Q: When and How to Shoot Cityscape?

A:
Here are some steps to follow to shoot a good quality photograph of cityscape.

1: CHOOSE DAY AND TIME TO SHOOT
Depending on the city you choose to photograph, quite likely you can get successful photos no matter what time of day or night you shoot. Generally, you will find that mid-day sun offers the least attractive light. As with all subjects, you want to consider carefully when the sun will provide the best light from your chosen vantage point. Some of the best views of a city may be seen from one direction only. If the sun sets behind a city (from your chosen vantage point), you may find that the best time to shoot that city is during daylight in the morning when the sun will be shining on the city—not from behind it, which would cause the buildings to be covered in shadows. Because many cities are often covered in haze (a nice word for pollution) {not every city in South Asia}, you may get some excellent photos if you shoot right after a rain because rain clears the air and possibly provides a rich blue sky, too.

2: SET UP THE TRIPOD AND CAMERA
Choose a good place to set up your camera and tripod. When you’ve determined the city you want to shoot, decide what vantage point you want. Consider shooting from a balcony in a high-rise building, or from a bridge. A different vantage point from the more obvious vantage points will result in a more unusual photo.

3: CHOOSE CAMERA SETTINGS
Select the slowest ISO speed your camera offers (possibly ISO 80 or ISO 100). Choose aperture priority mode and set the aperture to its smallest setting (for example, f/8.0) to provide the greatest depth-of-field. Use automatic focus and try using a “matrix” or “evaluative” metering mode to meter the entire image.

4: CHOOSE FOCAL LENGTH
Generally, you want to use the widest-angle setting your camera offers when shooting cityscapes. However, you can take many successful cityscapes with a telephoto lens as well. If you are some distance back from the city you want to shoot, you can select one small portion of the city to shoot with a telephoto lens. Technique 48(as most camera men know about it) give you better results for your cityscapes shooting.

5: COMPOSE AND TAKE PHOTOS
A beautiful city, perfect light, and the right camera equipment can all result in a not so- good photo if your composition is not good.

6: EVALUATE RESULTS AND MAKE SETTING CHANGES

As you shoot with a digital camera, take advantage of your camera’s histogram (if your camera has one).Use the histogram in addition to the image on the LCD monitor to see whether your images are properly exposed. Varying the settings slightly, especially by bracketing exposure, is always a good idea to give you a choice between images when you later download the photos to your computer and view the images on a large computer monitor.

lot more from profesor azii on this topic (photography)