Coasting in the Elements
Washington Coast
Washington Coast
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Nov, 2015Views
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Winner in Away From Home Photo Challenge
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken on the Olympic Peninsula. I was on a school trip with my class backpacking 22 miles.Time
This photo was taken around 9PM. The moon had not yet risen, and it was our last day on the coast. The time of night and the time the moon was set to rise lined up perfectly to give me a shot of the milky way without much light pollution. This was 4 nights after the blood moon in Fall 2015.Lighting
The past nights, I was having trouble exposing the milky way properly because of the moon light in the atmosphere. When the moon hadn't risen, I grabbed my camera and set it up on the beach. I positioned the camera behind one of the shadows of someone sitting around the fire as to block out enough light to be able to expose both the fire and the milky way in the same shot.Equipment
This was shot on a Canon 7D with a Tokina 11-16 f/2.8 lens. The only other equipment was a gorillapod.Inspiration
It was the last night on our school backpacking trip. Our school is in a valley in Idaho. We usually don't get to see this much of the milky way because the mountains block it out. When I looked up and saw the milky way, I knew I had to get the shot. I ran to my tent and grabbed my camera and set it down on the beach and pressed the shutter. When the shutter closed and I saw the image, I knew it would be a winner.Editing
On this photo, I did some post processing, but not a ton. I boosted the clarity and contrast a little in the milky way, and corrected the white balance since I didn't have a chance to set it correctly when I was taking the photo. On the beach, I brought up the shadows a little bit, and toned down the exposure on the fire.In my camera bag
My bag usually consists of a whole variety of gear. I always have my Canon 7D and my Canon 24-105 f/4 lens. If I am planning on doing night exposures, my go-to lens is the Tokina 11-16. For all portraits and sports photos, I always have my Canon 70-200 F/2.8 IS II. This lens took a long time to save up for since I am only 15. I got it about 8 months ago. For accessories, I always have a lenspen, at least 2 extra batteries, microfiber cloth, gorillapod, and some other random adapters. When I am solely on a photo shoot, I will have 7 batteries and a full tripod, as well as a speed-light and wireless trigger.Feedback
On the Olympic Peninsula, there is rarely clear weather. We got lucky the week that I was there, and we had 7 days straight of clear skies with the occasional patch of fog in the mornings. This meant there was a lot of humidity, so I made sure to bring silica packets to keep my gear moisture-free. If your goal is to take a similar photo, make sure that the moon has not yet risen or that it is a very small moon. Any light from the moon will bake the stars fade away. Also, you have to be in the middle of nowhere to see the stars this clearly. I am lucky enough to live in Sun Valley, Idaho, which is a very small town. Here I can look up and see the milky way anywhere, but I was still surprised by how clear it was on the coast. Also to capture these stars, a wide angle lens (16mm or wider) and a low aperture (f/2.8 or lower) is a must.
