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Have a Good Night (with Photography)

If you have never taken the time to view dark skies, where you can marvel at and perhaps photograph stars that aren't visible in our light polluted communities, the next few months will be a great time. Photographing the night sky can even be done with a smart phone, which might interest those of you who aren't so serious about photography. 

Indian with Cross

Looks for subjects that might work well with star trails. Multiple exposures were taken over a 20 minute period, then combined.

Corona Arch

The immense size of the Corona Arch is shown against the vast universe. Exposures taken over a 30 minute period with thin clouds resulted in a brighter sky.

When and Where to Go

When we think of stargazing, we think of constellations and the Milky Way. While constellations are visible year-round, the brightest part of the Milky Way (the galactic center or core) starts appearing above the horizon in March, then continues to be visible through September. This is nice and convenient because it gives us warmer nights to be out in the dark.

The core is most visible in the southeastern sky early in the morning (around 4 to 6 am) in March. Each month thereafter the best time to see the core moves up a couple of hours. So May is best from midnight to 2 am and June is best from 10 pm to midnight. Apps such as PhotoPills show you exactly where the Milky Way will be at any particular time while on location or during pre-planning. Go on nights that are within a couple of days of the new moon for the best viewing.

You will need a dark viewing location. In the desert southwest, there are many wonderful locations. I have recently photographed the night skies near Borrego Springs, at Death Valley National Park and at Joshua Tree National Park. But there are locations throughout the southwest and in many other photogenic spots, especially west of the Mississippi River. You might find a dark sky map helpful in choosing a location. A good resource is available at Light Polution Map.

If you are only interested in smart phone photography, do online searches for stargazing nights in your area. You might discover that there are groups set up with telescopes. Some astronomy aficionados will even let you hook up your phone for a "deep sky" picture or two. 

Bring a camp chair that is comfortable for leaning back as you watch the night sky unfold. If you have picked a night with meteor showers you will be especially rewarded. A great way to remember your experience is to set up your smart phone camera on a mini tripod with a phone holder. These can be found on Amazon for around $15. Set your camera phone to "timelapse" and let it run for at least an hour. You will end up with a beautiful video of the the moving sky. A few clouds will make it even more appealing. For even more control and better images, download NightCap Camera for IOS. This will allow you to take long exposures.

Joshua Trees at Night

Discover dark sky locations. I visit Joshua Tree National Park for workshops and with private clients. There are countless compositions to find with large boulders and Joshua trees.

Photographing the Moon

The moon is much brighter than the stars, even when it is rising or setting on the horizon. During an eclipse, it is possible to also capture stars at the same time as the darkened (blood) moon. A telephoto exposure of the moon was combined here and placed over the location or the moon as it appeared over the rocky silhouette.

Themes of AstroScapes

As a landscape photographer I always teach compositions that include a nice foreground or landform. There are several different techniques that result in quite varied results. I do not encourage mixing skies with foregrounds that were taken in different locations (composite photography).

We call photos that mix landscape photography with night skies "astroscapes" or "nightscapes". These can involve star trails, a full panoramic arch of the Milky Way, or the isolated core of the Milky Way. Star trails require a very long exposure (usually 20 to 40 minutes) or many short exposures (say 30 seconds each) over the same period, blended together in a single image. Panoramic images such as the banner at the top of this page require multiple images stitched together into a single image. To isolate the Milky Way core use a 20 mm to 30 mm lens.

We can also photograph the moon, especially when it is low on the horizon or during an eclipse. An additional fun technique is to take a time lapse. This can be done with most cameras, but also with smart phone cameras that have the timelapse feature. You will see the stars moving across the sky.

Learning these with advanced cameras is quite involved and best learned in the field. But a review of YouTube videos on the techniques can be quite helpful. There is a video for smartphone users here. There are many more that can help you if you search them out.

Mesquite Milky Way

Early in the season, and as the Milky Way rises in the southeastern sky, the core will appear at an angle just above the horizon.

Navajo Sky

Later in the season (summer) and later in the evening (or towards morning) the Milky Way will become more vertical. Plan compositions that compliment the angle of the Milky Way.

Wildrose Charcoal Kilns

It took some time to properly light the kilns to create the "astroscape" I wanted to record. Foreground lighting techniques and proper post processing are taught in my workshops.

Milky Way Photo Workshops and Private Sessions

I recently completed a workshop at Death Valley in conjunction with Photographers Trail Notes. You will find a couple of images from that trip below. The next workshop that includes astroscapes is at Joshua Tree National Park. This is a beautiful night sky location right here in Southern California. Most of our images face east, away from the light pollution of the big city. May and June are particularly favorable times to plan to photograph the night sky in the desert because cloudy skies are rare and nighttime temperatures can be quite pleasant. 

Cameras see light that we cannot see well with our naked eye. Most of our cameras are actually tweaked so they don't record everything that is there, but they still capture a ton of light from the dark sky. It is awesome to say the least! Contact me if you would like to photograph the night sky and learn the special post processing techniques that bring out all the camera records.

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