Search This Blog

Night Sky Photography

Posted
Night Sky Orions BeltI headed back out to Anza Borrego Desert State Park here in Southern California with my photography buddy, Denise, this past weekend. We took a class in night sky photography at the Anza Borrego Desert Visitor Center and then as the sun set we headed out with the other members of the class to Coachwhip Canyon to put what we had learned into practice. Although the canyon itself in the pre-sunset light isn't all that spectacular compared to others I've seen, that wasn't the point; we were going to be pointing our cameras up after all.

As civil twilight turned to nautical twilight (all the definitions of twilight were covered in the class and it was quite fascinating to learn all these distinctions) the stars started to show through one-by-one at first and then in bursts. Venus was there right from the start in the western sky following close to the crescent moon. Then came the first 3 stars of Orion's Belt, and then there it all was; the Milky Way.

Something that is incredible to observe is that many more stars show up in the photos than appeared to the naked eye no doubt because of the length of the exposures. Most of my shots were taken at 30 second exposures and I tried to keep the ISO setting as low as possible, starting out at 100 in the early part of twilight and not going past 400 as it got even darker so as not to get too much noise.

Right by where Denise and I were taking our shots a young couple showed up and built a campfire and started to prepare a barbecue under the stars. As they arrived I commented to Denise, "Well this will either be a good thing or a bad thing". As it turned out, it was a good thing and the light from their campfire actually added some great additional light and made for a good shot in itself as you will see in this photo: Camp Out Under the Desert Night Sky.

Here's a link to my Night Sky Photography slide show
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

Young at Heart: The Active Seniors Collection + Massive Redbubble Sale!

Posted
Ollie Grandpa Stepping into the freedom of retirement after a long, 45-year career completely shifts your perspective. You finally have the time to let loose, hit the road, and truly embrace the fun side of life! That joyful, unrestrained energy is exactly what I wanted to capture in my newest Redbubble collection. I'm so excited to introduce my new " Active Seniors " series, featuring designs that perfectly embody the "young at heart" spirit. The series features a vibrant, adventurous little old lady tearing it up, and a matching active grandpa catching some serious air on a skateboard or cruising on a bright orange motor scooter. Complete with flower-adorned helmets, flying striped scarves, and big, beaming smiles, these characters are a tribute to everyone who refuses to slow down. These make fantastic graphic tees, travel mugs, or stickers for your own "Fa...
Image

Finding Warmth in the Wild: A Western Gay Romance Story

Posted
Gay Cowboys Reading Under the Mountain Sky There is a specific kind of silence out in the wilderness, far from city lights — a quiet that draws people together. With my latest digital artwork, "Under the Mountain Sky," I wanted to capture that feeling of finding your own private world in the middle of a vast landscape. A Story by Firelight This romantic image features a gay cowboy couple sharing a quiet evening, settling in against a tree to read by the light of a campfire. It's a simple moment, but it speaks volumes about comfort, safety, and deep affection. I focused heavily on the lighting contrast to tell this story. The warm, dancing oranges and yellows of the fire represent that safe, shared space of connection. Outside of that glow, the cool purples and deep blues of the twilight mountain range stretch out, emphasizing that all they need is right there in that circ...
Image

Capturing Serenity: Dive into the Mystical World of the Pale Blue Iris

Posted
"Ethereal Iris" — the finished artwork. © John Corney The bearded iris is one of the most rewarding flowers to photograph, and one of the most difficult to photograph well . Its ruffled, almost impossibly intricate petals catch light beautifully — but they also sit in busy garden beds, surrounded by foliage and distractions that pull the eye away. This post is the story of one iris, and how it travelled from a quick phone snapshot to the finished artwork I've called Ethereal Iris . The Garden I Always Meant to Visit I first heard of Descanso Gardens many years ago, when it was featured on one of Huell Howser's shows on PBS . Like a lot of viewers, I watched, thought "what a lovely place — I really must go there someday," and then somehow never did. The years went by and Descanso stayed on the someday list. What finally got me there was my photography friend Denise, who sugge...
Image