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Sunday, October 03, 2004
Follow The Drinking Gourd
Typical stargazing for this time of year: crisp, clear, with low-lying clouds reflecting light from St. Albans (our only occasional source of light pollution).
ntodd
October 3, 2004 | Permalink
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Comments
So how did you get such a clear shot? I'm assuming it was a timed thingie, or did you do it with a cable release?
Posted by: Michael | Oct 3, 2004 11:38:53 PM
I've got the same question. How did you manage to get a shot like that? I've been struggling to get night shots that are clear and crisp. Unless that is just at sunset.
Posted by: Rook | Oct 4, 2004 11:10:44 AM
Just mounted the cam on my tripod and did a 30 second exposure (I forget the aperture).
Posted by: NTodd | Oct 4, 2004 12:51:06 PM
I was on a college geology trip to Death Valley many years ago. Someone had a fisheye lens on his camera when he took a timed shot of the night sky. The stars showed up on the photo as long arcs of light from horizon to horizon....trying to remember if some shots had concentric circles because of the lens. But it was a fun experiment either way.
Posted by: ellroon | Oct 4, 2004 1:34:51 PM
Extra points for the title of one of my favorite spirituals.
Posted by: andante | Oct 4, 2004 4:21:23 PM
Ah, I remember a night astrophotography class out in the Mojave desert. We'd had "lights out" for a couple of hours, the sky was clear, the stars and planets beautiful...
...and I saw on obscure green glow on the ground in the distance but I couldn't resolve it with my own eyes. So, I trained my camera on the spot and did a 30-second exposure.
Upon developing the film, I wondered why I took a picture of a "one-way" sign!
Posted by: Darryl Pearce | Oct 4, 2004 4:50:03 PM
Great photo, ntodd!
Posted by: Penny | Oct 4, 2004 6:44:05 PM
Terrific photo. I can even make out Mizar and Alcor as separate stars. Nicely done.
Posted by: Bill Simmon | Oct 4, 2004 7:45:20 PM
ellroon - interesting. I wonder if the arcs were only due to the timed shot (as the stars moved), or if the lens had any impact on that aspect of the picture.
andante - extra points for getting the allusion! Figures a Quaker would. It seems our abolitionist past has something to do with it--it's my fave, too.
Darryl - was the sign for alien astronauts?
Penny - thanks! I just happened to be out playing with the dog, and ran back to get my cam and tripod. Confused the heck out of the dog.
Bill - yeah, I was extremely pleased M and A came out distinctly. 30 seconds was perfect for that, and for keeping all the other stars not in the Dipper much more muted.
Posted by: NTodd | Oct 5, 2004 12:09:32 PM
Buy me stuff off my 
