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Winter nights can seem boring for the keen photographer, but here’s W a great technique to try all year round. Use a long exposure to get cool traffic trail effects when cars drive by. It’s something that’s hard to capture on a smartphone, and a pain to replicate in software, so it will mark you out as a skilled photographer.
Traffic trails are actually not that hard to shoot, but you do need to prepare. First, find a suitable (and safe) location. Try standing next to a busy junction controlled by traffic lights, or a slip road or a roundabout, where you’ll get vehicles coming past at different speeds. Capturing vehicles while they are turning can create interesting effects, too. You’re using a slow shutter speed, so you need a tripod and cable release to keep the camera steady.