How to take evening shots

Have you ever wanted to shoot the scenery at night? It's a little tricky for sure. A flash won't give you the light that you need to get the shot. And you really want to get those night colors.
If you have a point and shoot with a night setting that might work. However, since you'll need to keep that camera aperture open for a long time with a slow shutter speed, the best way to do it is to mount your camera on a tripod. Switch to manual settings — play with your shutter and aperture until something works well for you. Make sure you focus manually, probably by distance rather than eye, and start shooting. And keep shooting at different settings. It will take several tries before you get what you want, but that is the beauty of digital photography. You see what you get! And you don't have to worry about film. Just make sure you have plenty of batteries and a large enough memory card.
The following shots were taken just after sunset on July 4. I used a 55mm lens, focused to infinity, aperture (F stop) of F11, shutter at about 2.5 seconds. I took several shots before I got what I want. But that is part of the discovery process. You'll feel really good when you finally nail it. And if you don't — just love that delete button. (But don't delete until you view on your computer!) Photography, just as life, is all about the journey.
Most important, have fun!

The Ringling Bridge as seen from downtown Sarasota, FL, across Sarasota Bay.

Across Sarasota Bay from downtown, looking toward Longboat Key, FL.

Longboat Key, FL from across Sarasota Bay, and one glorious sky.