If you’re just starting your photography journey or looking for something new, we highly recommend night photography as an area to pursue, here's why, as discussed by Focus Editor, Philip...
In Picfair's 2025 Trends Report, I discussed the advancement of night photography as a hugely popular genre of photography for the coming year. It was something that started with the heightened aurora activity last year, and an area of photography that proved to be such a hit, many beginner photographers discovered it for the first time. Also, due to technological advancements, there are now so many camera models capable of creating spectacular images at night; it’s no longer just something to be pursued by the professionals.
If you’re just starting your photography journey, like many who’ve signed up for a Picfair Store to showcase and sell their images for the first time, I highly recommend you consider pursuing night photography, or at least giving it a try.
Below are five reasons why night photography is so beneficial to your practice. We’re sure you’ll agree with them, and come to love taking photos in the hours of darkness!
What camera to use for night photography?
If you’re looking for a camera recommendation for night photography, look no further than our guide on the Nikon D780 which serves a fabulous companion for taking photographs in the hours of darkness.
Night photography tutorials:
See all our guides on night photography here.
1 The results can be mind-blowing
When you first start photography, especially night photography or photographing the starry night sky, I guarantee you’ll be wowed by what your camera can capture. Much of what your camera captures is invisible to the naked eye.
So, while you may see a typical night sky when looking up with your eye, leaving your camera to capture it can result in amazing things, like thousands of stars not usually visible or incredible aurora activity if you’re in the right place at the right time. You’ll also see different compositions, shapes, and colours that you wouldn’t consider photographing otherwise.
2 It's relaxing and allows you to stay still for a while
Taking photos at night generally involves a lot of waiting around in the dark, as you’ll be taking pictures with very long exposure times (learn more with our guides on night photography). While some may find that dull, use it as the perfect time to stay still, slow down, and be present. Moreover, as you’re generally going to be out when the world starts to slow down, everything is quieter and calmer.
When you begin to pursue night photography, you’ll soon realise how relaxing it can be to stand in the dark with your camera.
Popular subjects for night photography:
- Astrophotography (stars)
- Lunar photography (moon)
- Aurora photography (Northern and Southern lights)
- Cityscapes at night
- Street scenes at night
- Transport at night
- Mountains and coastal scenes at night (landscapes)
3 You'll get a unique perspective on a location
Visiting a spectacular location during the day is one thing, but going at night is entirely different. Also, while somewhere may look particularly exciting during the day, it can be transformed at night.
So, when venturing out with your camera at night, either way, you’ll get a different perspective on a place compared to if you weren't there during the day, and it can be transformative of the type of image you can get.
What’s more, wherever you go, be that an off-the-beaten-path location or a popular photography honeypot site, you’ll find that the majority of photographers who go there are going to be there during the day, so you’ll avoid any crowds or the possibility of getting the same photo as everyone else.
4 It challenges you
While night photography is becoming more mainstream and accessible, with more cameras capable of capturing the night sky, not every element is easy; night photography can be pretty challenging in many ways.
Once you delve deeper into night photography, you’ll realise that great care needs to be taken to get the best shots, with increased attention focusing, composition, ISO, exposure time, getting the shot right in the best conditions, and so on.
But this presents you with a fantastic opportunity to get even better at your craft, push yourself, keep learning, and get better images. Presenting yourself with a photography challenge is one of the best ways you can improve but also get some more satisfaction out of your photography too - as there’s really nothing better than that feeling of accomplishment with nailing a spectacular, and challenging image.
5 It's only growing in popularity (which means more revenue potential)
As we’ve discussed in several points above, night photography has surged in popularity, not just with image makers themselves but also with publishers, advertisers, marketers, and people looking for prints for their homes.
So, while you’re getting loads of positives from simply taking the pictures, you’re also increasing the sales potential of your photography, too, due to the demand for night sky images from potential customers.
Remember, any sales success you have comes down to how you market your photography to your customers and spread the word about your work. If you’re new to that too, or looking to establish an audience for your images for the first time, we can help you with that. Take a look at our guides on how to sell photos.
Final thoughts
I hope the above points have pointed out exactly why it’s worth pursuing night photography as a photographic genre to work in; you could well find that not only do you find the whole experience challenging (in a positive way), but also relaxing, and what’s more, you’re going to be amazed by the results you get, all this.
You also have a chance to make more money from your images due to the popularity of night photography. So, there’s never a better time to get started with the genre!
Follow these guides for all the technical know-how on taking pictures of the night sky or in dark conditions, then get out there!
What camera to use for night photography?
If you’re looking for a camera recommendation for night photography, look no further than our guide on the Nikon D780 which serves a fabulous companion for taking photographs in the hours of darkness.
