Super Moon - August 10, 2014
The August 10, 2014 super moon captured in the Provincetown Dunes. Tried two other locations before settling on this one. I have moved the moon a bit lower in the frame. Shot with the Panasonic Lumix GH4 and the Panasonic Lumix Vario 100 - 300 mm lens at 300 mm (600 mm equivalence). Please click on the image for a larger view.
Star-trails in the Southern Hemisphere
Finding Polaris or the North Star is easy in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, finding Sigma Octantis is very difficult. The star lies in the constellation of Octans and has a magnitude of 5.5 making it barely visible even on a clear night. One can use the Southern Cross to make an attempt at locating its position but it will never be really accurate. I did my best and set up my cameras to do a time-lapse. This was the night Germany played Brazil in the World Cup.My tripod and camera must have aroused the curiosity of the night security guard at Eagle Island Camp. He kindly moved my rig to a more secure position on the tiles of the swimming pool. This was after 395 images had been captured with about 105 to go. Sequence disrupted but in my opinion the stack is interesting. Sigma Octantis is in the top left corner of the frame - INVISIBLE.Stars in Africa are incredibly bright as indicated by the EXIF data. These images were captured using the Panasonic Lumix GH4 and the 12 to 35 mm Lumix Vario lens. Exposure triad: f/2.8, 13 sec, ISO 200 - no noise reduction required.In hindsight, I should have added an ND filter and increased the exposure to 25 seconds or closed down the aperture to f/4. This would have extended the individual trails.Your comments would be appreciated.
Time-Lapse Imagery - Published
I am so thrilled. My book is finished and is available in the Apple Store. It is an interactive iBook/e-Book that can be viewed using iBooks on a Mac or on an iPad.I am working on an interactive PDF version for all non Mac and iPad users. This should be ready in a week or so.
African Skies 2 - A Timelapse Video
Gunther Wegner the developer of LRTimelapse software has just released African Skies 2. This excellent time-lapse video showcases the beauty of the African landscapes and animals in film and time lapse sequences, that have never been seen before.The production took more than half a year - and has been compiled from 4 terabytes of raw-data. All editing (time lapse and even video) was done, using the new LRTimelapse 3.2 and Lightroom 5.2. !The video sequence can be seen on Vimeo but is available at a nominal cost as a HD video and a 4K video. The sale proceeds will be used to fund and support the African wildlife and environmental protection organizations. This funding was done from proceeds from the video too and I commend Gunther for his efforts. we decided to sell the film as download in much higher quality in Full HD and even 4K. With the revenue we again want to support local animal and environmental protection organizations.Click here to be directed to the LRTimelapse Web and then use the African Skies Tab to purchase it if you would like to support the cause.Please share this post with your family and friends. Gunther has created an excellent video and I hope this can be viewed by all. Please click on HD and open it in full screen view.[video type="vimeo" id="78610518" width="400" height="200"] Click here to be directed to the LRTimelapse Web and then use the African Skies Tab to view the video and purchase it if you would like to support the cause.
Another great "Glorious Acadia" fall workshop
Got back late Monday Night after a wonderful 4 day "Glorious Acadia" workshop. Had a great group of photographers and met some wonderful friends and made a few new ones too. All-in-all this was a 5 star workshop. One last one left this year in December - The Bosque del Apache and White Sands - a few spaces are still available.Here are few images form various locations:
I was looking to do something a little different during tho workshop. There are way too many images of the same subjects and the same tripod holes. Here isa lone dead tree lit up by the setting sun. I knew it was going to be a full moon so we stayed at the same location and turned around about 130 degrees. The next images is the moon rising.
The next image is a customary sunrise looking out toward Otter Clifs. A few more clouds would definitely have added to the image.
At otter cove I did an IR time lapse using the 16 to 35 mm series two Canon lens. This was a disaster as this lens just like to older version creates a massive hotspot in the center of the frame of each image. Trash canned the lot bout a deep crop on one image was useable.
I will be posting a few more images captured by the wonderful participants. I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of them for coming and being so supportive.
One final slow shutter speed image from the trip:
While waiting for the Aurora
Saturday March 16, 2013 - Predictions for a great Aurora Borealis were excellent. The solar activity promised the Aurora to display all the way South in Massachusetts. Being a big fans of this phenomenon my wife and I made reservations at an inn in Caribou, Maine. 7 1/2 hours later we were scouting out for good locations. The skies were clear as can be and the excitement escalating. We had dinner and drove out to the planned location. To cut a long story short, 14 degree temperatures were not going to stop us from photographing the Aurora. 5 hours later it is 3:00 and there is no sign of the event. We packed up and went back to the hotel. BIG MISTAKE - 4:30 the lights turned on and by 5:00 AM some of the most spectacular images were being captured but the lucky photographers while we slept soundly.While waiting I decided to take some short time lapses. Did one with the camera pointed at Polaris. This was a short 20 minute capture resulting in few seconds of video. The individual images were then stacked to create a star-trail.Here is the video:stars1The stack looks great - the glow in the lower half is light pollution from some homes and towers in the distance. Click on the image for a larger view.
Iceland - the Fire and Ice Photo Tour and Workshop
Got back after two glorious weeks in Iceland. The ever changing weather really kept me on my toes. Each day was a surprise - nothing like what was predicted the night before. It is fun to experience bone chilling gale force winds, hail that hits your face like BB pellets, rain that falls sideways, brilliant blue skies when it isn't overcast, the smell of sulphur, hot springs, and whole lot more.A few images of the Aurora Borealis will speak for themselves.The aurora on the first night was small but brilliant.
We chased the lights for quite a while the next evening and got a light level 1 Aurora
We had given up and were returning to the hotel. Just as we entered the outskirts of the city this spectacular display presented itself.
I will post more over the next few days.
Photographing the Aurora Borealis
I have added a new tip on my tips page on "Photographing the Aurora Borealis" Click here for a direct link
December 2012 - One Day Workshops
The One-Day workshops for December 2012 are now available. Please reserve your spot early as these do fill up fast.Click Here to be directed to the One Day Workshop Page and the reservation form. Call 617.759.0010 if you have any questions.
Yosemite and Mono Lake Workshop Day 1
After driving from San Francisco to the Yosemite Valley - our first destination was to capture "Tunnel View" at sunset. i will be posting images that were captured by participants as I receive them. I shill have a few spots open for the next two workshops in Acadia and the Cape.The weather was exceptional and the clouds were perfect for photography. The first image is a late sunset image where the light is just kissing the top of El Capitan:
This second image is from the same location capturing the brilliant after glow:
The flight path over the valley will ruin most images but on occasion a dissipating con trail can be an interesting feature:
This next image is a 20 second exposure of the "blue hour" looking left from Tunnel View:
Before packing up and returning for dinner I decoded to shoot one more image to capture the valley and the stars. The face of El Capitan and Half Dome show the lights from climbers headlamps as the bed down on the rock face for the night.
The Light of Cape Cod - Fall Workshop
October 19 to October 22 (three or four days, your choice)Mid Fall in Cape Cod is a multi faceted photo opportunity with truly spectacular scenics and some wildlife. The tourists have all gone, the Oyster festival is over and traffic is not a nightmare. This very special workshop is for all levels of photographers from beginner to advanced. The Cape provides some of the most incredible landscapes and seascapes and the light during fall is exceptional. We will explore and photograph the Capes classic sea shore, sand dunes, light houses and some wildlife (including migratory birds).Click Here for a PDF with more information.Registration forms are available on the workshop section of this site or click here
- Outgoing Tide and Marsh Grass
Iceland - Aurora Borealis and Winter Landscape Photo Tour & Workshop
After extensive research and planning the photo tour and workshop to capture the Aurora Borealis and the beautiful Icelandic landscapes is ready. The tour starts in Reykjavik on January 19 and concludes January 25, 2013. You do not want to miss this opportunity.I have teamed up with a world famous photographer Olgeir Andresson who has made photographing the Aurora his hallmark. He won the highest honor of photographer of the year in the Danish Zoom Magazine and his work has been shown in Times Square in New York sponsored by Kodak. You will not find a more experienced Northern Lights’ photographer.Iceland – The Land of Fire and Ice – is an experience for non-photographers and photographers alike. In addition to the Aurora, we will have opportunities to capture mighty glaciers, waterfalls and spouting geysers. Majestic mountains, magnificent coastlines and smoking volcanoes.We are now in the period known as 'Solar Max'. This means that sunspot activity which produces the aurora borealis is heightened, offering more chances to see the northern lights. Solar Max happens every 11 years in accordance with the solar cycle.More information is in the brochure and links to the registration forms are available from the workshop pageClick here for a PDF Brochure
Late June and Early July One Day Workshops
New Tip - Star Trail Imagery
Going through some of my notes and articles if found one ideal for tonight. This is on capturing star trails. Click here for the tip.