Night Photography Along Hwy 62
I was viewing some photoblogs last night, and one site I visited had some great night shots posted (sorry... can't recall which site, but trust me, they were excellent photos!). It inspired me to grab my camera and tripod and drive down to the highway to experiment with some night photography. I have a lot to learn and figure practice makes perfect (or at least improvement). On the opposite side of the highway there is a radio tower or antenna of some sort, so that was my first target.
This next photo is just turning the camera directly towards the highway... the car lights become a single streak of light. Some stars are visible, and you can see the lights from 29 Palms Marine Base in the background.
The next photo was taken in the opposite direction from the highway... back toward the hills. Much less light from this direction, so I dropped the f stop a little and increased the exposure time to about 2 minutes.
I like the wispy clouds. A problem with these longer exposures is the stars move and start to look blurry.
Repeat photo from above, but I used a flashlight to lighten up the foreground. Kind of a fun effect.
Time to head home. Picture a very dark, beautiful night on a dirt road out in the desert in the middle of nowhere... so stopped the car to take a photo out the front window (hand-held long exposure, so a little shaky, but I like the photo). Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Love these! I also like to experiment with night photography but rather tricky isn't it! The last photo is my favorite - such contrast (in many ways) between in- and outside....
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with Wilma-the last photo is my favorite; it was probably the easiest for you to take, too! It really highlights the darkness and desolation of the desert.
ReplyDeleteI NEED to start taking some night photos! Maybe when we are up in the Sierra this next weekend! Thank you for inspiring me!
ReplyDeleteThe desert is the only place I dabble into nighttime photography. Here is a fun thing to do. Set the camera on the tripod and trip the shutter to remain open. Then stand off to the side with a hand held strobe flash and back-light the cactus and rock features. You can even stand within the frame of view and trip the flash. As long as you're behind it you shouldn't be seen. Experiment and have fun.
ReplyDeleteNew follower and newbie to photography. I have yet to try nighttime shots.
ReplyDeleteI love the last photo!
I think you did a great job. I need to work on some night shots myself. Not an easy task!
ReplyDeleteThanks for following, LadyD. Appreciate it. I've not been doing digital photography for that long, so still learning as I go. I really like the tips from 'Sinbad and I'... Thanks!!
ReplyDeleteWow! Just look at all those stars!
ReplyDeleteI like the flashlight technique--very cool!
You always seem to capture the essence of the desert. I love these night shots and have fond memories of star gazing as I was waiting (in Desert Center, CA) for trailers to arrive from LA. Awesome!
ReplyDeleteI would love to stop by. But, I think it might have to wait until this summer. I did not know that Serlkay had ever expanded its size. I must say that a succesful family owned business in this day and age is a very refreshing sight! As well as this is a very refreshing site!
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