Shoot Stunning LIGHT TRAIL Photos with These Simple Tips (VIDEO)

You’ve no doubt marveled at colorful nighttime light trail photos, and assumed they required advanced skills and special gear. As you’ll see in the tutorial below, nothing could be further from the truth.

Capturing light trails at night is a lot of fun, and results in eye-catching images that you can make wherever you live. Opportunities include shooting freeway traffic from an overpass and boats on the water, to downtown photos in your hometown. In fact, you’re only limited by your imagination.

One reason these images are so striking is the beautiful colors in the scene. And when you turn those into vibrant light streaks, the photos can be mind blowing.

In today’s episode of Exploring Photography from Adorama TV, you’ll learn everything you need to know to get started with long exposure light trail photography. In less than 10 minutes Phoenix-based pro Mark Wallace walks you through the surprisingly simple process in barely nine minutes.

Wallace covers everything from camera settings and composition, to the best lens to use, helpful accessories, and much more. He also discusses the proper techniques, and explains a few things to avoid.

This is a behind-the-scenes tutorial with Wallace shooting from a bridge overlooking a busy interstate running through Phoenix. He begins by demonstrating how to set up the shot, and explains the best type of lens for this assignment.

You’ll see how Wallace configures focus and image stabilization, and he explains the best ISO, aperture and shutter speed settings to use. He also notes that all tripods aren’t created equal, and provides a few tips on making a good choice.

You can find more helpful videos on the Adorama TV YouTube channel, and explore Wallace’s great imagery on his Instagram page.

And don’t miss the tutorial we posted recently from another pro, explaining five image-killing mistakes and how to avoid them.

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