Full Moon B&W skyline HELP PLEASE!

[Flurry]

After reading all the threads on critiquing photographs I am a little gun-shy of posting and will probably provide too much information. But, I really need help and want to learn.

I am new to photography (less than six months) so help is most appreciated. I tend to jump in with both feet into the deep end because I learn better that way, although it would probably be better if I learned one step at a time and did not try such complicated shots.

This was shot under the light of the "supermoon" with a Canon T3i and my kit telephoto lens. Settings F10, exp 2.5s, ISO 100, focal length 110. What I do like about the photo and what I was trying to capture was the silvery, metallic, industrial look of the buildings and the landscape under the full moon. What I do not like is the noise of my sky (not sure if it was settings, lens, or PP where I removed the powerlines) and I want to learn how to get my shots crisper. Any advice would be great, even if you think the shot was not worth trying in the first place.

[JPS]

Hi Ginny,
thanks for sharing your picture.
I too am quiet new to photography, so am interested in the advice the more experianced members on this site can offer you.

I notice you used F10 and iso100. If I had tried this shot I would have used something like F5.6 / iso 800 to let more light into the camera and reduce the 2.5 sec exp. However, as I said I'm only learning and could be completely wrong, these are only my thoughts and look forward to getting advice on this type of shot, from the others at CIC.

Look forward to see what other's advise.

[Donald]

The best person I know to give advice on low-light photography is Colin (who lurks about on here!). And I know that he has written many times about getting the exposure right.

My first thought, on seeing this, was that the histogram of the original file was probably pretty well packed up against the left hand edge. In other words, it looks like it is significantly under-exposed.

And, Ginny. you have not provided too much information. What you have written is brilliant, because it really helps people understand what you were doing and, therefore, hopefully provide the most useful possible comment and criticism.

And as for trying complicated shots - Good on you for pushing yourself. Keep doing it.

[Colin Southern]

Hi Ginny,

Was this shot RAW or JPEG?

When you processed it, did it look very dark to start with? And did the noise appear when you brightened it?

[Colin Southern]

I notice you used F10 and iso100. If I had tried this shot I would have used something like F5.6 / iso 800 to let more light into the camera and reduce the 2.5 sec exp.

Hi John,

It's all about getting the best signal to noise ratio - so a wider aperture like F4 (if available) can be a good thing (so long as it doesn't result in an insufficient depth of field issue), but increasing the ISO is a definite no no; it doesn't "let more light in" (only a bigger aperture can do that) -- it only amplifies the weaker signal more. Also, high ISO modes reduce the dynamic range of the sensor -- which is the opposite of what you need with a high dynamic range scene like this.

So the "A" answer to all of this is - assuming that the image was under-exposed (as I'm pretty sure it was) was to have used a much longer shutterspeed (I'd have tried 2.5, 5, 10, 20 etc to see what I have to work with).

[Flurry]

Hi Ginny,

Was this shot RAW or JPEG?

When you processed it, did it look very dark to start with? And did the noise appear when you brightened it?

I did shoot this in RAW. I took three exposures: 1, 2.5 and 4. I then photomerged (first time trying this). The photo was a bit dark. There was no visable noise until I cropped and tried to remove all the guidewires and powerlines. I did lighten it because I was trying to capture what my eye was seeing which was the glow reflecting from the moon on the trees and buildings. That did make the noise worse. The sky was glowing as well since I was shooting to the east with the full moon to the south. I was standing on a rooftop, so not much choice in how close I could get or position the light. I was shooting at 100 iso with the hopes that I would be reducing noise.

Instead of the photomerge, maybe I should go back and just try and work with the longest shutterspeed? I will also try and get back down there the next full moon and shoot with a much longer shutterspeed.

As always, thanks to all for the help.

[Flurry]

Colin, you are right. I think I need to go back and use a longer shutterspeed. Below is the picture as shot with only changes to convert to B&W and crop. This is the shot taken at the longest shutterspped of 4s without doing the HDR merge. I still see a noisy background.

[Colin Southern]

Hi Ginny,

If you'd like to send me the RAW file (4 sec one), I'll have a go at processing it for you.

[Flurry]

Hi Ginny,

If you'd like to send me the RAW file (4 sec one), I'll have a go at processing it for you.

Stupid question....how do I send you the raw file