Long Exposure Photography: What You Actually Need to Get Started
Updated: Aug 29
Long exposure photography is one of those techniques that can look way more complicated than it actually is.
You have probably seen photos where waterfalls look completely smooth, headlights turn into long streaks of light, or people walking through a city almost disappear from the frame. It can look like something that requires expensive equipment or years of photography experience.
It really doesn't.
Once you understand what your shutter speed is doing and have a way to keep your camera still, you can start experimenting with long exposure pretty quickly.
I want to keep this simple and go through what long exposure photography actually is, what you need, and a few things I have learned that can make getting started a lot easier.
What Is Long Exposure Photography?
Long exposure photography simply means leaving your camera's shutter open longer than you normally would.
With a normal photo, the camera captures a very short moment. With a long exposure, the camera continues recording light and movement while the shutter stays open.
That is how you can create effects like:
Smooth or silky-looking water
Light trails from cars
Motion blur from people walking
Moving clouds
Star trails at night
The longer the shutter stays open, the more movement your camera records.
There is not one correct shutter speed either. Sometimes one or two seconds is enough. Other photos might need exposures lasting several seconds or even minutes.
It really depends on what you are photographing and what you want the final image to look like.
What You Actually Need
One of the nice things about long exposure photography is that you don't need to completely change your camera setup just to try it.
There are only a few things I would consider important.
A Camera With Manual Controls
A DSLR or mirrorless camera works well because you can manually control your shutter speed, aperture, and ISO.
The important part is having control over your settings. Long exposure becomes much easier once you can decide how long the shutter stays open instead of letting the camera make every decision for you.
A Tripod
If there is one piece of equipment I would consider essential, it is a tripod.
Once your shutter stays open for several seconds, holding the camera by hand is usually not going to work. Even a small amount of movement can make the entire image look blurry.
You don't need the most expensive tripod available either. You just need something stable enough to keep your camera completely still.
An ND Filter
An ND, or neutral density, filter is especially useful when shooting long exposures during the day.
The easiest way to think about it is like sunglasses for your camera.
It reduces the amount of light entering your lens, which allows you to leave the shutter open longer without completely overexposing the image.
At night, you usually don't need one because you are already working with much less light.
A Remote Shutter or Camera Timer
This one is optional, but it helps.
Pressing the shutter button can slightly move the camera, especially when you are using a longer exposure.
A remote shutter release solves that problem. If you don't have one, your camera's two-second timer usually works perfectly fine too.
Start With Shutter Speed
If you're new to long exposure photography, shutter speed is the first setting I would focus on.
There isn't a magic number that works for everything.
If you are photographing moving water, you could start around one second and see what happens. If you want the water to look smoother, try extending the exposure.
If you are photographing traffic at night, a few seconds might be enough to turn headlights and taillights into long streaks across the image.
The easiest way to learn is simply to experiment.
Try one second.
Then three seconds.
Then five.
Look at the photos and pay attention to how the movement changes.
That will probably teach you more than trying to memorize a perfect shutter speed from a photography guide.
Keep Your ISO Low
I usually recommend starting around ISO 100 when you have enough available light.
Since your shutter is already staying open longer and collecting more light, you normally don't need to compensate with a really high ISO.
A lower ISO can also help keep the image cleaner and reduce noise.
That does not mean ISO 100 will always be the answer. Your settings still depend on the actual lighting conditions you're working with.
Don't Forget About Aperture
Shutter speed gets most of the attention with long exposure photography, but aperture still matters.
Your aperture controls how much light enters the camera and how much of the scene appears in focus.
For something like a cityscape or landscape, I usually want enough depth of field to keep the important parts of the scene sharp.
The main thing to remember is that shutter speed, aperture, and ISO all work together.
If you make the shutter much slower, you may need to change your aperture, lower your ISO, or use an ND filter to keep the photo properly exposed.
Focus Before Starting the Exposure
This becomes especially important when you're photographing at night.
Autofocus can struggle once the scene becomes really dark.
One thing that works well is focusing first while your camera can still clearly see your subject. Once you have the focus where you want it, switch the lens to manual focus.
That keeps the camera from trying to refocus every time you take another photo.
Unless you change your composition or move the camera, you can usually leave it there.
It saves a lot of frustration.
The Effect Isn't Everything
One thing that is easy to forget is that you are still taking a photograph.
A long exposure effect by itself does not automatically make an image interesting.
I try to look at the scene first before worrying about the settings.
What is actually the subject?
Where do I want someone to look first?
Does the movement add something to the image?
Light trails are a good example. Instead of photographing cars just because the streaks of light look cool, you can use those trails to guide someone's eyes through the frame.
The same idea works with moving water, clouds, or people.
The long exposure should help the photograph. It shouldn't be the only reason the photograph exists.
Don't Stop After One Photo
If you already have the camera set up on a tripod, take advantage of it.
Try different exposures.
Maybe three seconds looks better than ten.
Maybe ten seconds makes the water too smooth.
Maybe you actually want to leave some movement and texture in the image.
This is where experimenting becomes useful.
You can read about shutter speed all day, but seeing how one second, five seconds, and ten seconds look on your own camera makes the idea much easier to understand.
Editing Long Exposure Photos
You don't need to go crazy with editing afterward either.
I usually approach a long exposure the same way I would any other photo.
Start with the basics:
Exposure
White balance
Highlights and shadows
Contrast
Color
Crop and composition
If something around the edge of the frame is distracting, crop it.
If the image needs a little more contrast, add some.
The long exposure itself is already creating a strong visual effect, so I wouldn't try to force the photo to look overly dramatic in editing.
Personally, I would rather have a clean photo that looks intentional than something that has been edited to death.
A Few Things to Remember
If this is your first time trying long exposure photography, don't worry about getting everything perfect.
Bring a tripod.
Start with a low ISO.
Experiment with your shutter speed.
Use an ND filter if there is too much light.
And most importantly, actually check your photos while you're still shooting.
Zoom in and make sure the parts that are supposed to be sharp are actually sharp. Look at the exposure. Check the edges of the frame.
It is much easier to make an adjustment while you're still standing there than to notice the problem when you get home.
Just Experiment With It
Long exposure photography gives you a way to show movement that a normal photo can't always capture.
And you really don't need to make it complicated.
Once you understand how shutter speed changes movement, most of it comes down to experimenting and finding what looks good to you.
Some photos won't work.
Some exposures will be way too bright.
Some might be blurry because the tripod moved.
That's part of learning it.
Change a setting, take another photo, and see what happens.
Honestly, that's one of the best ways to learn photography anyway.
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