How to Shoot Dark Sky Photography
How to set up your camera and more
WHERE TO PHOTOGRAPH THE MILKY WAY
MAINE COAST
An article about photographing lighthouses along the coast.
ROSCOE NY
(We went back, and the car was gone!)
PAMELA GOODYER AT PEMAQUID POINT, MAINE
DUNDAS CASTLE N.Y.
GHOST HUNTING & MILKY WAY
GRAND MANAN MILKY WAYTRIP
Our next destination is Grand Manan Island, located in Canada’s dark-sky territory. We are going there to photograph images of puffins during the day, but we also look forward to clear skies at night for stargazing and photography. There are two lighthouses that we will photograph at night, as well as rugged cliffs, beaches, and many other areas that might suit the foreground for our night photography.
Stop back shortly, and this section will be filled with more photography locations for dark skies.
MILKY WAY PHOTOGRAPHY SPOTS NEAR ME
Have you ever looked up at the night sky and been awestruck by the sight of the Milky Way? If so, you’re not alone – this magnificent spiral galaxy has inspired artists and photographers for centuries.
The starting point of Milky Way photography is finding the right location in dark sky areas and going during the months when the Milky Way is visible. Before starting, read our Dark Sky Information page, review the When to Go, and look at the Dark Sky map. Dark Sky Photography Resources.
WHERE TO DO MILKY WAY PHOTOGRAPHY
If you want to photograph the Milky Way, there are a few things you need to consider. You will need a location away from city lights. A clear sky with no moon in sight is ideal.
There are several ways to find a suitable location. You can use a light pollution map to find an area away from city lights. You can also look at the night sky for darker areas or check for national parks or wildland areas that might have dark skies. See more on locations below.
Once you have found a good location and selected your night, you must choose a subject against the Milky Way. Anything will work, but some subjects are better than others. Landscape photos with mountains, trees, balanced rocks or unique rock formations work well.
When you have decided on your location and subject, the next step is to check the weather forecast. You want a clear sky with no clouds or rain. The night should also be calm, with little or no wind. If possible, look for nights when there is no moon in the sky, which will give you an even darker sky.
PHOTOGRAPHY GEAR
One of the most essential things for this type of photography is a DSLR camera with a full-frame sensor. This will give you the best image quality and low-light performance. You will also need a fast lens with an aperture of f/2.8 or wider. A wide-angle lens is also essential for capturing as much of the night sky as possible. Finally, you will need a tripod to keep your camera steady during long exposures.
Other helpful gear includes a remote shutter release (although today, cameras have a 2-second timer), an intervalometer, and noise reduction software. A remote shutter release or setting your 2-second timer allows you to take long exposures without touching your camera, which can cause camera shake. An intervalometer automatically lets you take a series of exposures, which helps create time-lapse videos or star trail photographs. Noise reduction software can help reduce the amount of digital noise in your photos, giving you cleaner, sharper images. See more below.
POPULAR LOCATIONS
Some other popular locations include national parks, deserts, and mountaintops. Death Valley National Park in California is an excellent option because it has dark skies and an open horizon. The same can be said for Great Basin National Park in Nevada.
WELL KNOW NIGHT SKY PHOTOGRAPHY LOCATIONS
1. Death Valley National Park, California
2. Great Basin National Park, Nevada
3. Glacier National Park, Montana
4. Acadia National Park, Maine
5. Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
6. Big Bend National Park, Texas
7. Joshua Tree National Park, California
8. Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio
9. Shenandoah National Park, Virginia
CHECK OUT OUR WHERE TO DO MW PHOTOGRAPHY IN N.J. PAGE
GEAR LIST FOR DARK SKIES
LIGHT POLLUTION MAP:
CAMERA:
You will need a camera to control your ISO, shutter speed, and aperture manually.
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, it rises above the horizon in the pre-dawn hours. In June, at about 10:00 p.m., you will see her in all of her glory. From July until October, you can see it 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.
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