As part of its 2023 in Review series, National Geographic has not only revealed its “Pictures of the Year,” the iconic publication has also worked with its photographers to deliver a series of how-to articles designed to help amateur shutterbugs up their game heading into 2024.

Alongside educational articles on portraits, wildlife, and underwater photography, written by Celeste Sloman, Jasper Doest, and Jennifer Hayes, respectively, famed Nat Geo photographer Keith Ladzinski wrote about “How to take great photos at night.”

Scouting and Preparation are Key for Night Photography

PetaPixel chatted with Ladzinski over Zoom about his career and ways photographers can improve their night photography.

“When you’re working at night, it’s best to go on with the game plan,” Ladzinski starts. “I always like to try to find my compositions in advance.”

That isn’t to say that there aren’t “moments of serendipity,” but working at night is so challenging that Ladzinski cannot emphasize the importance of planning and scouting enough.

“I always like to scout during the daytime, and find out what the voice of the image is in advance because it’s harder to work in the dark.”

Everything is more difficult at night. Movement is more challenging, and Ladzinski notes that test shots take a lot longer, too, especially if someone is using a camera’s in-camera noise reduction processes.

Apps Help Photographers Keep an Eye on Stars, Planets, and the Moon

Alongside in-the-field scouting, Ladzinski relies heavily on apps like PhotoPills to help him plan his nighttime shoots. With PhotoPills, the Nat Geo photographer can see what the night sky will look like at a specific time anywhere in the world, which helps him compose shots and work around the Moon, which can help or hurt a photo depending on its phase.

At Night, the Sky Reigns Supreme

For Ladzinski, his night shots often play a narrative role in an overarching story. “There’s something very timeless about looking into the night sky. The world takes on a completely different look, especially through still imagery.” He seeks out the atmosphere and magic that the night sky provides.

To that end, night photography comprises a different compositional approach. If Ladzinski is going to go through the trouble of working at night, it is to capture what makes night special, which is often the star-filled night sky.

“When I’m incorporating the sky into the shot, I do want to really feel it. It’s not as impactful if it’s only the top third of the image, for instance. So oftentimes, I’m including a lot more of it… The compositions just naturally are a little bit different, and you want to utilize more of that negative space because it will be filled with something nice,” the photographer explains.

Artificial Light is Helpful and Color Corrective Gels are Essential

His use of artificial light is evident in many of Ladzinski’s night photos, including recent shots of giant Sequoia trees in California. Ladzinski travels with a pack of color-correction gel filters to ensure that color balance is good when working with artificial light at night.

“And if I’m bringing in light, then I’m using CT gels, I’m using orange gel on whatever my light source is to sort of bring in white light there,” says Ladzinski. “I have a bunch of them. They’re dusty and scratchy; they live in my photo bags because you never know when you’re going to need them.”

Other Helpful Gear

While one of his favorite lights is a spotlight made by Larson Electronics, he has used cheap lights from auto parts stores, hardware stores, and even gas stations on various shoots. “Light is light,” Ladzinski says, adding that even cheap lights can work very well when used cleverly and properly balanced.

As for photographic gear, night sky photography is reasonably accessible and doesn’t require too much super-expensive equipment. “Whether you’re shooting on a smartphone or high-end SLR, make sure you have a sturdy tripod, a headlamp (or any other lighting), and warmer clothing than needed in the day (especially in the desert). I also recommend a cable release wire to trigger the shutter remotely, so you don’t need to handle your camera especially during long exposures. Also, bring a lens warmer to prevent fog,” Ladzinski writes on National Geographic.

Photographers Should Get to Know Their Gear

Speaking with PetaPixel about his career, Ladzinski explains that a critical component of his success has been his thorough understanding of his camera equipment. This is true no matter what you’re shooting. “Understanding your equipment and its capabilities” is vital.

An understanding of hardware goes alongside a firm grasp of software. “After a shoot, the best photographers will tweak white balance, lift shadows, bring highlights down, etc. But be careful not to overwork it,” writes Ladzinski.

While he is held to strict photojournalistic standards for his work with National Geographic, he stresses the importance of creativity in photography. However, as tempting as it may be to make dramatic tweaks to photos, excessive editing can often lead to bad results.

Getting it right in the camera is always essential, but perhaps even more critical during night photography because significant adjustments to photos captured at high ISO settings will push even the best cameras to their absolute limits. Unfortunately, night sky conditions vary so much, and everyone has different equipment, so Ladzinski cannot offer a foolproof cohort of camera settings that photographers should always use.

Night sky photography often demands photographers to move toward manual settings. Cameras can’t meter exposure very well at night, and they also cannot meter white balance effectively in the dark. Getting comfortable with a camera’s manual exposure settings, like shutter speed, aperture, and ISO, is vital to get the best night sky shots.

As for white balance, which is thankfully easy to fix during post when shooting RAW images — and photographers should shoot RAW photos, especially at night — Ladzinski says that his analog origins have resulted in him erring toward bluer white balances in his work. “Daytime balance color film I used to work with did such great jobs with blues. I tend to work with the colder side of my white balance spectrum, especially at night.”

There Is No Perfect Shutter Speed

Returning to understanding equipment, photographers should know how their camera and lens combination behaves at different shutter speeds. When shooting night sky images, exposures must be long to get enough light onto the sensor, but if they are too long, then stars will appear as streaks in the sky rather than point light sources. There are times when star trails are excellent, but when someone wanted a sharp star is not one of those times.

Sensor size and focal length affect what shutter speeds work best, so again, there is no hard-and-fast rule, unfortunately, and people must do real-world testing to dial in the perfect shutter speed for their preferences and gear.

Noise Reduction Software is a Must-Have

The advent of fantastic noise reduction software has completely changed how Ladzinski works. “These days, I don’t use in-camera noise reduction features because the software is so good,” Ladzinski says, adding that software like Topaz and Lightroom have such impeccable noise reduction algorithms that he can deal with higher ISO images than ever.

Photographers who are worried about shooting at ISO 3200, 6400, or beyond, even with older cameras or smaller image sensors, should give the newest noise reduction software a try and see how it affects their workflow.

Wrapping Up

Between Ladzinski’s article and the additional tips he shared with PetaPixel, there are many ways for photographers to improve their night sky photography. The importance of preparation, scouting, and getting to know equipment cannot be overstated. People mustn’t head out into the night without an idea of the types of images they want to capture and the camera settings they will need to use.

For even more amazing night sky photography tips, check out PetaPixel‘s “A Complete Guide to Capturing Gorgeous Photos of the Night Sky” article.

To keep updated with Keith Ladzinski’s work, visit his website and follow him on Instagram.

Image credits: All images by © Keith Ladzinski

The Bay Area is teeming with wildlife, not just in the rugged wilderness of Mount Diablo and Big Basin, but in the parks and open spaces that dot our urban and suburban landscapes. You’re guaranteed to see wild creatures at places like Año Nuevo, where gargantuan elephant seals famously loll about on the sand, and the Sunol Regional Wilderness, where raptors of every feather fly overhead.

Unexpected treasures, however, await if you have a good eye and the patience to wait, as our Bay Area News Group photographers show in this stunning array of images.

“Often it also takes a bit of luck and good timing,” staff photographer Jane Tyska said about spending a day at the Foothills Nature Preserve in the Palo Alto hills in hopes of capturing a photo of one of the preserve’s elusive mountain lions. Her wait was rewarded with a coyote sighting instead, snacking on a gopher, and she also “lucked” into seeing another coyote — near San Francisco’s Coit Tower, where the animal’s presence was unexpected.

Karl Mondon agreed on the time one has to devote when photographing the artistry in nature. He grew up near Golden Gate Park’s Lloyd Lake, so he swings by when he can to check out the birding scene. “Sometimes you go for days without a glimpse,” he said. “Other times they just won’t stop smiling for the camera.”

Jose Carlos Fajardo has had luck staking out spots like Indian Creek in the Shell Ridge Open Space during the rainy season — toads abound — and even the manmade lake at the suburban Heather Farm Park in Walnut Creek.

Wherever there’s water, there’s wildlife.

The image by Ray Chavez of flocks of pelicans feasting at Lake Merritt in Oakland — an unusual sight — occurred on a day when he stopped by to get photos of runners, bikers and hikers. “Took too many photos until I saw this white pelican surrounded by the brown pelicans, plus the nice sunlight dropping in it. Made a beautiful picture.

“After I took those photos, the pelicans left.”

A moment in time.

Sometimes, it’s a matter of being in the right place at the right time. It’s something Alan Dep, the IJ’s photo editor, knows well.

“I was out searching for a rainy weather feature photo, though most of the rain had passed,” he said. “I noticed a little bird flying to and from a little twig or fencing wire in the middle of a flooded field. It kept flying back and forth to its perch as it plucked things at the surface of the water, making the little ripples seen in the photo.”

And being aware of his surroundings helped him capture an image of a California quail in Novato.

“I spotted this male California quail keeping watch over a couple of females and young quail from its high perch on a shed. I caught this photo as he ran along the roof,” he said.

For Sherry LaVars, the IJ’s staff photographer, her instincts kicked in while driving back from an assignment, shooting the annual plant sale that happens on the fairgrounds after the Marin County Fair. While driving back through China Camp State Park, she noticed two birders with big, professional lenses that were mounted on tripods. She turned around, parked and grabbed her body with the longest lens she had.

“Their lenses were trained on some pilings way out on the water, on an osprey nest,” she said. “I had no chance of making a good picture of the “momma bird,” their words, with my gear so I shot them while shooting the nest. I got their info for a standalone cutline and started up a dirt path to my car.”

When suddenly, one of the men told her, in a hushed tone, that the father bird had arrived back to the nest.

“He had breakfast for the chicks in his talons, flew right over my head and circled twice. I stopped in my tracks, took aim and started firing. … I didn’t realize the bird was looking at me until I saw the images on my laptop,” she said.

Photographer Alan Schaller has finally completed his Metropolis series; a haunting and provocative look at the isolation many feel in a big city.

Schaller tells PetaPixel that the project was shot over the course of seven years all across the world. However, he intentionally doesn’t reveal the locations of his photos because of Metropolis’ overall theme: social disconnection.

“I could take pictures that fit that theme anywhere I was in the world, it didn’t really matter where the location was,” says Schaller. “The point is this homogenous thing is happening, whether you’re in Paris, Tokyo, or New York — it’s becoming more similar, I think.”

Schaller, a Leica ambassador, has now released Metropolis as a book featuring the distinctive photos that led him to become one of the darling photographers of Instagram.

He says that his style has always been much the same. It may surprise some to learn that he posts on Flickr too.

“The vast majority of [my photos] have always been in black and white. But the editing wasn’t there, so they were much flatter. So it was really an instinctive thing.”

Schaller is inspired by Fan Ho and even the sculptor Alberto Giacometti. But his biggest influence is Ansel Adams and was particularly fascinated by the look the American photographer gave to his monochrome prints.

“I loved the way that he had that tonal pop and if you’ve ever seen one of his prints, like a big one, they’re just amazing,” he says.

Schaller’s fascination with Adams directly influenced his own work. He “obsessed” over Adams’ grayscale zone system which divides photos into eleven zones: nine shades of gray and pure black and white.

This led to Metropolis’ novel layout: the darker images — with blacker tones — are at the start of the book with the images making their way through the grayscale until the end of the book when it becomes predominantly white.

“It’s a bit of a metaphor, you can read into it as you wish,” says Schaller who invites viewers to come up “with your own narrative” to his photos.

‘You Just Photoshop Everything’

Schaller was late to photography, originally pursuing a career in the music industry. He began shooting with an iPhone and would get carried away with trying to compose and edit the smartphone photos to his liking.

He is frequently told that he just Photoshops everything by those “who do not wish to further understanding of metering and just shout and accuse.”

But he insists that the images in Metropolis are captured in-camera and many of the photos required “two or three minutes to edit.” He even showed PetaPixel a few of his photos on the back of his Leica.

“I think people often put a look or a style down to just how it’s edited, which is completely ridiculous,” says Schaller.

“There’s a lot more to it, the feel of the images, the atmosphere. You can go through my entire archive and you might find one or two people where they’re smiling. That is just something I don’t like pressing the shutter for.”

Schaller has also begun to experiment with film but all of Metropolis is digital.

Instagram Photographer

If you’re reading this and you already know who Alan Schaller is then there’s a strong chance it’s because of Instagram. Schaller has over one million followers and his strong audience is partly the reason he got the book deal.

“I think it’s one of the greatest gifts that photography has ever had. A lot of people think it’s not and they hate it and they say it’s the death of everything, but none of those people have figured out how to create a massive following because there is a huge benefit from it,” he says.

“It’s not the end game, but it’s a very useful tool for getting people to events, for actually connecting with real photographers.”

Schaller was late joining Instagram (2015), initially being put off by the square format. He readily admits that it is still not the ideal medium for photography, but it remains one of the most effective global platforms.

For example, he exhibited his work in Australia which a few hundred people turned up to — despite never going there before — which he puts down to his Instagram following.

“Every generation of photographer has had a different way, a different approach to having to get their work out there,” he says.

“Maybe in the fifties and sixties you had to get into Nat Geo, maybe in the eighties it would help if you were shooting for Time Magazine.

“Whereas for this generation, there was no other way for me to get my work out there. And I think it puts a lot of power into the photographer’s hands. It gives you your own distribution. And so for the first time, photographers can control how they publish and what they want to say and it’s all down to them.”

He admits there are times when he doesn’t like the ‘Gram but says that by taking it seriously early on it’s given him good standing.

“Today I think Instagram is very hard to grow on. And I think if I started now, it would’ve been maybe a bit different,” he adds.

Metropolis is out now and is published by ACC Art Books and is also available on Amazon. More of Schaller’s work can be found on his Instagram, Flickr, YouTube, and website.

Image credits: Photographs by Alan Scahller