Sunset Beach Keep May

TOP CAPE MAY PHOTOGAPHY SPOTS

Great Photography and a Great Place to Stay

PHOTOGRAPHY GEAR LIST

  • A sturdy tripod will be vital for getting Milky Way and Waterfall shots.
  • A wide-angle lens will help you fit the majestic mountains into your frame.
  • Bring a telephoto lens and monopod for wildlife photography to help stabilize your camera.
  • Pack plenty of extra batteries and memory cards, as you’ll likely take many photos.
  • Bring your macro lens to photograph the vast landscapes and intricate details of the surrounding nature.
  • Pack an array of filters, from UV to polarized, to take the glare off the water and neutral density filters for long exposure to milky water effects.
  • Bring a spare set of fully charged batteries and extra memory cards; you never know when a perfect shot will present itself, and the last thing you want is your camera battery.
  • SEE BELOW FOR THE FULL MILKY WAY GEAR LIST

WHAT ELSE TO BRING – A PACKING LIST

  • Organic bug repellent. (Non-organic is very toxic)
  • Organic Sun protection. (Non-organic sunscreen is a cancer cause.)
  • Durable hiking boots for any trail or terrain you may encounter.
  • Have a waterproof backpack or rain cover to protect your equipment.
  • Packaging a rain jacket and long pants.
  • A hat and sunglasses to shield yourself from the elements.
  • A thermos for Milky Way photography nights.
  • Navigation tools such as a map and compass. A smartphone with a GPS app works.
  • First-aid kit
  • Knife or multi-tool

GEAR LIST FOR SHOOTING MILKY WAY


LIGHT POLLUTION MAP:

Light pollution map

CAMERA:

You will need a camera to manually control your ISO, shutter speed, and aperture.

LENS:

A fast, wide-angle lens of 1.4 – 2.8 is ideal. If you use a 3.5 or higher (slower lens), you must increase the ISO. The higher the ISO, the more grain or digital noise or grain will appear in your photos.

TRIOPD:

A good, sturdy tripod is essential for night photography. If it gets windy, you will need a sturdy one. Remember that when you buy one, it should be sturdy enough to withstand the wind but small enough to fit in your suitcase.

SKY MAP:

Sky Guide is available through the iTunes Store for $1.99. It has a 5 out of 5-star rating on both the current (3.2) version (1200+ ratings) and all previous versions (8600+ ratings).

FLASHLIGHT:

Our choice is Coast brand for flashlights. The ideal flashlight will have high lumens, and you can zoom in and out on the light emitting from the flashlight. Get the HP7, PX45, or the G50. Ideally, go with the  HP7.

MOON PHAZE MAP:

The best time to go is during a new moon; you want to be in the darkest area possible. The week before the new moon, when the moon has not risen, is a perfect time to go, so be sure to check the moonrise chart to see when the moon will be up.

REMOTE SHUTTER RELEASE:

When painting with light and over a 30-second exposure, you must have a shutter release to use your bulb mode. When exposing your pictures in general, you can use the remote release or use your camera’s built-in two-second timer.

CAMERA SETTINGS FOR MILKY WAY


ISO:

Start with ISO 1600 – 3200.  This is just a common starting point, and you will adjust from here.

Shutter Speed – Remember, the earth is rotating. If you leave the shutter open for too long, you will see star trails that will not make for a crisp image. We want crisp, non-star trail images. Here is the formula to avoid star trails—the 500 rule – Divide 500 by the focal length of your lens. So, if you have a 24mm lens on a full-frame camera, you will set your shutter speed to 20 sec. (500/24 = 20.83). If you are using a crop sensor camera, first do the math of the crop sensor to find the focal length. Cannon is 1.6, Nikon is 1.5. Convert to full-frame focal length, then use the formula. Nikon 18mm x 1.5= 27mm – 500/27 = 18.51 seconds.

APERTURE:

Depth of field isn’t critical on these shots, but letting the light into the camera is; therefore, you should shoot wide open if. If the depth of field is essential to you, try not to go too high. (wide open =the lowest aperture your camera will allow). You will have to increase the ISO some, giving you digital noise.

SHUTTER SPEED:

Now that the ISO and aperture are set in manual mode, roll your shutter speed until your meter reads (0) zero. Take a test shot and adjust from there. Remember, the earth is rotating. If you leave the shutter open for too long, you will see star trails that will not make for a crisp image. You can make star trails specifically, but that’s not what we are going for here since we started with Milky Way photography. We want crisp, non-star trail images when doing this.

Here is the formula to avoid star trails—the 500 rule – Divide 500 by the focal length of your lens. So, if you have a 24mm lens on a full-frame camera, you will set your shutter speed to 20 sec. (500/24 = 20.83). If you are using a crop sensor camera, first do the math of the crop sensor to find the focal length. Cannon is 1.6, Nikon is 1.5. Convert to full-frame focal length, then use the formula. Nikon 18mm x 1.5= 27mm – 500/27 = 18.51 seconds.

WHITE BALANCE:

In live view mode, you can change your white balance settings and see what it will look like. You can shoot in shade or cloud mode as a standard setting and adjust things later when editing.

LIVE VIEW:

To focus in the dark, use your camera’s live view, hit the zoom button, and focus on a bright star. You can also use the infinity setting on your lens but do several test shots to determine accuracy. It can be off a little on some lenses. You can also light it up with a flashlight, focus, then gently, without touching the focus ring, put the camera in manual focus so it will not search for the focus. You must do this each time you move your camera to take your next angel.

WHEN TO VIEW THE MILKY WAY:

The best images are usually of the dense part of the Milky Way. We can see this part of the milk way in the southern sky. During March, April, and May, the Milky Way rises above the horizon in the pre-dawn hours. In June, at about 10:00 p.m., you will see the Milky Way.  From July until October, you can see the Milky Way as soon as it sunsets, and it becomes dark enough to see about an hour after sunset. In November, the Milky Way no longer comes above the horizon. You will have to wait until March if you want to stay away really late or get up early to see her again.

See our Milky Way Hot Spot Locator and our Night Photography Information. 

The Seacrest Inn

Rooms and Information

  • All Rooms & Suites Non-Smoking
  • Free Wireless Internet
  • Easy walk to restaurants and shops
  • 100% Off-Street Parking

Book your stay today.

Address: 101 Beach Ave, Cape May, NJ 08204
  • Panoramic views of ocean, beach, and pool
  • Tranquil adult atmosphere
  • Fully equipped kitchens
  • Large heated swimming pool
  • Poolside gazebo
  • Poolside whirlpool
  • Beautifully Landscaped Gardens
  • Elevator
  • Health Club Passes
  • Coin-operated laundry
  • Daily Maid Service
ghost-hunting-lessons-square

Learn from award-winning photographer Pamela Goodyer, a psychic medium: photography lessons, tours and workshops.

Individual one-on-one lessons in Photography or ghost-hunting

Hire Paranormal Pam to bring on the apparitions and lead your ghost hunt, or join her on a Ghost Hunting Photography Tour.

CHECK FOR DISCOUNTS – NIGHT AND WEEKEND INSTRUCTIONS

Photography-Lessons-Pam-Goodyer
FOOD & DINING

FOOD & DINING

Add Your Restaurant Here. Do you want us to send our photography and ghost-hunting friends to your restaurant after their ghost-hunting trip? Put your restaurant information here. We will include a picture of your establishment, the website link, the phone number, and the information on your restaurant to make it easy for them to find you. INVITE US TO VISIT YOU; we are in Cape May a few times a year.

The best hotels while doing photography

HOTEL INFO

The Sea Crest Inn is the only place we stay. See above for complete details.

area information - photography

AREA

INFORMATION

Cape May Park and Area Information

Entrance Fees: There are no entrance fees to parks in Cape May, but you do have to pay to go on the beach during the season.

WEATHER

 WEATHER

Don’t forget that you can use a rain sleeve on your camera if it is raining. If it is bright and sunny, you want to use a low ISO such as 100.

If you are doing photography along with your ghost hunting on cloudy days, you can do running water or waterfall photography to avoid the glaring sun. You can also use an ND filter to get a long exposure for dramatic effects, even in the sunshine. If you ghost hunt indoors in abandoned places, be careful!

GOOD CAMPING

CAMPING

Add your campground here!

Do you want us to send our photography and ghost-hunting friends to your campground to stay during their ghost-hunting trip? Put your campground information here. We will put a picture of your establishment, the website link, the phone number, and the information on your campground to make it easy for our photographers and ghost hunters to find you. They are good at getting there in the dark.

Would you like to be featured in an article as a place to stay while doing photography or ghost hunting? If so, please send us an email. You will be surprised at how affordable our prices can be.


error: Content is protected !!