General Night photography tips

[Poisson Du Jour]

I'm not very familiar with astrophoto, but I think metering was irreplaceable in these scenes:
A Dead Link Removed or Dead Link Removed, or Dead Link Removed.
It's just convenient. Of course, experience replaces lightmeter during well-known light (full moon, no moon, etc...) but sometimes it's faster and better to use a dedicated and helpful tool.

That's a good, reasoned response.
Experience is my best 'meter'. Having said that, I do use my Sekonic L758 in (incident) in full moon landscapes, but fore-anchor imaging (scene(s) composed with a primary visual anchor in the frame) at other times, NIL-M goes in notes (i.e. no meter). Living in the second largest city in the State, I can see the attraction for other photographers, but I never photograph cities; born and bred and even run over by a tram in one, I'm too busy nowadays doing my darndest to escape the teeming, seething mass of humanity. Roll on Friday...

 

[jd callow]

NO, you don't meter for astrophotography. What are you trying to prove by wanting to doing so!?

If one is going to photograph the concrete jungle, meter as you please, but why bother? Why the restriction??

For the night, all I use is a watch. And 27 years' experience.

Who explicitly said meter from car headlights!?

I'm sure you know better about astro photography and I would never tell you how to do it.

My post was in regard to the OP which is how to shoot in NYC at night -- a far cry from shooting the night sky.

"If one is going to photograph the concrete jungle, meter as you please, but why bother? Why the restriction??"

In reading your original post I was given to believe that you were advocating not metering and that the confluence of light would make metering at best problematic. Which you seemed to verify in your response. FWIW one would bother to meter because one might want a good exposure. The restriction is one most of us have to live with due to the fact that film has exposure requirements that we should at least give a glancing nod to.

I want to make sure that the OP knows that metering is better than guessing or taking the word of an anonymous poster on a web site. I apologize if my post seemed unreasonable, but suggesting that he not meter is not a reasonable suggestion.

 

[Pete H]

Good Morning,

I understand that 4 x 5 Acros can be acquired in standard loose sheets instead of just in expensive Quickloads. I definitely need to investigate that, but, for the moment, TMX continues to serve me well, and very predictably, in night exposure situations.

Konical

I have had very good experience with Japan Exposures (formerly Megaperls) for sheet Acros.

I also love it for night shots: reciprocity lasts out to 2 minute exposures.

For metering at night (in towns/cities) I find it best to spot meter the brightest highlights that I want then stop down a couple of stops. You give the meter a better chance (sometimes the meter can't read the midtones at all) and you know that a certain amount of the shot will be featureless black anyway.

Pete

 

[jd callow]

The OP does not have the benefit of a spot meter. The OM10 uses a center weighted average (I believe) which is very usable at night, but will require some attention to where the readings change as the lens moves from point to point in the scene being careful to notice extremes in shadow and brightly lit areas. As I mentioned earlier optimally the setting should be such that important high lights and shadows are no more than 2 stops above or below (not too different from reading the highlights and opening up 2 stops).

 

[Pete H]

For metering at night (in towns/cities) I find it best to spot meter the brightest highlights that I want then stop down a couple of stops.

Pete

OK, I meant open up, not stop down. Must get brain serviced.

A headtorch (Petzl or similar) is extremely useful for night photography.