Taipei, Taiwan ·
Night Bird’s-Eye View of Taipei
A night cityscape I had imagined for years, made under a sky that did not quite cooperate.
Reference exposure from the HDR sequence
- Aperture
- f/11
- Shutter
- 8 seconds
- ISO
- 200
- Focal length
- 24mm
- Technique
- HDR blend
Camera and capture details
- Camera
- Canon EOS R3
- Lens
- RF24–70mm F2.8 L IS USM
- Support
- Tripod
- Process
- HDR blend
I had imagined photographing Taipei 101 at night for years. I was glad a tripod was allowed at this viewpoint, because it let me slow down and make the photograph I had come for.
What I chose
I used a low ISO and stopped down to f/11 for a clean, detailed cityscape. The eight-second reference exposure came from an HDR sequence, with the camera held steady on a tripod.
What happened
The wide field of lights gives Taipei 101 room to rise out of the city. I still wish the sky had held some blue-hour color or cloud structure, but I am content with the frame I brought home.
Next time
I would watch the forecast, arrive earlier, and photograph the transition into night instead of beginning after the sky had already turned black.
The final photograph is an HDR blend made from bracketed exposures. Here, HDR describes the capture and editing technique; the published image is a standard sRGB JPEG.