Getting Started Photographing the Night Sky

Episode 142: Getting Started Photographing the Night Sky

Shownotes: ConservationVisuals.com/142

(Digitally transcribed, please forgive any typos)

Jaymi Heimbuch:
[00:00:00] Jaymi Heimbuch: Hey there, and welcome to this episode of Impact, the Conservation Photography Podcast. Now, today we are venturing into a realm of photography that is definitely mesmerizing, kind of mysterious. It's night sky photography. Now, I don't know about you, but I think that there is something incredibly magical about capturing the night sky in all its glory.

[00:00:24] Jaymi Heimbuch: The stars, maybe the moon when there's a Special Moon event. Definitely the Milky Way. It's really amazing, but it's also kind of a challenging thing to capture in Cameron if you'd never done it before. It can be a bit of a mystery for where to start. And the first time that I tried my hand at night Sky photography, I went to Joshua Tree National Park.

[00:00:48] Jaymi Heimbuch: That was like the real concerted effort. I definitely tried it, you know, in my backyard or a couple of times on camping trips, but this was the first time that I was like, I am gonna go photograph the night sky. [00:01:00] So I went to Joshua Tree with these plans of spending each night out in the desert working on capturing the Milky Way.

[00:01:06] Jaymi Heimbuch: Now, the first night of that trip is absolutely seared in my memory. It's 2:00 AM. There's this incredible Milky Way arching over these other worldly desert trees. And there I am, camera on a tripod headlamp on my head trying to capture its. Beauty in a single frame and it was not easy, no doubt. Trying to figure out the exposure, how long to keep the shutter open, worrying about camera shake, painting just the right amount of light onto the rocks or the plants, but not too much, you know, not, not something that would make it look kind of like a diorama, but just enough to really bring out that cool vibe.

[00:01:45] Jaymi Heimbuch: It is. Tough, but the results were worth every second spent under that beautiful sky, and that's the charm of night sky photography. It's not just about the final image, it's really about that journey that leads [00:02:00] up to it, but, Let's be realistic. You know, night sky photography comes with a special set of challenges.

[00:02:06] Jaymi Heimbuch: Like I mentioned, you're trying to identify the right camera settings, for instance, and that can seem like decoding a cryptic puzzle. But what I learned on that trip and have kept in mind ever since is if you just start simple and don't overthink it, like you start with a slow shutter speed, a low i s o, and a wide aperture.

[00:02:26] Jaymi Heimbuch: And that's it. Don't overthink it. You can move from there. That's a really good baseline that just allows you to capture enough light without overexposing your shot, and then you play. You just kind of go from there to pinpoint exactly what settings you need for that particular shot. But you know, there's also a challenge of finding the perfect location, right?

[00:02:48] Jaymi Heimbuch: Now light pollution is a night sky photographer's biggest nemesis. It can wash out the stars. It can reduce the contrast in your shots. It can bring in this kind [00:03:00] of weird yellowy, orangey color hue on your image. Which you know, you could also use to your advantage, but a lot of times that's not really what we're looking for.

[00:03:09] Jaymi Heimbuch: So you wanna find a spot that's pretty far from city lights. Websites like Dark Sky Finder can be a huge help in helping you to locate these. Dark sky areas that might be near you, or maybe you wanna make it kind of a destination photography trip and find an epic dark sky location that is a destination in itself.

[00:03:31] Jaymi Heimbuch: And this is something honestly, that we as conservation photographers sometimes overlook when we're thinking about important issues to document, you know, keeping the night sky. Dark. That is a conservation issue. It's a conservation issue for, , pollinators, for migrating birds, for all sorts of reasons.

[00:03:50] Jaymi Heimbuch: So resources like the International Dark Sky Association are amazing leaders in this area, and they're resources that are really valuable [00:04:00] to us in the conservation sphere. Now, one of the reasons why I chose Joshua Tree National Park is this first place that I wanted to go and focus on specifically for night sky photography is because not only is it a very cool national park, but it's also an.

[00:04:15] Jaymi Heimbuch: International Dark Sky Park. So you know, if your ears are perking up, if you're thinking that, Hey, I wanna try my hand at night sky photography, and I wanna learn more about where I can go to really experience the dark sky to experience these incredible.

[00:04:31] Jaymi Heimbuch: Areas that the night sky really shines in, then I've got a resource for you that I can't wait to tell you about in just a moment.

[00:04:38] Jaymi Heimbuch: But first, let's talk about one more challenge with night sky photography, which, when I say challenge, I kind of mean one more reason why It's a really cool area to experiment in and to grow your skillset in that is managing environmental factors. Now weather moon phases, the season of the year, all of [00:05:00] that can drastically affect your night sky shots.

[00:05:03] Jaymi Heimbuch: Not only the conditions that you're shooting in, but what the sky actually looks like. So clear skies are really ideal for star photography, for quite obvious reasons. And while a new moon phase can provide the darkest skies, you can also play around with using the moon as that main feature in a night sky.

[00:05:24] Jaymi Heimbuch: And if you do wanna focus on the stars themselves, then did you know that the Milky Way is actually best visible during summer months in most locations? So you're really thinking about timing, about weather, all kinds of things that factor into planning your night sky photography trip.

[00:05:42] Jaymi Heimbuch: But beyond all of these things that you really need to consider, things that can feel like challenges when you're just starting out, but actually are part of the fun of figuring out the puzzle. That is night sky photography. Night sky photography is also an adventure. It's about not only [00:06:00] the photos that you create, but connecting with nature at a time when.

[00:06:04] Jaymi Heimbuch: A lot of us aren't out experiencing it. You know, the middle of the night is not usually a time that we're out listening to the sounds, noticing what's happening with wildlife or with the way that the air feels or smells or what's going on. So really night sky photography can be a way to connect with nature in this new way and thinking about our place in the universe.

[00:06:28] Jaymi Heimbuch: And of course, Capturing these amazing images and every photograph tells a story of patience, of perseverance, of the wonders of the universe, of which we and planet Earth are this small part. It's a great reminder of like, Hey, we are a tiny little planet in an epic universe, but it can also tell the story of conservation issues. So whether that's showing an ecosystem in this new way or the night sky is a backdrop to the [00:07:00] story of a particular species, like maybe a flower that blossoms at night or really cool bat species or, uh, insects that come out. Only at night that are really important pollinators.

[00:07:13] Jaymi Heimbuch: There's all kinds of stuff that can pop up that we only get to see at night, and that epic sky that you photograph can be part of the scene, part of the story of the creatures that you're photographing. So there's all kinds of endless possibility. If you have not tried night sky photography, I do hope that you will give it a shot.

[00:07:34] Jaymi Heimbuch: And in fact, if you are as fascinated by night sky photography as I am, then I have something that will absolutely pique your interest and. Really help you get started in this, I've put together a comprehensive step-by-step guide to night sky photography. It's everything that you need to get started.

[00:07:51] Jaymi Heimbuch: It's packed with everything from choosing the right gear and deciding what to pack for your outing. It has suggestions for apps that are really [00:08:00] must have helpers when it comes to planning those adventures. It talks about how to prepare for your night sky shoot, the camera settings that you wanna use.

[00:08:08] Jaymi Heimbuch: Tips and techniques and advice on finding locations. This guide is not just a compilation of random tricks. It's really designed to take you on a journey from understanding those basics to getting excited about mastering this craft. Really this like niche in photography that can help you tell really interesting stories even better.

[00:08:29] Jaymi Heimbuch: So this guide is a deep dive into the art of night sky photography so that you can feel prepared to go from. Never having tried it to bringing home this awesome shot of the Milky Way that you photographed in the wee hours of the night, and even if you've tried night sky photography before and successfully made shots, there's probably something new in this guide that you will find helpful for your next Audi.

[00:08:52] Jaymi Heimbuch: So are you ready to take your night sky photography skills to the next level or simply [00:09:00] start on your night sky adventure. Are you ready to capture the cosmos like you never have before? Then head over to conservation visuals.com/night. Sky conservation visuals.com/night sky.

[00:09:15] Jaymi Heimbuch: The guide is, There. Uh, I also will put the link in the show notes so you can just type it in or scroll down to wherever you're listening to this and go to the show notes. And trust me, once you start capturing those beautiful starry skies,

[00:09:30] Jaymi Heimbuch: you'll never look at the night in the same way again. If you've never really considered it as a time to be a very active photographer, I think that you are going to open up a whole new level of creativity. So head to conservation visuals.com/night Sky, and meanwhile, I will talk to you next week.