I took this image a while back for a location photography project I was working on. The only problem was that there wasn’t much traffic about at 10.30pm. Not usually a problem on the M62!

Photography 101

I took the pictures from a minor road bridge over the M62. The secret behind successful location photography is preparation. Arriving at the location earlier in the evening gave me a chance to have a look around and consider the best view points. Catching light trails requires a reasonably long exposure time so I set up a tripod and mounted the Canon 7D firmly in place. I also attached a cable shutter release to minimise camera shake and to manually open and close the shutter.

Because the camera was facing into the setting sun I also had to attach neutral density filters to reduce the amount of light hitting the sensor. Although as the sun started setting these were removed.

Then the fun started. Waiting for traffic! Yes, on the M62. Although by the time that the light had faded enough it was getting close to 10pm. The final shots, including this one were taken over the next half hour. It is quite surprising just how much the different types and frequency of traffic can affect the final image.

I was quite pleased with the outcome and it has whetted my appetite to see just where else I could take long exposure images.

If you’ve got any technical advice or hints and tips for taking night time (or dark environment) images please feel free to comment below.