To make this observatory project to become a reality, I’ve got a lot of planning to do! Part of that is figuring out what it takes to set up at the remote site and how to make that as easy as possible, and I’ve already made several trips out. Here are some of the first night sky images I’ve captured on those trips, as well as a few little projects that will make visiting easier.
Continue reading Building an Observatory, Episode II: First Light From the Land
I’ve described at length many of the techniques I use to shoot nightscapes. In this tutorial series, I’d like to keep things much shorter and pick apart some of my photos with minimal step-by-step instructions. The shot we’ll be going over this time was taken at 11,000 feet in Carson National Forest.
Continue reading Anatomy of a Nightscape, Episode IV: Tracked Sky, Stacked Foreground
I’ve described at length many of the techniques I use to shoot nightscapes. In this tutorial series, I’d like to keep things much shorter and pick apart some of my photos with minimal step-by-step instructions. The shot we’ll be going over this time was taken in the Pecos Wilderness of north-central New Mexico.
Continue reading Anatomy of a Nightscape, Episode III: HDR and Focus Stacking
I’ve described at length many of the techniques I use to shoot nightscapes. In this tutorial series, I’d like to keep things much shorter and pick apart some of my photos with minimal step-by-step instructions. The shot we’ll be going over this time was taken near Cabezon Peak in the New Mexico desert.
Continue reading Anatomy of a Nightscape, Episode II: Smartphone Scene Lighting
I love the challenge of pushing hardware to its limits. I did it professionally as a software engineer for over a decade, and now I do it for fun with my cameras. So when I found an already-cheap 50mm prime lens for $40 on Craigslist, I jumped on it. But can such a cheap lens produce good astro-photos?
Capturing our place among the stars in a photograph can be one of the most rewarding experiences for any astrophotographer. It can also be one of the most frustrating if you don’t put some thought into it ahead of time. Here are a few things you can do to minimize frustration and get the most out of your imaging sessions. Continue reading How To Plan An Imaging Session
Have you ever driven to the middle of nowhere to watch rocks burn up in the sky? If you haven’t, you don’t know what you’re missing! In this blog post, I share some pictures from my first meteor shower ever and some thoughts on planning for the next one.
The Earth is constantly in motion, rotating once every 24 hours and taking a lap around the sun once a year. If you want to take great pictures of the night sky, it isn’t enough to know just what you want to shoot, but when. An astronomy simulation app can make planning your next successful imaging session much simpler. SkySafari 5 Pro is one such astronomy simulation app. Can it get the job done?
