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Rhyolite at Night
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Rhyolite at Night



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My first trip to Vegas, and I couldn't wait to get out of the city and away from all the people! I took my friend's 6D, packed my tripod, then drove o...
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My first trip to Vegas, and I couldn't wait to get out of the city and away from all the people! I took my friend's 6D, packed my tripod, then drove off to this little ghost town out in Death Valley. When I got there, I realized that I left the baseplate for my tripod on my own camera, and had the wrong one on my friend's, so I couldn't even use the tripod. I ended up using a scarf and my lens cap to prop up the camera as it laid on the road, then did my best to not doze off in case a car came, since it would easily drive right over it (and a car DID come, despite how remote this location was! You can imagine how fast I scrambled out of my car haha). I did a short time lapse of this, as well.
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cameraCanon EOS 6D

settings ISO 3200 Shutter 30/1 

upload_dateDec, 2015

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2 Comments |
AliAlzuhair
 
AliAlzuhair March 17, 2016
Stunning!
MellyDantes
 
MellyDantes March 25, 2018
Thank you so much!

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Tags

#milky way
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Behind The Lens

Location

This photo was taken at Rhyolite, out in Death Valley. It was my first time to Las Vegas, and I couldn't wait to get out of the city to the dark skies. A very generous friend let me take their Canon 6D with me for my trip, but alas, I forgot to switch the tripod mount, so I had to carefully (don't tell him!) prop the camera on the dirt road, and try to stay awake for any cars approaching. I was able to get a small time lapse (another photographer did come later on, so I did have to move the camera!) as well.

Time

Started taking photos around 11pm.

Lighting

My hope was to find pitch black skies, but there was a bit of artificial light that came into play.

Equipment

Canon 6D, 14mm lens, Lens cap for a mount :)

Inspiration

The night sky always inspires me! I love seeing what my camera can show me, that my own eyes cannot see. Nothing is more rewarding than setting up your camera, running back to the car to read a good book, and an hour or two later, picking up your camera to see what stories it captured! I try my best to get this experience any chance I can with the few places I get the opportunity to travel to.

Editing

Very little on this photo. I am still very new and green behind the ears on post-processing!

In my camera bag

My (broken) Canon T3i, and a 14mm lens.

Feedback

A full-frame camera is great for Milky Way shots, and most preferable. Having some sort of control for timing is essential as well, and a sturdy tripod (or gravel road and lens cap!), and some fingerless gloves. You definitely need a good book and a warm place to hang out if you are doing time lapse, so either a tent or a car. If you can use an AC adapter instead of batteries, you won't have to worry about moving the camera to replace a dead battery.

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