Cityscape Photography: Capturing Urban Skyscrapers, Traffic & More

Published by Color Experts International January 18, 2024

What is Cityscape Photography & How to Shoot it?

Cityscape is the visual appearance or picture of an urban area, displaying its architectural structures, streets, skyscrapers, buildings, and overall city atmosphere.

Besides, this photography aims to showcase urban life’s dynamic and often noisy nature, the wonders of towering buildings, and the nitty-gritty of streets, bridges, and landmarks.

It’s a type of photography that seeks to convey a city’s mood, energy, and essence through craftily composed images highlighting its urban landscape. Cityscape photography captures the unique features and properties of a city’s skyline and surrounding elements.

Pictures of cityscapes embody the art of snapping the enthralling urban environment. It’s about freezing the invigorated city life into fetching images that narrate stories of busy streets, lofty buildings, and luminous landmarks.

To kick off this photographic journey, you’ll require a camera that lets you do manual settings, to control aspects like aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. With that, let’s check out what gadgets you essentially need to capture cityscape photography.

Essential Urban/Cityscape Photography Equipment

In cityscape photography, the gear you use can massively impact your results. While it’s not just about the camera and lenses, top-quality gear can ease your life and make your photos even more striking.

You’ll require 3 key items: a full-frame camera, a wide-angle lens, and a robust tripod. A neutral density filter, while optional, can also make a difference.

A full-frame camera

A full-frame camera offers large sensors that capture more light and usually provide a broader dynamic range as compared to a cropped sensor camera. It’s salient when you’re navigating tricky lighting scenarios at dawn or dusk.

Additionally, a full-frame camera’s high megapixel count can be crucial if you’re planning to go big. Maybe you want to create wall-sized prints. But bear in mind, more megapixels also mean larger file sizes, so you’ll need sufficient storage space on your computer as well.

A wide-angle lens

We would recommend you kick-start with a wide-angle lens although other lenses like a telephoto lens can help you zoom in or highlight small details. A good wide-angle field of view will allow you to snap overarching scenes. And you can even integrate foreground and background layers for a 3-dimensional effect.

As for the best wide-angle lens, amateurs should try out a 24mm prime lens, which will cost you less, yet offer a wide field of view and clean optics.

If you’re willing to pump more money and you want additional flexibility, a 16-35mm lens is a good bet. It will let you shoot various wide perspectives as you zoom from the ultra-wide 16mm to the tighter 35mm.

A robust tripod

In cityscape photography, you’ll often find yourself capturing less-than-ideal lighting conditions. A narrow aperture is usually required to keep everything in focus, but this allows less light to get in.

Merge that with the slow shutter speed, necessary for appropriate exposure, and you’re in a prime spot for camera shake, the primary cause of blurry photos.

That’s where a robust tripod comes into play. Pick one that’s lightweight, yet solid. Carbon fiber models can be a good choice as they offer a touch of superiority. Ultimately, a good tripod might cost you substantially. But it’ll make a huge difference to your cityscape photoshoots.

A neutral density filter

Lastly, consider adding a neutral density (ND) filter to your camera bag. It’s not mandatory, but an ND filter can enhance your daytime cityscapes by allowing for longer exposures without overexposing your shots.

These filters come in different strengths; a 10-stop ND filter is a perfect starting point for those new to this game. With an ND filter, you can produce enticing effects like smoothening water or capturing cloud movement, injecting an artistic flair to your shots.

The Optimal cityscape photography settings

To discover the full potential of your camera and click eye-catching cityscape imagery, you need to start with the right settings:

Aperture Priority vs. Manual mode

Aperture Priority mode is a crackingone to start with. This mode allows you to select the aperture and ISO while your camera identifies the optimal shutter speed.

In contrast, Manual mode is for veterans who aren’t scared of managing everything themselves. Once you set your camera to Manual mode, you’re in the driver’s seat.

Every setting, from shutter speed to aperture, you can control and ensure to get the results you’ve visualized.

A narrow aperture

Aperture settings impact the depth of field in your cityscape images directly. A narrower aperture, such as f/8 or higher, renders a greater depth of field, making sure both near and distant objects are in focus.

Provided your composition involves elements from the foreground to the skyline, you may choose an aperture setting as small as f/16. Suitable aperture selection allows you to encompass the city’s splendor comprehensively.

A low ISO

High ISO values can assist you in leveraging fast shutter speeds in low light, but when you’re doing cityscape photography, chances are you’re equipped with a tripod and this negates the need for speed.

Hence, keep the ISO as low as you can to maximize quality. ISO 100 is our go-to here for crisp and noise-free images.

A slow shutter speed

Shutter speed acts as the linchpin in balancing your exposure triangle. It’s vital to monitor your camera’s exposure meter for guidance in selecting the proper shutter speed. You’ll often end up using slower shutter speeds – below 1/80s or so – to keep your files looking detailed.

However, the leverage of a sturdy tripod is crucial when working with slow shutter speeds; or else, you’ll end up with lots of motion blur!

For dynamic compositions entailing moving objects, such as vehicles or pedestrians, a long shutter speed can introduce a visible blur, injecting a layer of intricacyinto your image. This effect is easy to pull off during the blue hour in low-light condition.

Actionable Cityscape Photography Tips to Follow

Cityscape entails intricate details which require right direction for cityscape photographers to take their shots.

The following tips will guide you regarding how to ace your cityscape or urban photography—

Take a Look at your surroundings

Urban photography is one of the most approachable genres as bulk of people globally dwell in urban areas. So, take out some time to explore the city you want to shoot and get your photography inspirations flowing.

Have a glimpse at the bustling people, big infrastructure, busy traffic, and other notable scenes to understand what and how you need to take shots. Always keep in mind that you can take shots of fascinating objects even in your backyard.

Just simply take your camera with you every day and practice taking shots of anything that you find amazing in every nook and corner of your city.

Map out your compositions

How you will shoot different views matter a lot, so hunt for unique angles, details, materials and structural elements that catch your fancy. Spot how the light in the space interacts with the different textures and elements.

While composing an image, envision what the final crop will be and what kind of geometry can be produced within the frame.

Don’t be scared of composing abstract images, creating deliberate blurriness, or breaking any photography composition rules. There is no wrong way to shoot an image. If something impresses you, shoot it.

Build your own style

As you take photos and review your work, you will likely start to find what is evolving in your photography style. It’s momentous to work on building your unique aesthetic, as that will define your work.

Try to find a sensibility that is visible across all of your images. It’s this sensibility that will make your work stand out from the crowd.

Stress on Shooting Movement

City spaces show up with both steadiness and movement, but the latter captures attention. That’s why movement is such a key element of urban photography.

Whether you are clicking long exposure shots or high shutter speeds, your images should always convey the dynamism of the atmosphere you’re shooting in.

This can be better accomplished by capturing moving subjects, such as people or vehicles rather than the shapes and views of static elements like buildings and other urban elements.

Always ask yourself if the shot you just took is a precise representation of the city landscape’s vigor and excitement.

Don’t Overlook Architecture Shooting

Cityscape photography is literally incomplete without architecture photography. Every city has prominent landmarks like monuments, buildings, churches, and more.

Make use of a wide-angle lens to capture an entire building. But this may create some distortions in the image. Make sure to leave some distance between you and your target to minimize perspective distortions.

Apart from that, look around for shops, train stations, futuristic corporate buildings, and anything else that looks thrilling.

Capture People Busy in Activities

Buildings, transports, and other urban elements exist due to city dwellers or simply people. You can’t nail urban photography but including people in your photography. We would recommend framing your shots first and then deciding where to fit people.

Take both candid and posed shots to add variety to your photography collection. As for posed shots, don’t forget to ask for the email addresses of people to send them the shots they posed for.

Ensure Headroom to Scenes

Space within the top of a photograph, especially when it comes to spectacular skies, can allow photographs to take on another dimension and help iron out distractions.

Headroom is also handy if you want to photograph a night sky with sparkling city lights. You can do that easily with a lower shutter speed.

When capturing an urban skyline, the negative space above the scene adds balance to the image and thwarts it from appearing cluttered.

Don’t forget the space below your cityscapes either. Water reflections can be a really innovative way to add another element of charm when you’re looking to find a new perspective in your shots.

Move Viewers’ Eyes through the Scene

While tapping into the rule of thirds, this lets you move the main subject off-center and to bring out a more effective play between the main subject and the background, allowing the eyes to move fluidly between both.

Successful compositions will have objects throughout the frame to lead the viewers’ eyes from one part of the image to the next. If you want the viewers’ eyes to be fixed on one main element, centering can work better in that case.

Considering the edges of your frame is overly important as well as viewers’ eyes will eventually start to wander off of the edges. This is why putting elements in the corners of your photo is crucial as it will push the eyes back into the scene.

Consequently, your photos will feel naturally more balanced to the viewers and they will delight spotting every bit of your work.

Challenge your use of color

We are used to seeing our surroundings in color, that it can be difficult to observe them in any other way. That’s why shooting black and white photos can help you showcase certain spaces from a wholly new perspective.

This is the rationale behind the fact that many urban images are monochromatic. But that doesn’t mean the lack of color make your images better. Color, like light, contrast, and composition, is just another element that transforms your work into what it is.

That’s why you should focus on the color as much as you do on the other components. If you’re shooting digital photography, you can leverage any free photo retouching software to see how your shots look with or without color.

This process will help you train your vision to look beyond the obvious, and eventually you’ll be able to figure out the value of color on a scene without any help.

Discovering Urban Beauty in Darkness

Cityscape night photography is an arresting genre that unveils the urban landscape’s unique intrigue under the cloak of darkness.

As the sun sets and city lights start to twinkle, photographers have the headroom to snap the city in a whole new light.

Shooting in Low Light Conditions

Nighttime cityscapes demand a perception of low-light conditions. Make use of a tripod to steady your camera and prevent blur. Opt for a low ISO setting to minimize noise, and open up your aperture to allow more light into the camera.

Clicking Light Trails

You can capture splendid light trails deploying an even slower shutter speed, like a few seconds or more. This effect is gained by shooting moving light sources, such as car headlights or city lights at night. The lights leave streaks of color across the frame, displaying the city’s animated movement.

Focusing on Skylines

The city’s skyline is breathtaking at night. Capture iconic buildings and landmarks brightened against the night sky. Experiment with various angles and compositions to click the skyline’s grandeur.

Play with Reflections

Bodies of water offer marvelous opportunities for reflection shots. The city’s lights dancing on the water’s surface can bring out surreal, mirror-like effects that inject depth and grandeur to your images.

Highlight City Nightlife

Take shots of the lively nightlife by shooting outdoors like bustling streets, outdoor cafes, and vibrant gatherings. The contrast between illuminated spaces and the darkness around them produces a fetching atmosphere.

Take Long Exposure Shots

Experiment with long exposure shots to shoot the passage of time. Keeping the shutter open for an extended period will let you shoot imposing and ethereal images that display the city’s lights as they draw dazzling patterns across the frame.

Cityscape night photography has the appeal that inspires you to explore the city from a fresh perspective. It embraces the interplay between light and shadows.

You can click enthralling images that capture the urban landscape’s nocturnal beauty by mastering the art of clicking in low-light conditions.

How to Touch up Cityscape Photography?

Post-processing is essential in elevating your cityscape photographs’ visual representation. It’s a creative process that lets you refine colors, contrast, and overall mood while maintaining the authenticity of the scene you shot.

Here is a simple guide instructing you how to post-process your cityscape images effectively with slight adjustments:

Adjust the exposure, contrast, and highlights to improve the tonal range. Be cautious not to overexpose or underexpose your shots and not lose details in bright areas.
Fix the white balance to make sure perfect colors. It’s pivotal, especially in cityscapes with various artificial light sources.
Streamline or fine-tune colors to make them pop. Adjust saturation and vibrance to maintain a natural appearance while stressing on the city’s lively elements.
Apply subtle sharpening to improve details without producing an unnatural appearance. Use masking to sharpen certain areas.
Nighttime cityscapes may contain noise due to low light conditions. Use noise reduction tools to notch up a cleaner and crisper look while preserving sharpness.
Fix any lens distortion to make sure straight lines and precise proportions.

It’s a Wrap!

Cityscape photography is one of the challenging genres of photography that demands proper guidance. Unlike taking selfies or informal party shots, this exciting photography genre requires you to focus extensively on factors like lighting, color, composition, and more.

And the good thing is that this write-up covered everything important for nailing cityscape photography. Now, it’s your turn! Bring together all the essential cityscape gear, set things up, and follow the above tips to ace your photoshoot.