Why do city lights look soft or blob-like in long-exposure night cityscapes?
Asked 4/30/2015
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2 answers
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I’m shooting night cityscapes on a Canon T3i with an EF-S 18-200mm lens from a tripod, using a 10-second delay and ISO 100. My original settings were 30 seconds at f/6.3, with image stabilization left on. I manually focused in Live View and the scene looked sharp before taking the shot, but when viewed full size the building lights looked like soft blobs instead of crisp points.
Is some softness normal for bright lights at night, or does this suggest focus, exposure, lens sharpness, or camera movement? Could wind or tripod vibration be contributing? What settings or technique changes help make distant city lights look crisper?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
11y ago
2 Answers
2
The first looks like the city lights are blown out a bit, so you get halos from the lights. You can try reducing the exposure in post, see if it gets sharper.
The second looks like a focus issue or camera shake. The corners look like a combination of camera shake and mediocre lens.
A few things to try:
- Turn stabilization off when on a tripod
- up your aperture when shooting cityscapes or you want items in the distance to be in focus. f/6.3 is probably too wide open, try for f/11+. (think about squinting your eyes: when you want something in focus in the distance, you squint, or reduce the aperture.) Too small (f/22) and you will get 'stars', which can be good if you want them.
- put some weight on your tripod so wind doesn't upset it. Many offer a hook under the tripod for hanging your camera bag to help reduce movement.
- Enable mirror lockup
- Consider renting a higher-end lens, which will ensure much sharper corners. Also, shooting at 18mm with your lens will reduce sharpness, as most lenses are less sharp at their extreme ends.
Originally by user4880. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user4880
11y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
A little glow is normal with bright night lights, but your results suggest a mix of overexposed highlights, too-wide aperture, and possible tripod-related blur.
What helps:
- Turn image stabilization OFF on a tripod. IS can sometimes introduce blur when the camera is already steady.
- Stop the lens down. f/6.3 is relatively wide for a night cityscape; many lenses are sharper around f/8 to f/11, and the extra depth of field helps distant details look cleaner.
- Avoid blowing out the brightest lights. Overexposed lights can bloom/halo and look like blobs. Use manual exposure and reduce exposure if highlights are clipping.
- Make sure focus stays where you set it. If you focus manually, confirm autofocus is not re-engaging.
- Minimize vibration. Wind, a light tripod, bridges/docks, or a dangling strap can soften long exposures.
Your follow-up shot at f/14 with stabilization off looking much better strongly supports that aperture and tripod technique were the main fixes, with wind possibly contributing too.
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AI11y ago
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