How can I create a seamless day-to-night composite photo?
Asked 5/8/2012
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2 answers
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I’ve seen photos that blend a daytime scene into the same scene at night in one image, with a smooth transition between the two. How is this typically done? Is there a relatively simple way to recreate the effect, and what should I pay attention to when shooting and editing so the blend looks seamless?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
14y ago
2 Answers
17
In your question I recognise two parts:
1. How to combine the day/night parts.
Take one photo of the daytime situation, take one photo of the evening situation. Use a tripod for the photos and let it stay there between the shots so the composition stays the same. Another possibility is to tether your camera to a laptop and use the daytime image as an overlay during the night-time shoot. This enables you to replicate the composition as well.
2. How to maintain the seemless flow of the image
By placing the two photos over each other and masking one part of the night photo revealing the day photo (or the other way around) will give you the basic image. From here you need to fine-tune your mask such that the night image flows over into the day image. Gradient masks might help.
Other remarks
The use of a tripod also enables you to shoot with a long shutter time. This is needed such that the cars show a blur, which implies motion. A wide angle lens is needed to capture the whole scene in one go.
Originally by user9161. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user9161
14y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes—this is usually done as a composite of at least two photos of the same scene: one shot in daylight and one after dark. The key is to keep the camera in exactly the same position, typically by using a tripod and not moving it between shots. Tethering or using an overlay/reference can help match framing later.
In editing, place the day and night images on separate layers and use a layer mask to reveal part of each image. A gradient mask or careful manual masking can create a smoother transition between the two. A composition with a natural or visually strong transition area makes the blend easier and more convincing.
It also helps to shoot RAW and capture several exposures, so you have more flexibility to match brightness and white balance during post-processing.
So the basic workflow is: lock down composition, photograph the same scene at different times, then blend the images with masking in post.
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