Night photography settings

Last saturday I joined another Meetup to photograph the San Francisco Lights at the Embarcadero from Treasure Island. The coordinator was nice enough to post a list of settings online for us, which I have downloaded and post below.

To get to Treasure Island, simply follow the signs at the Bay Bridge and exit. A narrow winding road will take you to a gate, where you say "hi" but do not have to pay anything. Parking is available near the gate, and if is crowded there is plenty of parking a block or two farther into the Island. 

We got there at 4:40 p.m. and set up. It was a cloudy day and the evening turned very blue. I took several pictures but there were only a few opportunities for composition. I liked the three below.

This photo, a wide angle view of the bridge, is to the left of the Embarcadero. 

NIKON D3100

55.0-300.0 mm f/4.5-5.6

55mm

/

ƒ/11

/

1/3s

/

ISO 400

The first photo I took is a close-up of the Embarcadero lights. 

NIKON D3100

55.0-300.0 mm f/4.5-5.6

125mm

/

ƒ/11

/

4s

/

ISO 400

And finally, a little latter, when the blue had disappeared into the night, another view of the other side of the bay bridge.

NIKON D3100

18.0-55.0 mm f/3.5-5.6

35mm

/

ƒ/11

/

13s

/

ISO 400

Though this was a good exercise, and I really like the final results, I also have a feeling that there is nothing very original about these pictures. If you go on stock sites, they are everywhere. But I guess there are not many options when it comes to city lights. There are the famous ones and the boring ones...