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At my own expense, I offer all of this to you: a humble tribute to Mother Gaia. It is my hope that you will spread my art and message to others, uplifting and inspiring their souls.
May my works guide photographers illuminating their path toward creating stunning and impactful images that show the raw beauty and essence of life in all its transcendent glory. —Pamela Goodyer
Spring and fall are great times to visit. This beach town gets less crowded in the spring and fall, and it gets very busy in the summer, especially on the weekends.
This is a DARK SKY area that is good for Milky Way. So keep this in mind if you want to pair this up with a Milky Way trip.
Months: The Milky Way Core can be seen from March to October, disappearing below the horizon for the rest of the year. It appears in the early morning hours in March and becomes visible earlier each month. The best time to catch a glimpse of the core is during summer when it can be seen immediately after sunset, providing an ideal viewing opportunity for stargazers and photographers.
New Moon: Timing is crucial to see the Milky Way. This celestial event can only be seen on clear nights without a visible moon, limiting the window for viewing.
Light Pollution: The best way to experience the full wonder of the Milky Way is to escape from areas with heavy light pollution. However, it may be possible to see some faint traces of the galaxy from places with mild artificial lighting; the most spectacular views can be found in remote locations far from cities and civilizations. Check out our How to Section for more details, including using a light pollution map to guide you to dark sky locations.
This area can be explored and photographed in just a few hours. You will want to pair this up with other great photography locations.
Take the Garden State Parkway
GPS Coordinates
39.76327, -74.10623
ADDRESS FOR GPS: Broadway and The Bay, Barnegat Light, NJ 08006
New Jersey Photography Locations
There’s plenty of other New Jersey shore area photography.
It’s not too bad. The parking lot can get busy, but we’ve never had to walk very far. Just keep in mind this island is a beach. Town. So, the area can generally be busy driving through in the summer months, but the park is not that busy.
You can scoot about town during the daytime and photograph boats on a dock, the museum, some gardens, and other things. Some pictures are below.
We loved our stay here at the perfect location near the lighthouse. We visited during the week, and this end of the island was tranquil, just like we liked it. We had a fabulous dinner just a few blocks. These rooms are immaculate and very affordable. It was very peaceful. This is a very quiet side of Long Beach Island.
Great Coffee at a Great Price!
You ask where to go for coffee before Milky Way photography on Long Beach Island? This is the only place to go in this area. How are you Brewing? The coffee at the Inlet Deli on Broadway was very weak compared to the perfect cup of coffee you will get here. At the Inlet Deli, the breakfast sandwich was expensive and not filling. The Anti-President soda cans on the counter were offensive, and the overall experience was not fabulous. The coffee and the lack of eggs on the egg sandwich are the reason we will not return. Considering lunch meat is a cancer causer, we would not go here for lunch either. There is a restaurant next to the lighthouse, but they only take cash.
You will need a camera to manually control your ISO, shutter speed, and aperture.
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.
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 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).
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Entrance Fees: None
Gate 8 am to 4 pm DAILY. Cars must be removed from the lot by 4:00 pm.
Park Office Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Lighthouse hours: 9 am to 3 pm WEEKENDS ONLY
Entrance Fee: None
The 32-acre park was created in 1957. The main attraction is the lighthouse, which you can climb for one dollar during summer. Climb to the top to see the surrounding area.
The lighthouse is open (weather permitting) from April 1 through October 31, 9 a.m. to 4:30 a.m. From April 1 through October 31, it is open from 9 AM to 3:30 PM, Wednesday through Sunday.
Don’t park in the parking lot to do Milky Way photography. Park just outside of it. They lock the gates at night. You can stay in the park all night long. We met a new friend while doing Milky Way photog here, and he was considering staying until sunrise.
It is a must-see when visiting Long Beach Island.
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 your information on your campground to make it easy for our photographers and ghost hunters to find you.
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.
The North Shore Inn Barnegat Light
This Motel offers you everything you need: immaculate rooms and great management at one of the best prices in the area. Look no further.
This is our choice for motels in the Barnegat Light area.We highly recommend you stay here!
The inn has spacious rooms with air conditioning/heat, secure and FREE wireless internet, cable TV, and daily maid service.
All rooms have convenient outside access and are ALL non-smoking.
Most people who visit the island’s north end want a quiet, relaxing stay. They accomplish this. Our stay was peaceful and relaxing around our photography journey.
Add your hotel here! Do you want us to send our photography and ghost hunting friends to your hotel for their ghost hunting or photography trip? Put your hotel information here. We will put a picture of your hotel, the website link, the phone number and your information on your hotel.
Would you like to be a featured hotel like this article or this one? Please send us an email. You will be surprised at how affordable our prices can be.
Daymark Restaurant
We had a great experience at the Daymark Restaurant in Barnegat Light. It was only a block from our Milky Way night photography location at the lighthouse. The restaurant had a modern, elegant style and outstanding service!
Aside from our top-notch service, the manager made our experience special. He took a great interest in our desire to see more vegetarian dishes on the menu. He was passionate about bringing excellence to this business. He listened intently to suggestions and showed his devotion to the company. We enjoyed speaking with someone who showed genuine concern and had an outstanding work ethic, one of a caliber that is hard to come by.
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 put a picture of your establishment, the website link, the phone number and your information on your restaurant to make it easy for our photographers and ghost hunters to find you. They are really good at getting there in the dark.
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!
Photography, Lessons, Workshops and Classes.
Roscoe New York Photography Hot Spot Location
