Well, haven't tried much night photography so I am very open to comments and suggestions. Anywho, this image was taken last night at the Lost Lake Campground. Wasn't sure how the moon was going to impact the image, but it turned out that I did get a decent glow on East Beckwith Mtn. I did darken the sky a bit since the glow of the sky around the peak was too bright.
Image was a 30 second exposure @ 3200, f2.8.
On this view, the moon had moved further to the west, thus much less light shed on Beckwith. This image was taken around 11:30 where the first around 10:30. Been awhile since I had this much night sky viewing. Amazing. Also amazing is how many aircraft fly over this part of Colorado at night!
Posted by Jeff Hackett on July 26, 2012 at 10:57 PM
I really like the first one here Ken. The color in the Milkyway is super cool!
Looks pretty good, Ken. I like the hint of moonlight on the mountain. The foreground looks out of focus, though. Especially evident in the larger version.
No doubt the foreground is soft. No sure how I would have corrected that with one image. I suspect a 30 second exposure was the culprit?
I suppose one solution would have been taking an image earlier (and brighter). Then combining that with a later darker image. During blending one could then darken the mtn to better match the realistic conditions. Just not sure.
Extended DOF using an f2.8 lens can be tricky and it's usually not the best quality aperture in any lens. So I use the method you describe (two image exposure blend) and it works a lot better.
Ken, I applaud you for going after Milky Way/ star photography. I'll let you do all the work and one day I'll buy a star shooting workshop from you!
Posted by Joshua Hardin on August 1, 2012 at 11:37 PM
What John said. Usually getting optimum DOF for both stars and foreground is pretty difficult with only one image. Two-image blends have worked great for me too: take one fast shot with ~f/2.8 for the stars, then immediately take a narrow aperture/long exposure at ~f/11 (or whatever aperture is generally sharpest with your equipment) for the foreground. Continue to switch between the two and combine the results in Photoshop.
I really like the comp on the second image. The Milky Way seems to be dropping right in the middle of the two peaks. I also like the unusual framing of the peaks toward the bottom of the frame. That is very cool!
Posted by Doug Koepsel on August 2, 2012 at 10:37 AM
I like that the first image has more foreground. In the second, the mountains seem cut-off. In both, you got the MW to show up well.
Discussion
8 repliesImage was a 30 second exposure @ 3200, f2.8.
I suppose one solution would have been taking an image earlier (and brighter). Then combining that with a later darker image. During blending one could then darken the mtn to better match the realistic conditions. Just not sure.
I really like the comp on the second image. The Milky Way seems to be dropping right in the middle of the two peaks. I also like the unusual framing of the peaks toward the bottom of the frame. That is very cool!