How to capture Atlanta Skylines.
Safety first: Be aware of your surroundings. Be careful of where and when you are exploring the city. Especially, during COVID make sure to carry your mask. As always, I include a disclaimer to make sure you do not trespass or break any laws. If you are venturing into alleyways or parking garages if you are asked to leave an area by a security guard, please be respectful and follow their rules.
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Tips for shooting outdoors:
Sunrise & sunset: The hour after sunrise and the hour before sunset are the softest and warmest light of the day.
Daytime: On clear days sunlight is very direct and harsh. Partly cloudy days with some fluffy, shady clouds against blue skies are perfect for daytime shots.
Cloudy conditions: On overcast or foggy days, try photographing in black & white.
Rainwater makes for excellent images by adding shine, texture, movement & reflection! Just keep your camera covered and protected.
Ideas for shots: The most dramatic sunsets often happen when a storm rolls through right before the sun goes down. Arrive early to experiment with different locations on the bridge. Think about ways to make your shot unique, maybe focusing on something in the foreground, such as a prop.
Mix up the views. Find spots outside of the city and within the city. Parking Garages, overpasses, etc.
To find Atlanta, sometimes you have to escape it. One way to capture a city skyline is to leave the city itself. If it’s sitting on a river, hop across; if it’s in a valley, climb the mountain outside. There are terrific vantage points outside cities, like hills, islands, and boats, but all will involve a fair bit of travel time and some physical stamina to keep moving until you find a wide enough angle.
Related: Top 10 Hiking Trails In Metro-Atlanta Area for Hikers and Photographers.
Setting up your shot: You'll want a tripod for nighttime photography, including long-exposure shots with light trails. High traffic times yield better results (no cars equals no light trails). There is a row of lights down the middle of the freeway, so think about how you would incorporate them in your composition.
Don't have a tripod? Use a table, counter, or another surface if you can. If you choose to shoot handheld at night, use a higher ISO setting and a wider aperture to increase the shutter speed and reduce blur due to camera motion.
Perfect The Focus
Finding the right focus can be difficult with the city miles away, especially in low light. Use the LCD screen to zoom in on the corner of a building, and then manually focus until it is crisp.
Mirrorless camera:
Always shoot in RAW for maximum image quality and full control in post-editing/processing.
Use a tripod, if your tripod doesn’t have a hook, try to find a way to hang something around the base to ensure it is still and the wind is not moving it at all.
Expose for the highlights, and lighten the dark/shadow areas in post-processing. It is much easier to bring back the shadows compared to the highlights. Once the highlights are gone in a photo, they are gone.
If you shoot in shoot in manual mode. (Low ISO, with a small aperture f11 - f22 is the most recommended, however, it is really preference. I prefer to keep them around f/5 and keep the shutter open for 10, 15, 30 seconds, or even longer when I am looking to blur traffic.
Use the 2-second timer feature or remote control, so you don't cause "shake/blur" when touching the shutter button.
For those with more skilled editing skills, try bracketing. Here is a Youtube video for a tutorial. Without moving or changing the focal point in between shots, take one at the most brilliant sunset & cloudscape, and then another shot once the city/building lights come on. You will get the best of both worlds, with a killer sky/sunset and all the illumination from the city lights, which usually don't come on until after dark.
Other ideas:
Try incorporating props, and/or models, or focusing on something in the foreground.
When sitting at the Freedom Parkway light, try getting a shot through your rearview mirror.
Some photographers return to the bridge several times a year to catch the seasons and changes in the light.
