"Field of Stars" New camera set up, Milky Way shot

jsecordphoto · Jun 2, 2014

I've been absolutely loving my new 6D for shooting at night! It performs so much better than my 60d in low light, and my new Tokina 16-28 is an amazing lens. I loved my 11-16 for my old body but this 16-28 is unbelievable. This was at Lake Francis State Park in Pittsburg, NH- about 6 miles from the border of Canada. Easily the darkest location I've shot in, the airglow was crazy that night (the green tint to the sky) and it was amazing seeing the milky way reflect off the lake just with the naked eye. Might have pushed it shooting at iso6400, it's pretty noisy even after using Topaz Denoise. I have quite a few other compositions from here and another full panorama of the Milky Way from another amazing location we shot at over the weekend, I'll have to share those when I get around to processing them.

Thanks for having a look! I hope this inspires some of you to seek out some locations free of any light pollution.

IzzieK · Jun 3, 2014

'Wish I can too...but nighttime shooting is very limited where I am right now...btw -- nice shot!

jsecordphoto · Jun 3, 2014

IzzieK said:
'Wish I can too...but nighttime shooting is very limited where I am right now...btw -- nice shot!

Thanks! It's gotten harder to find a good area for me too, I live in a very touristy area on a big lake so the summer time it gets very busy. Over the winter it's a little easier because so many houses around are strictly summer homes. This photo was taken at a state park about 3 hours from me, well worth the drive!

mmaria · Jun 3, 2014

hey... that's very nice

jsecordphoto · Jun 3, 2014

mmaria said:
hey... that's very nice

Thank you! It was such a beautiful night! Waking up in my tent and it being 26 degrees wasn't so nice though haha

Msteelio91 · Jun 3, 2014

Amazing view! I agree though maybe turn down the ISO a bit. Fantastic work though can't wait to see more!

jsecordphoto · Jun 3, 2014

Msteelio91 said:
Amazing view! I agree though maybe turn down the ISO a bit. Fantastic work though can't wait to see more!

I have quite a few more compositions from last week to go through, can't wait to share! The 2nd night I went out I was shooting more around iso3200-4000 which seems far less noisy. I need to brush up more on noise reduction techniques, there's such a fine line between reducing noise and losing a ton of detail. The good news is that I get to visit amazing places like this while I practice!

memento · Jun 3, 2014

Awesome pic!

Just curious, why such high iso?
Why not turn it down as low as it will go and compensate with longer shutter?

Msteelio91 · Jun 3, 2014

Nice what software are you using? Lightroom has some seriously powerful noise reduction ability

jsecordphoto · Jun 3, 2014

memento said:
Awesome pic!

Just curious, why such high iso?
Why not turn it down as low as it will go and compensate with longer shutter?

Shooting the night sky, you're limited on the length of exposure time because after a certain amount you get trailing in the stars due to the earth's rotation. It also depends on the focal length of the lens you use, the wider the lens- the longer you can expose without trailing. Sometimes I will take a longer foreground exposure, usually multiple minutes long, and a 25-30 second sky exposure and blend them. This was my first night out with this camera and I wanted to see how much I could push it, but in hindsight I should've stayed around 3200.

I do some minor noise reduction in lightroom, and then some more significant NR using Topaz Denoise. I'd like to learn a little more about noise reduction though. I know from experience that shooting a separate foreground exposure at a lower ISO for multiple minutes can help a lot, but I have a hard time figuring out how long to expose for when its pitch black outside. It sucks waiting 4,5,6 minutes etc just to find out it wasn't long enough.

JerryVenz · Jun 3, 2014

Good job, I like the composition--too many photographers do these Milky Way shots and forget about the foreground! And yes you really don't need to go so high with your ISO. When I do these with my 5D MKII I use 3200 ISO for 25 to 30 secs. at f2.8 with my 15mm fisheye lens. That shutter speed gives me plenty of time to LIGHT PAINT foreground objects to take it to the next level!

Get out there and have fun!

Msteelio91 · Jun 3, 2014

To add about the ISO issue - you can also stack images to solve this problem.

EDIT: here's some good info for you http://ralphnordstromphotography.co...exciting-nighttime-photography-10-easy-steps/

terri · Jun 3, 2014

Great work! I look forward to seeing your next set. The feedback you've received about the iso should be helpful - aside from that, your composition is lovely, and you did a fantastic job taking advantage of an area with little light pollution.

It has an enchanted look - I love it!