• Night portrait photography can add drama and emotion to your subject.camera image by Szymon Apanowicz from Fotolia.com
  
  Portrait photography at night opens a world of creativity using the dark and moody canvas of the night sky. Existing light can be a powerful and beautiful element of any nighttime portrait, and knowing how to set your camera to capture this light is essential. A camera with manual settings is necessary to reach the full potential of your vision for your after-hours portrait photography.
  
  

Camera Types

• Choose a camera type that will allow you to control the settings. If possible, choose a camera with a manual setting, indicated with the letter "M" on the settings dial. A variety of point-and-shoot or consumer cameras have manual settings, as do the more advanced SLR cameras (or single-lens reflex cameras). An SLR camera allows for interchangeable lens and provides the most flexibility in capturing light in a camera. Capturing night images requires a long exposure using a shutter speed of one half a second or longer. The shutter speed is the speed at which the shutter curtain, which allows light to enter the camera and capture the image, stays open while taking a picture. A camera that allows you to control the aperture setting is also necessary for night photography. The aperture is the diaphragm opening of the lens that allows light to enter the camera and works in conjunction with the shutter speed to properly expose an image with balanced light and dark sections of the image. The aperture is also called the f-stop and is represented with the letter "f" before the number, such as f2.8 or f/2.8.
  
  

Camera Settings

• For night photography, a slow shutter speed setting of at least 1/30th of a second or lower should be utilized to allow as much light into the camera as possible. An aperture setting between f/1.8 and f/3.5 is ideal for night photography. For example, a portrait taken outside a gas station, underneath the street lights, should have a camera setting of approximately 1/30th of a second shutter speed at an aperture of f/1.8.
  
  

Shoot With a Tripod

• For night photography, a tripod or stationary resting place for the camera is necessary. As a rule of thumb, any images below a shutter speed of 1/60th of a second should not be handheld or camera-shake will occur, causing the image to be blurry. When using a tripod, slower shutter speeds and longer exposures can be used to capture your image. Experiment with long exposures to give your image a creative flair. For example, place your subject in front of a busy street and use a setting of 1/8th of a second or slower, and the car headlights will have long trails of light behind your subject.
  
  

Lighting Options

• A flash may be used to light your subject at night and is an excellent starting point. Try to work with a flash that allows you to control the power of the light source, and use a lighter power for some of your images. A powerful flash may provide too much light and create harsh shadows. Existing light, such as street lamps, exterior windows, headlights and flashlights, can also provide excellent sources of light for your image. Use your camera's light meter, usually located inside the viewfinder, and take several shots with a variety of shutter and aperture settings until you find the proper look for your photograph.