My wife and I went to our place in Williams, AZ for the 4th, to get out of the Phoenix heat (it was 66°F during the fireworks!). I didn’t bring a lot of camera gear, but I did bring my tripod, so I decided to try a night shot. There is a small watering hole very close to our place, and I set up and waited for the sky to get dark. My wife wasn’t feeling well, so she wanted me back by 9:15. The sky still wasn’t fully dark at that time, and the crescent moon was up, but conditions were pretty good. I also didn’t have my good wide-angle, fast, prime lenses, just my 16-300mm Superzoom.
However, in the second one with the fireworks and the moon, you answered a question I’ve had for some time: according to Katy Perry, fireworks are even brighter than the moon, moon, moon, and I wondered if she was correct. Looks like, yes, they can be (in the “galactic centre” bit, if you will), but otherwise, not!
OK, here’s my second version. I didn’t get a chance to go back until the end of August, and the core of our galaxy is starting to get low in the sky. I’m going to try from a different location in two weeks, and that will be it until next spring.
This version was taken with my Nikon D800E and Nikon 20mm f/1.8 lens, which is a far superior combination than the first one (mostly due to the lens - the D7200 is capable of excellent night shots (but the D800E is better)).
This image is a composite of 25 sequential frames, stacked with “Starry Landscape Stacker,” which results in an almost noise-free image.
BTW, I also posted this in the “Dark Sky Location” thread.
Yes, that is a fantastic picture, but I was also browsing through your collection and you really have some impressive shots there. This, for instance, is a work of art!
