Fun at Lighthouse Park

[dooda]

I went to my absolutely favorite place ever last night, caught a couple of pictures, had some fun, relaxed, and even met some other cook who likes to walk through the woods (about 1 kilometer) in the middle of the night to enjoy the moonlight. I find this place really rejuvenating.





Critique and comments are welcome. I'm sort of torn, I really want to go back tonight, but there's another area that's calling my name as well.

THe lighthouse pic was about 3 1/2 minute shutter, the other one was 5 minutes. Both taken with the Sigma 10-20 mm.

[leek]

Nice images Dave...

It's probably distortion caused by the WA lens, but my eye keeps getting attracted to the lighthouse that doesn't appear to be quite vertical.

[dooda]

Oops, i should have corrected that. I keep forgetting to since getting this WA. I'll correct it in a little bit. Thanks!

[Slider]

Fantastic shots. The 2nd is a beauty

[Willigan]

Great shots Dooda. It's a pity about the red streak on the right in the second one - it's a little distracting

[Alpha_7]

Lovely stuff Dooda! As usual your night time shots are inspiring and relaxing to view!

[NikonUser]

Very nice.

I love the first one. The detail in the rock in the foreground and also on the rocks that the lighthouse is sat in is great.

Colours are really nice too.

Must be quite a solid setup you have to get them that sharp at 3.5 mins!!

Paul

[dooda]

Willigan, I could have cloned the red streak, but I like it too much. It's at a dynamic angle, and the sweep of the stars sort of leads me to that direction. Also, it's not that strong, so for me it doesn't pull me away, (unlike direct light which is my nemesis).

I'd be interested in hearing what anyone else thinks about the red reflection.

[NikonUser]

My choice would be to clone out the red reflection.

[dooda]

Heh, my setup consists of a $95 slik. Really light weight so I can hike long distances and not worry about it. Easy to stow along. I recently added a Velbon ballhead so I could get my shots level.

[ABG]

Lovely images Dave - the first one being my favourite. I quite like the red reflection and wouldn't clone it out personally.

[PiroStitch]

Dooda,

Awesome pics! I'm constantly scratching my head over your pics as they just blow me away! The midnight landscapes all look very surreal and alien, like something straight out of a sci-fi movie. Great stuff!

[Bretski]

Mate... that first one gets my vote... what a great shot...

[Willigan]

Willigan, I could have cloned the red streak, but I like it too much.

Yep. Fair enough It's just a preference thing - I just thought it was off-putting as it was at an intersecting angle to the star trails.

[BT*ist]

The first one is gorgeous. I had no idea you could get such an even amount of light in 3.5mins at night!?

[huynhie]

Great shots Dave.

I can't decide which one I like more, both are fantastic.

[dooda]

BT*ist

This is why I shoot so often at night, especially by moonlight, is because the light is MORE even. With the sun glaring everywhere, a perfect exposure is never possible and you have to blend everything in layers. At night, the light is much more even, especially when the moon is out.

[flipfrog]

dave

how do you decide on your exposure time (shutter) when u shoot in bulb? is it a matter of trial and error?

and out of curiosity , why f6.3 ?

[dooda]

Dee,

I tend to do a couple of pictures at ISO 1600 with NR turned off. This gives me a base for exposure times, and all the rest of the shutter times will be around it. When I move it back down to ISO 200, I simply multiply the shutter speed by 8.

I can't remeber why 6.3. There was probably a good reason, but probably not a great one. It depends how long I think I can stand waiting, and how big an effect I think it will have on the picture.

[flipfrog]

so your test shots are made in program mode at iso 1600, right?

[Onyx]

Dave, you should place yourself in these landscape images. Just sit yourself infront of the lens after you trip the shutter. For that "I was here" type shot. They're gorgeous breathtaking scenes.

[dooda]

Their you go Onyx. I actually throw myself in there every so often for fun. I've thought about going back and having a small candle lit on the rocks, lighting up my face a little bit.

Dee, no I always shoot in manual. I'll set the apeture I want, then go ten seconds or so depending on how much light there is. Make sure I get it right at 1600 and then go down to 200, multiply shutter by 8, turn on NR