Last Sunday, the hubby and I drove to Mt. Charleston to meet some photographer friends.
The drive is just about 45 minutes from our house and it is so far removed from the city lights and the noise of Las Vegas, that it replenishes the soul.
The atmosphere is degrees cooler than the city and requires a jacket at night.
The pine trees emit a woody aroma and fills our senses with simplicity in all its perfection.
The photo above is a practice shot of the stars. I believe this was a 15 second exposure.
Our purpose was to capture star trails but we needed to practice before we began the long shutter speed.
These are the actual star trails.
The shutter was set to bulb and left open for 15 minutes on this exposure, ISO at 200 and F stop at f-4.
In the menu setting, the NR (noise reduction) was turned on, therefore, even though the exposure was 15 minutes, it took another 15 minutes to process the photo because of the NR, meaning that to get one photo it took 30 minutes.
I also learned that in order to get the comlete circle of star trails you have to be facing the north star, otherwise you just get half circles or crescents. Interesting, huh?
I've been enjoying the night photography and tonight I may get some more star trails.
It just depends on whether or not the location is far enough from the city.
We are going to an event called Desert Under The Stars and we get to look through telescopes & learn about the constellations. It's free of charge and I believe we are allowed to bring our cameras and tri-pods.
The event is being held at Corn Creek Road off Highway 95 just north of Las Vegas. It is also the location of the Nevada Wildlife Range. I've never been there before so hopefully, it will be a good night.
I wanted to participate in the FMTSO this week but I just didn't get any fresh photos for the theme. I have plenty of human labor in my archives but It's been a busy week.
The hubby and I are preparing for a trip so I've been doing lots of shopping lately to get ready.
Can't wait to get out of this town and be around people who want to be near me and are interested in my life just as much as I'm interested in theirs. I'm so sick of Las Vegas and the people who use other people.
Sorry, I guess I needed to get that out.
Both are beautiful pictures JarieLyn, but I really love the first one. The stars look perfect. I hope you enjoy your trip, it is nice to get away once in a while.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful shots. Night photography isn't something that I have done much off. I love the star trails.
ReplyDeletevery clever of you to make the stars go round and round.
ReplyDeleteI had not seen both grandmas for almost 10 years, so when I saw them with permed hair, I couldn't get used to it. Both of them must have made a pact, forget the old feudal custom, and permed their hair at about the same time.
When i asked her why, I cried and said I like her with her bun, she said I won't understand. she had to groom her long hair every evening and morning. In the end, I think she was thinning, so she took the plunge, and cut the hair she had for 70 plus years. All the freedom!!!