Mastering Night Photography – A Review of New Ebook Getting Out of Auto

Photography is a tough nut to crack. Nothing conveys the brilliance of an epic travel adventure better than a well shot photo, a feat much harder to accomplish than one would think. Over the years I’ve tinkered and struggled with my photography and in the last few years I’ve generally been pleased with the quality of my work. I take a lot of pictures, most of them aren’t very good but there are always a few of which I am proud. One area that has been a struggle for me personally is taking a good night photo.

A travel blogger colleague, Bethany from Beers and Beans, recently published an e-book called Getting Out Of Auto, a guide to taking better travel photos and asked me to review it. I took a peek and was pretty pleased with the information, particularly about improving the quality of my night photography.

Before reading the book, I was worried that it would be geared towards the owners of super fancy, long lens cameras. I was thrilled to see right away though that the tips are geared towards all camera owners, from the point and shoot photog like myself to the super fancy, quasi-professional. The tips are useful, easy to understand and you can see the results right away.

Below is an example of one of my early attempts at night photography. It was taken four years ago at Clarke Quay in Singapore. Right away you can see the mistakes, which are addressed in Bethany’s ebook. The first is that the shutter speed was all wrong. It was too fast and I should have slowed it down. Second is the shake, which is what created those hideous blurry lines.

My best takeaway from the book about how to reduce shake is twofold. The first is to use a tripod, something I’ve been debating recently anyway. The second is to use an auto-timer, which I think is a brilliant idea and I can’t believe I never considered it. What I liked in particular though was Bethany’s honesty when she writes that to have a great night photo, a lot of experimentation is important. When I see great photos I never think about the fact that to capture that one, fantastic photo, the artist probably shot dozens more which were mediocre or even bad.

Below is an example of a night photo using some of the tips Beth mentioned in her book. I took this photo before reading the book, but used the same techniques. While it’s not perfect, it is a much better photo than the Singapore disaster shot.

The section on night photography in Getting Out Of Auto is just but one example of the hundreds of useful tips and advice strewn throughout the ebook. Without sounding cliché, it really is great for photographers of almost any skill level. It’s written in plain language without dumbing anything down.

If you’re like me, you are constantly experimenting with improving your travel photography and reading this book will help anyone in that quest for the perfect shot.

Visit this site for an excerpt of the book, which is available for purchase for $9.99.