The Night is Mine
Oct, 2016Views
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Winner in Dragons Photo Challenge
Peer Award
Outstanding Creativity
Superb Composition
Superior Skill
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Behind The Lens
Location
This picture was taken in the Anza-Borrego State Park. Anza-Borrego is a certified dark place and it has an abundance of metal sculptures dotting the landscape. Most of the sculptures dotting the landscape are of prehistoric animals that once roamed this area. This one is an exception to the rule.Time
I enjoy going out to this area around 2 to 3 am during a period of a new moon, or when there is a metor shower. I have for a long time wanted to get into night photography and with this area only 80 miles from my home it is a short commute. Now I understand why they say "If you want to be a photographer you need to want to go out and photograph at any time of day or night." I can always sleep later.Lighting
I have for a long time wanted to experiment with light painting. On this evening I was at different areas and experimenting with different lights and subjects. I can honestly say it is not as easy as one would think. I had one failure after another. Not to say the pictures weren't good, they just didn't say great shot. This was actually the last shot of the morning. When I saw the result on the back of my camera, I knew I had captured the shot I wanted.Equipment
I used a Nikon 7200 with a Tokina 11-16mm f2.8 wide angle lene. My tripod is a Benro. I also used a cable release. The light came from a headlamp switched to the red light.Inspiration
I was looking to do some light painting as I am new to the idea. I was hoping to be able to get a shot of the milky way in the background to help with the picture. There was to much cloud cover on this morning to be able to shoot the milky way.Editing
With the post processing about all I did was to remove the noise and add a little contrast and clarity to the shot.In my camera bag
I always pack my Nikon 7200. I will always have my go to lens a Tamron 16-300mm telephoto, a Tamron 90mm f2.8 macro, Tokina 11-16mm f2.8 wide angle lens, Tamron 150-600 telephoto, extra memory cards, cable release, batteries, filters, and micro fiber. For shooting at night I will take an extra bag with flashlights and headlamps and misc other items I might need.Feedback
In trying to capture an image like this it took many trips to the desert and a lot of practice with different angles, different lighting or no lighting at all. The desert is a great place both day and night to shoot photographs. If you don'/t get the shot the first time just keep going back and trying again and again. I would advise that before gong out at night, to go out during the day and scout your locations. It will help in finding the locations in the dark. I also take advantage of stellarium app on my phone to help locate where the milky way is going to be located at different time of the year. I also use the star chart app to let me know when the optimum time to go out for meteor shower
