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Star Photography


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7 replies to this topic

#1
jhskyline

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I've been enjoying star photography, but would like to get better. I typically mount my Nikon D7200 with Tokina 11-16mm wide angle lens on a tripod, set the ISO at 1600, aperture at 2.8 and the shutter at about 25-30 seconds. Usually shoot in fine JPG mode and the star pics are pretty darn nice. Any suggestions on what I might do to make the Milky Way even more dramatic, etc.?  The Perseid meteor shower is coming this week and we're going to be in the mountains, so I'm eager to get some great shots with "shooting stars" in them. Suggestions anyone?



#2
dcbear78

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Shooting in raw and processing the file yourself will give a far greater ability to accentuate the stars.

As for the settings they are about right. Not much can be done to improve those. The only other way I can see to improve your images is find the best locations for them. As nice as the milky way is, it is when combined with a great landscape that really sets it off.



#3
jhskyline

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We're going to be camping at 7,800 feet in a remote corner of Oregon, far from city light pollution, so I have that going for me. Will try to have silhouette of alpine trees and or mountain ridge in the frame. Biggest challenge may be the near-full moon rising about 10:00 pm.

#4
bani12

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Maybe you can try light painting the trees while you're at it? It could help you create even more dramatic image and add more details to the foreground.

I hope you get the image before moon rising.


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#5
dcbear78

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I almost had a chance to shoot with Scott a couple years ago but fell sick and couldn't make it. I love his astro work. But I know he also takes some artistic liberties when he needs to.

 

https://500px.com/ph...user_id=2974549



#6
Wayben

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Wow, thanks for linking that.  Gives us all something to shoot toward.



#7
nbanjogal

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To get the contrast necessary to see the Milky Way, you need to shoot on a completely moonless night. Even the tiniest bit of a new moon will throw too much light for the stars to stand out. Just to show you an example, this was taken just before the moon set, and it was a brand new moon, so just a little sliver was hanging out lighting up the sky and the Milky Way was quite faint:

 

30199580414_6ca507ab8b_b.jpgCathedral Gorge, Nevada by Nicole Fernley, on Flickr

 

This was taken in the same location at another time of year right around the same time of night with NO moon at all. The Milky Way stands out much more:

 

34981722745_650934ba6f_b.jpgMilky Way over Cathedral Gorge by Nicole Fernley, on Flickr

 

I blogged about my experience shooting the Perseids a couple of years ago. Maybe you can benefit from all the mistakes I made ;) :

 

Shooting the Perseids: A Study in Mediocrity - NikonForums.com

 

I was shooting up in Idaho, so I don't know how different the sky will be in Oregon (probably not much), but I discovered that the Perseids were coming from a northern point in the sky, but the most spectacular part of the Milky Way is usually in the southern part of the sky, so they didn't really meet up. That being said, I did manage to capture a shooting star or two with the Milky Way. 

 

I learned everything I know about Milky Way photography from Royce Bair, and his blog is full of good how-to info:

 

Into The Night Photography

 

Hope any of this helps. Good luck.



#8
Ray Bunyan

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A Skywatcher Star Adventurer will sort out long (5 minute) exposure i used one with a Cannon 600D your be better looking on a Astro Site for "how to do it" though....