Posted by Rob Greebon on February 1, 2009 at 11:56 AM
Hi from the Hill Country near Austin, Texas.
First, thanks for the very warm welcome from Wayne Rhodus! I've lurked here and on the Rocky Mountain boards for a while. I've really enjoyed the posted photos by everyone - both creative and inspiring.
Now... here's my first photo. I figured that since our spring wildflower season here in the Hill Country is shaping up to be one of the worst in 50 years, I'd better find other avenues in photography. So I'm taking a hand at star trails. This photo is taken looking over Pennybacker Bridge - down the Colorado River - and straight at downtown Austin.
Howdy from Austin!
Rob
Posted by Rob Greebon on February 1, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Posted by Wayne Rhodus on February 1, 2009 at 12:44 PM
Well it's good to have you aboard with the inaugural image. And what a neat effect you've captured with the city nightscape! I really like the star trails and the starburst effects coming from the street lamps. Interestingly, I even like the one at extreme LL.
Sorry to hear you think the Texas wildflowers is going to be a bust. What are you basing that conclusion on?
Posted by Ed Cooley on February 1, 2009 at 1:29 PM
Very nice. Too bad about the wildflowers. Thanks for posting.
Posted by Rob Greebon on February 1, 2009 at 2:12 PM
Thanks, guys.
I'm basing the wildflower forecast on past years. It seems the wildflower blooms are based on rains we get in the fall. Two years ago, we received copious amounts of rain in the fall. The springtime wildflowers were absolutely amazing. A year ago, we got almost no rain in the fall months, and the lack of color was apparent. This past fall, we have received very little rain again, so I am not holding out much hope of even an average year. I hope I'm wrong. I'll certainly be ready to see some bluebonnets spring up around here in April/May.
Posted by Tom Kennon on February 1, 2009 at 2:59 PM
Welcome, Rob, what a neat shot. How long was your exposure?
Posted by Rob Greebon on February 1, 2009 at 5:06 PM
Thanks, Tom.
This photo is actually about seventy 30-second exposures blended with a free star stacker program (http://www.startrails.de/html/software.html). You load your exposures along with a dark frame and the program does the rest. I took various exposures of downtown in order to get the best crispness from 10 miles away, too, then blended the final product. I've found I get a lot less noise in my star trails if I use the shorter exposures blended rather than a longer exposure. (I can say I've botched a few of these, too!) It also helped that I had a little moonlight to brighten up the foreground.
Thanks!
Posted by Daniel Loomis on February 1, 2009 at 8:03 PM
Ahhh . . . it takes me back to my days at seminary in Austin. Beautiful city, beautiful image.
Posted by Randy Wilson on February 1, 2009 at 9:53 PM
Great work, Rob. The final product was worth all the work you put into it. Thanks for posting.
Posted by Brad Mangas on February 2, 2009 at 11:28 AM
Welcome Rob, very cool post and thanks for the link to the star stacker software, looks interesting. Looking forward to more great shots from the wonderful state of Texas.
Discussion
9 repliesFirst, thanks for the very warm welcome from Wayne Rhodus! I've lurked here and on the Rocky Mountain boards for a while. I've really enjoyed the posted photos by everyone - both creative and inspiring.
Now... here's my first photo. I figured that since our spring wildflower season here in the Hill Country is shaping up to be one of the worst in 50 years, I'd better find other avenues in photography. So I'm taking a hand at star trails. This photo is taken looking over Pennybacker Bridge - down the Colorado River - and straight at downtown Austin.
Howdy from Austin!
Rob
http://i.pbase.com/o6/66/765266/1/108750882.fDzX1ZGZ.Austinfrom360startrails.jpg
:- )
Sorry to hear you think the Texas wildflowers is going to be a bust. What are you basing that conclusion on?
I'm basing the wildflower forecast on past years. It seems the wildflower blooms are based on rains we get in the fall. Two years ago, we received copious amounts of rain in the fall. The springtime wildflowers were absolutely amazing. A year ago, we got almost no rain in the fall months, and the lack of color was apparent. This past fall, we have received very little rain again, so I am not holding out much hope of even an average year. I hope I'm wrong. I'll certainly be ready to see some bluebonnets spring up around here in April/May.
This photo is actually about seventy 30-second exposures blended with a free star stacker program (http://www.startrails.de/html/software.html). You load your exposures along with a dark frame and the program does the rest. I took various exposures of downtown in order to get the best crispness from 10 miles away, too, then blended the final product. I've found I get a lot less noise in my star trails if I use the shorter exposures blended rather than a longer exposure. (I can say I've botched a few of these, too!) It also helped that I had a little moonlight to brighten up the foreground.
Thanks!