How to Take Night-time Photography without Flash

As photographers we're constantly talking about the best light. You'll hear time and time again how you need to seek out natural light or wait for golden hour to get those gorgeous shots. But what do you do when that light completely disappears? 


This Halloween you may be thinking, how am I going to take pictures of my kiddos when it's so dark out? And let's face it, Summer is long gone and the sun is setting earlier every day (let's not think about that too much). So we've got some great tricks to help you continue to snap away and capture those memories, even after dark. 

1. Find the Light

It may seem like all of the light has disappeared but sometimes you just have to look a bit harder at night. Look for street lamps, car headlights, porch lights - anything that gives off light. Make sure you watch your white balance as artificial light can cause strange colours in your photos, or if it seems hopeless you can always convert to black and white. 

2. Bring the Light

Sometimes you just need to make things happen. Bring along torches or use your iPhone light to illuminate faces. This can help give off an eerie mood, which is actually perfect for Halloween night!

3. High ISO

You're going to have to boost your ISO quite high here, but if you don't mind grain there is nothing wrong with that. Raising your ISO increases the sensitivity of your camera's sensor so if you have a full frame camera you will be surprised how high you can actually push it without compromising the quality too much. Experiment with your settings to see what works best for your equipment. 

4. Low Aperture

To let more light into your camera shoot with the lowest aperture number (or a wide aperture) your camera will allow. This will cause you to have a shallow depth of field but will help a lot with the amount of light reaching your sensor. Wider lenses will also aid in lower apertures and allowing more light in, so take a pass on your zoom lens.

5. Long Exposures

Now may be the time to start experimenting with long exposure photography. Long exposure photography is achieved by using low shutter speeds so that the camera is able to gather in light for longer periods of time. If you have a tripod now is the time to use it, otherwise, try to keep your camera as steady as possible. The slower the shutter speed, the more crucial it is to minimize shake in order to avoid blur. Make sure your subjects are standing pretty still unless you want an artistic effect. For even more fun, you can experiment with sparklers to create creative images, shapes or even words.