial and error.
WITHOUT A TRIPOD
Firstly ensure that your image stabilisation is on.
Then all settings are basically the same as above other than it will be necessary to set your ISO to its auto setting to allow the camera to set this itself. I usually put this to a maximum of ISO 1600 but I am aware that some more modern cameras will capture decent images up to ISO 3200 and even higher in some cases. But as is always the case a higher ISO will introduce some noise to the image.
Hand held photography in low light will limit options to taking images at a relatively fast shutter speed, which clearly isn't ideal for light trails of moving vehicles.
OTHER EQUIPMENT
When shooting in a totally dark environment it would be useful to have a headtorch to assist in seeing your camera and the environment around you. (Dont forget to turn this off when taking the shot though)
It may also be useful to have some other means of lighting up your subject so that you can do what is called "light painting". This is a technique used to light up a subject in a very dark area to help to enhance the subject in the image.
For cameras that dont allow long exposure times beyond 30 seconds it would also be beneficial to have access to a shutter release to allow you to extend your shutter speeds beyond this limit by setting your camera into BULB mode.
And possibly most important you should wear warm, waterproof clothing as inevitably the temperatures are often low.