Astrophotography Blog: DSLR

Showing posts with label DSLR. Show all posts

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Yellowstone Astrophotography

During my trip to Yellowstone National Park the weather was mostly cloudy and rainy, and for several days I thought I would not be able to photograph the night sky at all. Yellowstone is famous for dramatic weather changes, and this trip proved it. Clouds, fog, and rain covered the park almost continuously.

Only on the very last night, shortly before midnight, the sky suddenly cleared for a couple of hours. It felt like a miracle. I rushed outside with my camera, knowing this might be my only chance. By the next morning it was raining again — so I was extremely lucky to catch this short window of perfectly clear sky. Yellowstone Astrophotography Old Faithful Geyser at night Canon 60Da Canon Lens EF 16-35mm f2.8L II USM Ultra Wide.

Yellowstone astrophotography of Old Faithful Geyser at night under starry sky taken with Canon 60Da and Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II.

Yellowstone is one of the darkest and most impressive places I have photographed. The quality of the sky is excellent, with very little light pollution, and the combination of geothermal features and the Milky Way creates a truly unique atmosphere. All images were taken with a Canon 60Da camera paired with the Canon EF 16–35mm f/2.8L II USM ultra-wide lens, a great setup for capturing wide night landscapes. Exposure time 30 sec; f/2.8; ISO 4000.
One of the most surprising and beautiful elements in these photos is the foreground. Normally, it is very difficult to capture natural color and detail on the ground at night. But in this case, soft light from the nearby hotel illuminated the grass and the area around Old Faithful just enough to make it visible, without overpowering the stars. This gentle lighting worked perfectly and added a sense of depth to the landscape.

Yellowstone starry sky night landscape panorama photographed with Canon 60Da — two-image night-scape astrophotography.

Yellowstone Starry Sky Night Landscape Photography - Panorama Night-scape Astrophotography Panorama of two images - Exposure time 30 sec; f/2.8; ISO 4000

Seeing Old Faithful Geyser under the stars was unforgettable. The steam rising into the cold night air, the illuminated grass in the foreground, and the star-filled sky above created a scene that looked almost prehistoric — like the Earth a million years ago. The combination of geothermal activity and a dark, crystal-clear sky made the whole landscape feel timeless.
This short window of clear sky turned what I expected to be a completely cloudy trip into one of the most memorable astrophotography experiences I have had. Yellowstone at night is magical, and I hope these images capture a little of that feeling.

Sunday, January 26, 2014

Astrophotography Equipment DSLR Webcam Collage

This astrophotography collage shows a small collection of images representing different types of astronomical photography: solar and lunar eclipses, planetary imaging, deep sky objects, the Milky Way, aurora borealis, and astrophotography equipment.

The collage also illustrates some of the equipment used for capturing these images, including a Celestron NexStar 4SE telescope, Canon EOS DSLR cameras, astronomy webcams, and large astronomical binoculars. Different astronomical targets require different techniques — from long-exposure DSLR photography for wide-field night landscapes to high-frame-rate webcam imaging for planets like Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars.

Over the years I have experimented with multiple astrophotography methods: planetary imaging using RegiStax stacking, solar imaging with a Coronado SolarMax telescope, wide-field Milky Way photography, and eclipse photography. This collage represents some of those early experiments and observations.

Astrophotography collage showing Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, solar eclipse, aurora borealis, Milky Way and amateur telescope equipment

Astrophotography Equipment DSLR Webcam Collage – Planetary, Solar and Night Sky Astrophotography

Most of these images were captured from New York City or nearby locations, demonstrating that interesting astrophotography is possible even under light-polluted skies. Other images were taken from darker locations such as national parks and remote observing sites.

Astrophotography Posts Featured in This Collage

This collage shows how different branches of astrophotography — planetary, solar, deep-sky, night landscape, and atmospheric phenomena — can all be captured with relatively modest amateur equipment. From photographing the rings of Saturn and the cloud belts of Jupiter to capturing the Milky Way over dark landscapes, astrophotography allows us to explore the universe from our own planet.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Blue Moon November 21 2010 Celestron 4se Canon 40D

This Blue Moon from November 21, 2010 was photographed in Brooklyn using a Canon 40D and Celestron NexStar 4SE telescope, showing how different white balance settings reveal natural lunar colors.

Color full moon (Blue Moon), photographed with Canon 40D and Celestron NexStar 4SE on November 21, 2010

Color full moon, blue moon, Canon 40D, Celestron 4SE

A blue moon can refer to the third full moon in a season with four full moons. The earliest recorded English usage of the term "blue moon" was in a 1528. In 2010 Blue Moon was November 21.

Equipment Used

Canon EOS 40D DSLR
Celestron NexStar 4SE Telescope

Color-Enhanced Blue Moon

1. Neutralize the colors (the median of the values of R, G and B is the same).
2. Create two duplicated layers.
3. First layer set as luminosity
4. Saturate the second layer.
5. Make invisible main background layer.
6. Play games with best parameters
So those colors are real, and the only difference is that they've been exaggerated a bit :)