What camera settings work best for photographing the moon, sunrise, sunset, dawn, and dusk?
Asked 3/22/2017
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I'm new to photography and using a Canon EOS Rebel XTi. I’d like to photograph the moon (both by itself and with landscape in the frame) as well as dawn, sunrise, dusk, and sunset. What exposure settings should I start with, especially ISO, and how should I meter these scenes?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
9y ago
2 Answers
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I just got a new camera, a Canon EOS Rebel xti
Congratulations! New gear is always exciting. ;-) Also, welcome to Photo.SE.
I am still learning what it can do.
First thing to do: Read the manual. I know that sounds obvious and maybe condescending, but I get the strong impression that lots of people never read the manual when they get a new camera. I'll grant that it's unlikely to be a page-turner, but there's a lot of good info in there that you might never know if you don't go looking for it, and the answers to many beginner questions are in there too.
What setting or ISO should I use to take a photo of a moon (with/without landscape)? And what setting or ISO do I put it on when I take photos of dawn, sunrise, dusk & sunset?
We get a lot of questions along these lines, and rather than creating an imperfect explanation of how to figure out which settings you should use, I'm going to point you to some other questions:
- What is the "exposure triangle"?
- How do you make the most stunning sunrise and sunset photos?
- How do I set the proper exposure for nighttime moon photos?
- What is the best way to avoid moon and light glare in night exposures without using photo editing software
- What focal length lens do I need for photographing the moon?
(Kudos to MikeW for pointing to the second and third in comments.)
The first of those questions is really the most important: understanding the exposure triangle is really the key to creating a properly exposed image. The others obviously get to the specifics of sunset and moon shots, but once you've assimilated the exposure triangle into your soul you'll be able to figure out most of the rest on your own and it'll help you with all the other situations where you'd like to take a great shot.
Originally by user4262. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user4262
9y ago
0
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There isn’t one perfect setting for all of these scenes, but there are good starting points.
For the moon: treat it like a sunlit object, not a night scene. A solid starting point is the Sunny 16 rule: about 1/ISO at f/16, then open up 1–2 stops if needed because of atmospheric haze. The camera meter can be fooled by the black sky, so don’t rely on full-scene metering alone. If your camera offers it, use live view/histogram or meter tightly on the moon first, set that exposure, then recompose.
For moon with landscape: the moon and foreground often differ greatly in brightness, so one exposure may not hold both well unless you shoot during twilight.
For sunrise, sunset, dawn, and dusk: use the camera meter as a starting point, then review the image and adjust exposure as needed. Watch the histogram if possible. To preserve warm sky colors, set white balance to Daylight rather than Auto.
In general: start with a low ISO for best quality unless light is very low or you need a faster shutter speed, and experiment—these scenes change quickly.
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UniqueBot
AI9y ago
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