Long Exposure Help

How are you focusing? Manually? Auto focus has trouble in the dark.

I focused manually, but it seemed to be having issues even in manual mode. I'm wondering if it was the wind causing the issues or if my settings were inaccurate. Thank you for replying, Edward!

F4.0 is rather wide open for a landscape shot. I'd go with F16 or more for more depth of field. The exposure will be longer of course which might lead to other issues.. You might want a longer focal length to zoom in on the buildings also.

Do you know if I should be taking these shots after dark or just before dark? The ones I took right at sunset seem to be better but the lights do not show up as well. I tried one at f22 and it was entirely too dark. When I zoomed in on the lights it also became more blurry.

Sorry I can't see your images well enough to tell what is going on due to the device I'm on. Here is an article with some good tips and examples of what stopping down does to a light source. http://www.lightstalking.com/starburst-effect/

Thank you, Priya! That was very helpful! Most images were shot at 5.6, because I read somewhere to use 5.6 to let in more light. I will give it another try at the f8 to f11 range and see if it turns out better. Thanks so much!

Twilight is the magic time - about 20 minutes after the sun sets. http://digital-photography-school.com/twilight-photography-tips/

Thank you, Edward!