Camera Settings for Night Photography: How to Get Low Light Shots Outdoors

Capture the magic when the light is scarce.

Some of the most memorable images you’ll ever take won’t be in the middle of a sunny day. They’ll happen when the sun dips behind the horizon, when city lights glow against a dark sky, or when a million stars quietly appear overhead.

Low light photography is where mystery, drama, and mood live. But it’s also where cameras — and photographers — struggle. Grainy photos, blurry subjects, washed-out colors… it’s enough to make you put the camera away.

Here’s the good news: with the right camera settings and a few practical techniques, low light can become your creative playground. This guide gives you the exact recipes to start with, plus the “why” behind them — so you’ll know how to adapt when the light gets tricky.

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Camera Settings for Low Light Photography: The Exposure Triangle

When shooting outdoors at night, three settings control your exposure: aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. In low light, you’ll often need to push each further than you would in daylight.

• Aperture (f-stop): Open wide (f/1.8, f/2.8) to let in maximum light.

• Shutter Speed: Slow it down (1/30s, 1/15s, or longer) — but beware of blur without a tripod.

• ISO: Raise it (1600–6400) to brighten your image. Modern cameras handle high ISO much better than most photographers expect.

Local tip: The Golden Gate Bridge at blue hour is a perfect testing ground — you’ll see how aperture and ISO interact as the sky darkens.

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Camera Settings for Night Cityscapes

City skylines and bridges glow after dark, but capturing them well requires balance between sharpness and exposure.

Starting settings:

• Aperture: f/8–f/11 for deep focus.

• Shutter Speed: 10–30 seconds for glowing lights and reflections.

• ISO: Keep it low (100–400) since your shutter is long.

Pro tips:

• Use a tripod — cityscapes demand stability.

• Turn on your camera’s long exposure noise reduction if available.

• Look for reflective surfaces (wet streets after a rain, or bay water at high tide) to double the glow.

• For the San Francisco skyline, try shooting from Treasure Island or the Berkeley Marina — reflections on the water add extra drama.

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Camera Settings for Long Exposure Light Trails

Few things impress like the streaks of headlights across a bridge or winding road. The Bay Area has endless opportunities: the curving roads of Marin, the Embarcadero with Muni lines, or Highway 1 along the coast.

Starting settings:

• Aperture: f/8–f/11 to keep trails sharp.

• Shutter Speed: 10–20 seconds depending on traffic speed.

• ISO: 100–400 for clean files.

Pro tips:

• Scout a location with moving lights — bridges, highways, even quiet rural roads where cars occasionally pass.

• Use a remote shutter release or your camera’s 2-second timer to avoid shake.

• Experiment: shorter shutter = dotted trails, longer shutter = continuous ribbons of light.

• Try shooting from above the Bay Bridge toll plaza or on winding Mount Tamalpais roads — both give dramatic curves of light.

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Camera Settings for Sunrise & Sunset

The transition between day and night is pure magic — but light changes quickly, and fog often plays tricks in the Bay Area.

Starting settings at dusk/dawn:

• Aperture: f/8 for balanced sharpness.

• Shutter Speed: 1/15s to 1 second depending on light.

• ISO: Start low (100–400), raise as needed as the light fades.

Pro tips:

• Bracket exposures (take 3–5 shots at different settings) to blend later.

• Use graduated ND filters to hold back bright skies while exposing the land.

• Shoot 15–30 minutes after sunset or before sunrise for that rich blue “hour.”

• In the Bay Area, fog adds its own magic — whether rolling through the Golden Gate or settling over the Bay Area's golden hills, patience pays off.

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Camera Settings for Astrophotography

Shooting the night sky requires a different mindset — you’re capturing light so faint the human eye barely sees it. The Bay Area coastline, Mount Tam, and Point Reyes all offer dark sky escapes not far from city lights.

Starting settings:

• Lens: Wide angle (14–24mm full-frame).

• Aperture: Wide open (f/2.8 or faster).

• Shutter Speed: 20–30 seconds.

• ISO: ~3200 (adjust up or down depending on your camera).

The 500 Rule:
To avoid star trails, divide 500 by your focal length. That’s the longest shutter speed you can use before stars streak.

• Example: 20mm lens → 500 ÷ 20 = 25 seconds.

• Example: 50mm lens → 500 ÷ 50 = 10 seconds.

Pro tips:

• Turn off image stabilization when on a tripod.

• Use manual focus set to infinity, then fine-tune with live view magnification.

• Bring a headlamp with a red light mode to preserve night vision.

• Use apps like Stellarium or PhotoPills to plan where the Milky Way will appear.

• Head to darker skies: Mount Tam, Point Reyes National Seashore, or Big Sur are all within reach of Berkeley. Or make it a weekend and head to Joshua Tree!

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Stabilization: The Secret Ingredient

Whatever your subject, stability is everything. Without it, all the settings in the world won’t save you.

• Bring a tripod — even a compact travel one changes everything.

• Use a remote shutter release or your camera’s 2-second timer.

• Brace against a wall, railing, or car hood if caught tripod-less.

• If handholding, keep shutter above 1/60s and shoot in bursts — often the middle frame will be sharpest.

Local note: At windy locations like the Golden Gate overlook or along the Marin Headlands, hang your bag from the tripod center column for extra stability.

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White Balance in the Dark

At night, color casts get wild — orange sodium lamps, blue moonlight, green fluorescents.

Tips:

• Tungsten preset: Neutralizes warm street lamps.

• Daylight preset: Keeps the natural warmth of sunset or moonlight.

• Custom white balance: Best for accuracy — shoot something white and set manually.

Example: The Palace of Fine Arts glows deep orange under tungsten bulbs, while the surrounding sky often goes blue at dusk. Tweaking white balance gives you control over whether to neutralize the orange or let it sing.

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Practice Challenge

Next time you head out, try this sequence:

1. Start at dusk with f/8, 1/15s, ISO 200 on a tripod.

2. As the light fades, your camera’s sensor receives less light. To keep exposures bright enough without pushing ISO too far, you can open your aperture wider to let in more light per second, and you can also extend your shutter speed to allow the sensor to collect light for longer. The trade-off is that wide apertures reduce depth of field, and long shutters require stability to avoid blur. That’s why tripods and careful focusing matter more as night sets in.

3. Once the stars become visible, switch your settings to an astrophotography setup: wide aperture (f/2.8), 20–30 second shutter speed, and ISO around 3200. This is when you move from long exposure city or dusk settings to dedicated star-capturing settings.

4. Compare results — what feels sharp, what feels moody, what excites you most?

Learning by experimenting is the fastest way to grow.

When you’ve captured something you love, share it with the Looking Glass Photo community. From long exposures on the Bay Bridge to star-filled skies over Marin, your experiments inspire others and remind us why we pick up a camera in the first place. Tag us on Instagram @LookingGlassPhotoBerkeley and we may share your photo in our Stories so the whole community can celebrate with you.

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Final Thought

Low light photography isn’t about guessing settings or fighting your camera. It’s about starting with a recipe, understanding the why, and then experimenting until the night feels like yours.

The next time you step into the dark, you won’t just be hoping for a keeper — you’ll know exactly how to set up your camera to create something magical.

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👉 Want sharper shots in the dark? Come by Looking Glass in Berkeley to try fast lenses, rent a tripod, or chat with a Photo Coach about building your perfect low-light kit.