Alright, so I wanted to try out some night portrait photography. I’ve seen some amazing shots online, and I figured, why not give it a shot myself? It’s way harder than it looks, let me tell you!
First, I grabbed my camera – it’s just a basic DSLR, nothing fancy – and my trusty 50mm lens. I figured that would be good for portraits. Then, I roped in my friend Sarah to be my model. Bless her heart, she was totally game, even though it was freezing outside.
Finding the Right Spot
We headed out around 9 PM, hoping to catch some cool city lights. We wandered around downtown for a bit, looking for a good backdrop. We needed some light, but not too much light, you know?
- We tried a spot near a brightly lit store, but it was way too harsh. Sarah looked like a ghost!
- Then we found this alleyway with some cool string lights. That seemed promising.
Messing with the Settings
This is where things got tricky. I’m still pretty new to manual mode, so it was a lot of trial and error. I fiddled with the ISO, trying to get it high enough to capture the light, but not so high that the pictures were all grainy. I think I settled around 1600.
Then I played with the aperture. I wanted that blurry background, so I opened it up as wide as it would go – f/1.8, I think. Shutter speed was the real pain. I kept adjusting it, trying to find the sweet spot where the pictures weren’t blurry but also weren’t too dark. It was a constant battle.
Getting the Shot (Finally!)
We took a bunch of test shots. Sarah was shivering, I was fumbling with the settings, and it felt like we were never going to get it right. But then, we found this one spot where the light from a streetlamp kind of spilled into the alley, creating this nice, soft glow on her face.
I snapped a few pictures, checked the screen, and… finally! We got a couple that looked pretty good. They weren’t perfect, but they had that cool, moody vibe I was going for. The background was nicely blurred, and Sarah’s face was lit just right.
Honestly, it was a lot of work, and most of the pictures were total duds. But those few good ones made it all worth it. I definitely learned a lot, and I’m already planning my next night shoot! Maybe I’ll try using a reflector next time, or even a small external flash. It’s all a learning process, right?
