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It was a clear and warm night last week with a nearly full moon at a 45 degree angle, perfect for heading out to the beach for a super long exposure.
I hiked about 1/2 mile down the beach in the dark to an unusual collection of sea stacks and cliffs. It was difficult to compose this because not only could I barely see through the viewfinder, but I wanted to get close to where the waves were breaking. Since I knew it would be at least a 1/2 hour exposure, I wanted to be just out of reach of the biggest wave that would hit during that time.
After watching the waves for about 10 minutes, I set things up, opened the shutter and sat on the beach to wait it out. It was about 28c at 10pm, but it was difficult to enjoy it completely because I was worried about a big wave hitting. I barely got away with this as some waves came very close.
This is exactly what I saw in the viewfinder. Bright as day, and when I looked out, there was in fact the same colours, but very faint to my eye. I actually did no processing to the raw file at all. I just converted it to a TIFF.
The big problem was noise. There were individual pixels that were easily handled with the 'Despeckle' option. But then some areas had these blue and orange blobs that were about 5 pixels in radius. I assume these are heat related blobs. They could only be removed by cloning each of them out. It was not too difficult.
I know that noise reduction involves taking a second exposure of the same length so the camera can compare them. Is there another way to reduce noise?
30 minute exposure @F5. No filters.
| Title: | Nightscape |
| Username: | 
PatrickSmith |
| Uploaded: | 29 Oct 2007 - 2:53 PM |
| Camera: | Canon EOS 5D |
| Lens: | Canon 17-40L @18 |
| Recording media: | RAW (digital) ISO 50 |
| Tags: | California, Coyote beach, General, Landscape / travel, Long exposure, Star trails |
| Votes: | 203 |
Comments
Very surreal image- really like the affect the exposure had on the water.
Martin
Very interesting shot Patrick...and a good informative description too. You wouldn't beleive this was a night shot. Love the star trails.
Steve!
Thanks for your comments! I wanted it to be as strange and surreal as possible. Like a Dali painting! Couldn't find any melting watches to use in the foreground though......
Patrick
Try noise ninja. It is a photoshop plug in and works perfectly.
Good shot
Clint
Patrick, what a fabulous image. The star trails look great. Like Steve, I can`t believe this was taken at night. First time I have visited your gallery and am I glad I have. Some sensational shots. Regards, Tom.
Hi Patrick. Not sure about the blue and orange blobs but I've found that Capture One does a fine job at automatically sorting out hot pixels on very long exposures. I've only gone to 10 minutes so far with the 5D and the image didn't suffer from any noise apart from the hot pixels.
Mike
what a fascinating shot, this is just superb, can't help with the NR though I'm afraid... Blown away by this... 
What a fascinating image, Patrick. I would have never guessed that this was shot at night with how bright it is, the effect the long exposure has had on the water is excellent, but what really makes this image of course is the star trails. Just superb!
As far as the noise goes, I was just discussing that issue with a knowledgeable camera person this weekend and he said that shooting very long exposures with digital does not work well because of the way the (not sure) pixels heat up. He told me that film works out much better for long exposures. Of course there is no way I’m going back to film. LOL
Eric
hey patrick this is another awsome shot mate
and wow 30 mins man thats nutz
and its pinsharp aswell well done buddy
Soz, a wee bit bland for me, Patrick. The shot needed a much stronger element in the trails and for me, they're a little lost amongst that pale sky.
Very interesting text to go with the shot Patrick, the appearence of the water and the detail though out is very good - 30 mins, is that you longest?
Cheers, Sean
Thanks for your comments! This will probably turn into a noise thread, which is fine with me. I am curious about what to do.
Thanks Clint, I may try it.
Hi Mike, I'm using C1 but haven't used their noise reduction options. But I'll have a look at it tonight after work. That might do the trick so thanks!
Eric, he is probably right about film. But like you, I'd rather figure out an easy way to use digital.
True Keith, I think that a 1/2 full moon (1/4 moon) might be a better choice. The sky will be a bit darker and the trails brighter. I just wanted there to be lots of light on the sea and rocks.
True Phil, it was rather crazy out there!
Almost Sean. I did a 2 hour shot once with my 350D. Far fewer hot pixels too I might add!
Patrick
Reading intensively the way in which this has been achieved and totally amazed at the results, hard to believe night..
its truly beautifully in every way.. pure harmony in nature and envious of the 28 c @ night...!!!
Stunning !!
Nikki !
leave the technical side to the Boys..! winks
Thanks for looking in!
Yes Nikki, it was a hot evening. It was the first day of the fires that put 1 million people out of their homes!
Patrick
Excellent exposure Patrick, the star trails look great.
I also advocate the use of Noise Ninja, it takes a bit of trial and error to get it right without loosing detail. I apply different amounts to different areas, obviously the sky will stand a lot more than the rocks for example.
HTH Alan
Thanks for looking!
I may try it Alan. The problem is that the software thinks that the star trails ARE noise!
Patrick
Composition and color are superb. I like the star trails, just takes this image over the top.
WOW - I could tell this was yours from the thumbnail (is that a good or bad thing? )
Opening it up offers a really nice surprise with the star trails.
Excellent shot
Mike
Like it Patrick, Capture One is also brilliant at handling noise, i use the LE version.
john
I have got to get out and try this it is stunning Patrick, only it will be - 8 when I do it
Regards Ken
This looks like it is from another world, without the star trails you would think it was taken during the day.
I am so glad you suffer like this for us to enjoy your magic
One of the best seascapes on here today, hats of for trying something new, i would maybe have chopped some of the sky off at the top which would also raise the horizon, clarity on the beach and rocks is superb.
Well... this is a stunning photograph. The sea looks amazing!
Marilyn x
Thanks for dropping by!
LOL Mike, it could be either or both at times!
John I have C1 so I'll give it a try.
Well Neil, I do have one where..... doh.... I only made one exposure that night! Actually there are lots more trails near the top that you can't see here. But we will see what happens next time.
Patrick
There I was, looking at the thumbnail and thinking...hmmm, not sure about that sky; and then I opened the larger version and all became clear. A very creative shot, Patrick.
Quote: Is there another way to reduce noise?
Oh, I wish I knew. It's the problem that irritates me most.
Really impressive Patrick, something I may have to try one day. Really like the results.
Scott
As others have said Patrick, it is hard to tell that this is a night shot if it hadnt been for teh fact that there are star trails and you telling us of course.
A wonderful shot that i would be proud to have taken.
Rushing out to buy me a half-hour glow in the dark egg timer.
Yes Ian, I was wondering if people would think it was just a daytime shot! Though it is difficult to get such a long exposure in the day time!
Try it Scott. Do it with the moon up a bit in the sky. Point away from the moon and all lights. Do it on a completely clear evening. Try it with less than a full moon, but not a crescent moon. If yo do it wiht a 1/4 moon, you may need a 1 hour exposure I woudl guess. It is 1/2 hour with a nearly full moon @F5 focused to infinity with a wide angle.
LOL John, I used my cell phone to time it!
Thanks Paul
Patrick
Really interesting shot - and I'm glad it's prompted the discussion above about noise on long exposures. I've been advised to use Ninja but haven't tried it - and is C1 better than CS3 for Raw conversion in this respect do you think?
Rob
I'm blown away with this exposure. I love the quality of the water created by the long exposure.
John
Damn! Already scratches on my new laptop screen! 
Just love this Micky Mouse (read Microsoft) software policy......it´s sooo deeeeeep 
NO possibilty to change my Vista in Finnish any more!!
Hasta la Vista, Bill.......
Jouko
What an excellent image Patrick. It certainly has a surreal air with those trails.
David
What a stunner... Will you stop making my jaw drop.. i wish you lived round the corner from me..( I would pester you for LS advice ) Although I think you might be glad you do not..
A pleasure as always
Thanks for dropping by!
Yes Rob, C1 is better than CS3 for now I think.
Jouko, what happened to give you those scratches? There must be a way to convert it to Finnish!
I wish Bert!
LOL Edgar, then you will just have to take a trip to California!
Patrick
Looks good to me...have you tried Neat Image? It's reasonably flexible so you may get decent results in this case.
Martin
Hi Patrick,
I love the depth and dof of this image,the lighting and detail of this is fantastic. I don't know too much about all that they are talking about so won't try getting into it.........lol.Sorry i can't help.
A tremendous shot in my eyes.
Take care,Ann
A stunning and beautiful shot Patrick. As someone notes above its hard to accept that this was a night shot. Its just wonderful. Hope you did not get wet feet.
Ron
No more scractches here......only when I look at this shot of yours
.......but down here not seen any more
So many C&C...LOL.......
NO WAY! Only IF you have Vista Ultimate version!!! Mine is Home Premium, which came with the GX700 Intel Core 2 Duo T7100...
Jouko
Thanks for dropping in!
No Martin, I may give it a try though.
I know what you mean Lisa!
Chris, I just sat on the beach, enjoyed the warm breeze and watched the waves come in. Or at least I could hear them come in and see them at the last moment! Rather unnerving. It was nice because this is usually a foggy and cool beach on the end of a penninsula.
It's okay Ann.
Ron, the feet were quite wet, but that was fine as it was so warm.
Thanks John, I mean Paul (Chinny)!
LOL Jouko, I see what you mean now! I could use the clone tool to get rid of the scratches. Can you take back the computer and get the correct version?
Patrick
What it needs Patrick is a huge sign above the thumbnail to tell people how extravordinary this shot is......from first glance, I thought it was a midday shot of some beautiful scenery......only when you really grasp what went into this photograph can you really begin to appreciate the outstanding result.
Simply put.....outstanding!!
Debbie
Thanks Debbie! You would have loved it out there. You really feel the power of the Pacific Ocean when you are alone on a deserted beach in the dark with nowone around for miles. A bit unnerving though....
Patrick
your usual high standard Patrick, thanks for sharing the story, you did well, good work.
Ian.
This is superb, it is looking at a "familiar" type of scene but in an entirely new dimension. A very detailed write-up too.
Best wishes,
Ron.
A fantastic image Patrick,Excellent long exposure here and i like the star trails in sky.Excellent composition.
Mo.
Yet ANOTHER amazing shot Patrick. Worth all the effort
mike
Great shot, Patrick. I though this was a day light landscape merged with a star streaked sky when I first viewed it. You are a brave man leaving your camera for 30 minutes with that surf crashing around it.
Ted
Thanks for dropping by!
Yes, Ted, it was a bit nervewracking. I had it up on a rock with the tripod legs pushed in to keep it low. The water would go around the rock but it never got to the point where I had to rescue the camera!
Patrick
Amazed at the exposure, I am trying desperately to work out how to capture a steam engine at 75 mph at night with 30 minutes exposure it will have traveled 37.5 miles do not have view finder that wide!!!!!
Great image
Robin
Breathtaking work Patrick - and wonderful detail of how you did it all.
Outstanding work again superb scene very well captured
Neil
What a way to spend an evening.....Lovely work Patrick, thank you for the detailed desription.
A Cornifornia of a shot if I may say so
gill
Just when i think you have produced your best, you come up with this!! absolutely stunning mate, love the star trails and the long exposure effect on the water, looks very surreal almost like another planet, were the exposure settings guess work or did you work it out before hand?
Thanks for your comments!
LOL Robin, I think from outer space you could get that shot!
I think you're right Gill, though you will have to do one over there before we can know for sure!
Debbie? Perfect? No.
Famous? No... I'm flying under the radar for now....
Terry, Last month under the same lunar conditions, I took a 10 minute shot at F5 and it was dark, so I tried 30 minutes. It had good a exposure range, so I tried it again this month and got it right the first time!
Patrick
Super clever image PAtrick, dedication indeed, clambering around cliffs in the dark and lugging all the gear. You have turned up trumps with this fine image, easy to miss the stars in the thumb, the large version reveals all in gloriu=ous detailed colour. Exceptional work my friend.
Al the very best
Dougie
the effect such a long exposure has in this capture is quite startling, I've often wanted to try this but there is so much light pollution around here it's not really possible. Very good PP to remove that troublesome noise, the image sure benefits from your careful attention
Thanks for dropping by! You do need to have no light pollution and perfectly clear skies to do this. And next time, not as much moonlight and a longer exposure.
Yes Dougie, it was a bit of a scramble, waiting for the waves to pull back so I can get around the cliff's edge. It was high tide.
Patrick
Amazing photographic achievement. I tried a long exposure the other night...a complete failure I might say. This is beautiful.
bill
This is absolutely awesome..everything seems to glisten and shimmer with light.
Di
Thanks for coming by and commenting on my thistle close-up. It's very much appreciated.
Your work is spectacular - I have nothing to add to the above comments. Thank you for taking the time to tell about the shot.
Anne
Strange and other worldly Patrick. Like a window on another world. Beautiful though.
Thanks for looking!
Bill, just keep trying. It takes a few attempts (several hours) at F5 and clear skies to get it right!
Patrick
I'm late again Patrick. Amazing night time exposure. In reply to your question on my upload tonight, I have only just started using the Lee grads, but so far they seem reasonably easy to use. The Cokins I have are soft which means you end up with darker upper skies which I don't particularly want. It has only recently dawned on me that you can control the hardness of the transition with the aperture you use. I am thinking of adding a sunrise/sunset strip to stop blowing the brightest part of the sky.
Nigel
Fabulous image with an unusual quality. Thanks for the description
Leigh
Thanks for dropping by!
Thanks for the info Nigel. Sometimes I'll use 2 ND soft grad 0.9's but it comes down to watching for what the sun does in the clouds. I wait for the light to become even before I take the shot, then I can pull down the grads to just below the horizon and the sky looks even with the sea or land. And I sometimes avoid cliffs or darker areas where a grad would be a problem. I don't know what a sunrise/sunet strip is though.
No problem Leigh!
Patrick
Just had time to look at this in more detail, you can even see the shadow of the foreground rock has blurred during the exposure due to the moon moving i expect, i get a lot of blue as you know when shooting long exposures at night, do you have your white balance set to cloudy for this stuff?
Hi Terry,
I'm not even sure what my white balance is set to. It usually looks just right so I leave it alone. Yes, the shadow moved during the half hour!
Did you feel the earthquake? It was actually like two of them. The first one made me feel dizzy and then the big one hit and a few things fell off of shelves. Nothing that fell broke and I have things nailed to the walls so no standing things fell over. It lasted about 30 seconds and had an amplitude of about 1 foot as it shook! I am about 50 miles from the epicenter, so down there in San Jose it was quite bad. I don't think any freeway overpasses fell though.
Patrick
Again, this is far better then the thumbnail suggested.
A stunning image, but in my view slightly overexposed - a night shot is allowed to look slightly dark! Would love to see how this looks a stop darker (maybe even a tad more)
With reguard to noise this is simply a fact with night photography. You have done well to minimise noise by shooting when the moon is nearly full.
I don't bother with 'noise reduction' - beacuse this will double the exposure time. For a 30 min exposure, you would need enouph battery power for a 60 min exposure - if the battery dumped after 59 min, you would loose the shot (and from experience, the 5D battery is good for about 90 minutes shooting from fresh - more if you have the grip).
I have done back to back tests with noise reduction on and off - and to be honest I got best results from shooting without noise reduction and converting in C1. Oftern for night shots, I turn the noise compensation in C1 up.
Hi Matt,
I've been playing with it and it can easily be darkened with no problems. I will try another one with a little less moonlight and more exposure time as well. Thanks for the info on these details. It always seems as though it is better to let software do things than what is built into the camera so I didn't set up the camera to do anything. 90 minutes? That should be enough. I don't have a grip, though I may get one if I really go for the super-long exposures. I;ll see about the C1 noise reduction. I usually wait until I'm in PS to do most of the processing.
How are things going for you now???
Thanks!
Patrick
Well Patrick what can I say, ... Exceptional, even by your high standards!!!!!!
Scotty
As always impressive work. I had a bit of a time explaining to my fiance that it really was a night time image. Star trails made that possible.
I read somewhere that noice in long exposure is heat and that some experiments have been done with "kryo"technology? I imagine that at 28C and1/2 hr exposure heat would be an issue.
I wonder what would happen if you were to somehow attach an ice bag wrapped in cloth on the rear surface of the camera? Then when the pictures taken you can use the ice to cool something to drink before the trek home
I'll try some long exposure up here in the north this winter when we have temps down around-15C
i didn't even know there had been an earthquake till i saw it on the telly in the morning, i was in bed at the time and felt nothing.....lol
Until I read your description I would never have known this was a night shot. I was trying to figure out the streaks in the sky.All is revealed - like it a lot.
Do you want some of my melting watches ?
Brian.
As always Patrick your shots are taken with much preliminary thought put into them and I admire your 'vision'......though I tend to agree with KeithH's comment here...with initial viewing I thought it was a day shot and the faint trail of stars didn't have 'convincing' impact.... though I wouldn't have a clue how .......
Thanks for dropping by!
OL Ken, well usually it is cool and foggy. I'm not sure if the hot night affected this, as it might be just that some pixels are relatively hotter and that effect would still show up in cold conditions. I will have to experiment. Interesting theory though. Let me know how your experiments go!
Sorry you missed the earthquake Terry, it was a big one! 1 foot horizontal movement with a full cycle every second.
Sure Sal... I mean Brian. And throw in a few skinny legged elephants too!
I know what you mean Maggie. I'll be trying some with a lower amount of moonlight vs. starlight to get a little more contrast in the sky. It might mean more noise though.
Patrick
now this is dedication for ya, utterly amazing picture Patrick, will you ever cease to amaze us with you wonderfully photography. Martin
Can't believe it that this was taken at night time! Are you fooling us?
Jacqueline
I have never seen a 30-second exposure shot, Patrick, and this is a doozy! Considering the pixel problems you had, this has turned out utterly surreal and almost extraterrestrial!
Man...
A...
Thanks Martin!
No fooling Jacqueline, this is straight from the camera. Notice the movement of the shadow of the foreground rock, or the smoothness of the ocean? That can only be done with a very long exposure!
Thanks Andrew, the more surreal the better. And it was 30 minutes!
Patrick
A breathtakingly brilliant image, absolutely incredible
Excellent work as always, you are on top of your game! Spot on! Click!!!
Greg
What I like about this is that it was pitch black when you took it and just by having such a long exposure you are able to bring "daylight" back! I'm going to try this on a particular waterfall I think!!
Teresa.
What a fantastic result, now where is there a beach near me!!! Better make sure I have a fully charged battery for an exposure like this and comfortable seat if fact my wife and I could take turns at keeping an eye on it 15min shift system sat in the car.
Great image Patrick.
Ian.
Interesting to read your description. Impressive work. Love the picture!
Benjamin
Thanks for looking!
It is amazing Teresa, definitely try it on the waterfall, though it may just look like a daytime shot. Let me know.
Be careful Ian, you really have to be out there the whole time just in case a big wave hits. But you can st up a bit higher, but the image may be less exciting.
Patrick
It took me nearly 3o minutes to scroll through the comments lol!! You never cease to amaze, Patrick - that you could 'see' this shot with such poor visibility is astounding, and the surreal effect you've created is truly breathtaking.
Allie
Thanks Allie Kin and Darren!
Allie, it did take a lot of fussing around to compose this. I could just barely make things out through the viewfinder!
Patrick
A scene out of "Willow".....I told ya...
LOL!
Anyways.....Yep, this is really quite lovely, P.....But how does one get a shot like this when you can barely make things out in the viewfinder....Let alone leaving it undisturbed for 30 minutes??
Have a wonderful day,
Suz
PS: Just noticed the toddler shot, you ARE a young'n, looks to be shot somewhere in the 1930's or 40's, 'eh??
LOL!!!
Thanks Babs and Colin!
You have to fool around with it Suzie, looking just to the side as you move the lens around since you can see slightly more light off to the side than looking directly ahead. And on my baby shot.... I converted to to B&W...perhaps.... My mom says that she is 27 so you figure it out!
Patrick
A really brilliant image, excellent quality as always.
Annette
I like it Patrick - purely for the fact that it's a night shot that looks nothing like one! The ethereal water around the three rocks really works well. As one or two others mentioned, I'd love to see it a stop or so darker but I'm sure you'll be back at some point!
Lovely stuff.
Howard
Thanks Annette!
Yes Howard, with a slightly darker moon and a longer exposure, the sky will be darker with the land and sea still having detail.. I will be back!
Patrick
It's hard to believe you were still on Earth for this shot, it makes me think of some remote planet with an alien spaceship about to land at any second lol! An amazing capture, and like others have said, I have no idea how you managed to get such an excellent composition in the dark!
Charlotte
Thanks Dagný!
I'm not quite sure how I did it either Charlotte. Fortunately the moon was bright enough to see a bit, but the viewfinder was really dark! It took a while to get it right.
Patrick
Your portfolio really deserves more appreciation than this......... Supeb piece of work..........
Rgds/Sidd
This is really surreal and minimalist - love it! I think I'd like to see a little more contrast between the sky and star trails though...
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