Photo How To

It’s amazing how cityscapes that appear drab during the day are transformed into sparkling scenes at night—just begging to be photographed. And this time of the year, when festive holiday lights often adorn the urban landscape, nighttime photography in the city can be more interesting than ever.

In this tutorial, you’ll learn some great tips on photographing the city once the sun drops below the horizon. Evan Ranft is an Atlanta-based pro, known for landscape and cityscape photography, and in the video below he shares several simple tips you can try yourself.

You’ll follow Ranft on a stroll through midtown Atlanta as he uses a fast, wide-angle lens while describing his shooting techniques on a lonely, misty evening. Included on Ranft’s shot list are long-exposure light trails of passing cars, colorful lights reflecting off wet pavement and curbside puddles, and his ongoing search for “suspicious characters” lurking in the shadows.

Along the way, you’ll pick up some tips on composition, exposure settings, low-light focusing techniques, and choosing subject matter with interesting colors. What makes this photo walk so interesting is that you’ll see what “works” for Ranft during his impromptu shoot, as well as what doesn’t. Hopefully, after watching this video, you’ll be inspired to try some of these techniques yourself.

You can find more tips on Ranft’s YouTube channel, and be sure to check out his recent post, with five crazy camera hacks that actually work.