# A selection of Milky Way photos



## Etoimos (Oct 9, 2019)

Several years ago I decided that I wanted to learn how to photograph the Milky Way and started researching the internet to learn how it was done.  I purchased a Canon 6D and Rokinon 24mm F1.4 lens to capture the images in higher quality as my standard equipment was not quiet up to the task I was asking of it.

Over the years I've traveled to different dark sky locations that were not too far away to make the images below.  I shoot all of my Milky Way photos as an single exposure.  I use light painting to illuminate my foregrounds when needed.  Shooting with this method does require me to process the foreground separately from the sky and then blend the two separate processes together (I use a simple layer mask in PS).






My step-daughter and myself.





My camping setup.





Very dark and clear skies are really nice to find.





Is there life out there?


I hope you enjoyed these images and as always, if you have any questions feel free to ask.


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## edsland (Oct 9, 2019)

Awesome set, wish I could see 1/2 of those stars where I live


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## Jeff G (Oct 9, 2019)

Very nice, some time in the future I would like to learn how to get these kinds of shots, but I think I've  got a ways to go.


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## Etoimos (Oct 10, 2019)

Thanks guys.



edsland said:


> Awesome set, wish I could see 1/2 of those stars where I live



On clear nights I can make out the MW here I live, but it is very hard to get a good photograph of it will the light pollution in the area.  Luckily  I've got some very dark skies within 3-5 hours from my house.  It looks like the closest and darkest night skies for you would be up in the Baraga Stat Forest Area in Michigan.  You would probably have to shoot in May during the 0100 to 0300 hours.  This would get you the Galactic Core and not have you shoot so much back towards the large cities up there.



Jeff G said:


> Very nice, some time in the future I would like to learn how to get these kinds of shots, but I think I've  got a ways to go.



Jeff, they are actually quite easy if you have dark skies and decent gear.  I even captured a MW shot on my cell phone while on the trip when I photographed the VLA dish above.  What kind of camera do you have and what is your fastest wide angle lens?


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## K9Kirk (Oct 10, 2019)

First of all, very nice pics, just beautiful but I'm a little confused over the ability to take a pic like that with a phone without using some type of star tracking device or is the aper so wide it can capture it fast enough without the need for tracking?
Educate me, thank you.

BTW, I believe there is life out there. The mountain of evidence is wa-------------y overwhelming. So much that even Judge Ito couldn't ignore it.


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## Etoimos (Oct 10, 2019)

@K9Kirk Perhaps I should clarify a little.  The cell phone does not take photos like those, but it can capture the MW.  I'll try and process the cell phone pic and post it here to show the difference.  

My cell phone camera has a f1.4 lens.  I set the shutter speed to 15 seconds (which produces a little more star trail blur than I would like) and the ISO I set to the highest it would go (I think 6400 on my phone).  Astrophotography is one area where good gear really helps.  Luckily, some of the better lenses for it are relatively inexpensive prime lenses.  

My typical MW shots are taken with a 24mm f1.4 (I stop down to f2.8 for better quality) prime lens on my Canon 6D (a great camera for shooting at night) for 13 sec (to minimize star movement) and ISO 6400.


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## Etoimos (Oct 10, 2019)

K9Kirk said:


> BTW, I believe there is life out there. The mountain of evidence is wa-------------y overwhelming. So much that even Judge Ito couldn't ignore it.



I do as well.  I'm just not sure that they are visiting us...... any longer.


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## Flying Panda (Oct 10, 2019)

Awesome captures!


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## Jeff G (Oct 10, 2019)

Etoimos said:


> Jeff, they are actually quite easy if you have dark skies and decent gear. I even captured a MW shot on my cell phone while on the trip when I photographed the VLA dish above. What kind of camera do you have and what is your fastest wide angle lens?



I am using a Nikon D5600 but I think I would need a lens upgrade from the kit lens to get decent results.


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## K9Kirk (Oct 10, 2019)

Etoimos said:


> K9Kirk said:
> 
> 
> > BTW, I believe there is life out there. The mountain of evidence is wa-------------y overwhelming. So much that even Judge Ito couldn't ignore it.
> ...


You should watch the documentaries on the Discovery Channel about UFO's. You may feel differently about that after watching with all the documentation they've collected.


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## Etoimos (Oct 10, 2019)

Jeff G said:


> I am using a Nikon D5600 but I think I would need a lens upgrade from the kit lens to get decent results.



I'm going to guess that your kit lens is capable of 18mm @ f3.5.  If so and you can find some decently dark skies near by, try a 19sec exposure at f3.5 and ISO 3200.  That should give you a good starting point.  If the stars are blurred too much, increase your shutter speed and bump up your ISO to compensate.  when shooting the MW, you want your histogram to look pretty normal to get the correct exposure (once you have found the right shutter for the star blur).


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## Jeff G (Oct 10, 2019)

I will file this away until I get a chance to try, thanks for the tips.


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## kalgra (Oct 10, 2019)

@Etoimos 
Oh I think you and I need to friends! I am also in Colorado, love shooting the Milky Way, and drive a Jeep with an Odin Design roof top tent.


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## Etoimos (Oct 10, 2019)

kalgra said:


> @Etoimos
> Oh I think you and I need to friends! I am also in Colorado, love shooting the Milky Way, and drive a Jeep with an Odin Design roof top tent.



LOL, that is too funny!  I noticed in your Badlands MW shot that you were from Denver and was thinking the same thing.  The fact that you drive a Jeep and have the same RTT as I do just seals the deal!


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## SquarePeg (Oct 10, 2019)

Great photos!  I just started the _I want to photograph_ the Milky Way journey.  Interesting that you are using 24mm when everything I read indicates you need wide for astrophotography.


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## Etoimos (Oct 10, 2019)

SquarePeg said:


> Great photos!  I just started the _I want to photograph_ the Milky Way journey.  Interesting that you are using 24mm when everything I read indicates you need wide for astrophotography.



Thanks.  The MW is a fun subject to chase.  It is one of the few subjects I photograph that makes me say "wow" out loud when reviewing the newly taken image on the camera's LCD screen.  But once you figure it out, it is really easy to get good shots.  The one above with the Very Large Array dish in it only took me 5 minutes to capture and 8 shots to get the light painting correct.  The real challenge is finding dark skies on a clear night when you can stay up late enough to go shoot it!

I some times use my 16-35mm f2.8 L if I need a wider view.  Like any photo, the composition you want will dictate what focal length you will want to use.  You can even us telephoto lenses for MW shots depending on what you want from the image.  The big issue with longer focal lengths is that the stars will start blurring faster, so you can't do as long as an exposure.  This means you don't capture as much light, or you have to push your ISO up more and deal with any extra noise that might create.


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## Dean_Gretsch (Oct 10, 2019)

I like them all, but the dish in the last just goes so well with the MW. It is definitely my favorite. Thank you for all the info. I haven't attempted the MW yet, but eventually, I am sure.


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## kalgra (Oct 10, 2019)

SquarePeg said:


> Great photos!  I just started the _I want to photograph_ the Milky Way journey.  Interesting that you are using 24mm when everything I read indicates you need wide for astrophotography.



I also prefer a focal length in 24mm range. I almost exclusively shoot all my Milky Way shots with a 25mm f/2. While you can get longer exposures with wider lenses the added distortion doesn’t always work for me. I have found I personally get better results stitching multiple frames at 25mm than a single frame with my 15mm f/2.8.

Of course this is personal preference, obviously others may prefer wider lenses. In my personal experience the common advice of starting with the widest lens possible and using the 500 rule is just a good starting point but I almost never shoot the Milky Way like that anymore.


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## Etoimos (Oct 10, 2019)

Dean_Gretsch said:


> I like them all, but the dish in the last just goes so well with the MW. It is definitely my favorite. Thank you for all the info. I haven't attempted the MW yet, but eventually, I am sure.



Thank you.  I made special trip down to the VLA to photograph the dishes with the MW behind them.  It was just over 1200 miles in 4 days with two nights shooting at the VLA.  I'm already planning another trip down there in springs to get some photos when it is in a tighter configuration.

To put that dish into perspective, here is a shot of my Jeep next to one:


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## Etoimos (Oct 10, 2019)

@K9Kirk here is the MW photo I took on my phone while my real camera was doing some star trail stuff.



 

It is by far substandard compared to my real camera and lens (my phone's camera is not that great at regular photos either), but it is capable of getting the MW.  At 13 seconds there is still noticeable star trails forming and I had the ISO maxed out.


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## rbconbautista (Oct 11, 2019)

Jeff G said:


> Etoimos said:
> 
> 
> > Jeff, they are actually quite easy if you have dark skies and decent gear. I even captured a MW shot on my cell phone while on the trip when I photographed the VLA dish above. What kind of camera do you have and what is your fastest wide angle lens?
> ...


Not really. Wide lenses are good for this and the lens that came with your camera the 18-55 f4-5.6 goes as wide as 18mm. Just make up for the smaller apertures by bumping that ISO up or slowing the shutter speed down. Just make sure to use a tripod or a bag of rice for slower shutter speeds including bulb mode where you just press the shutter button and as long as you have it depressed the shutter will stay open. DO NOT USE ANY FLASHES ESPECIALLY THE POP-UP FLASH. Just use ambient lighting.


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## rbconbautista (Oct 11, 2019)

Etoimos said:


> Jeff G said:
> 
> 
> > I am using a Nikon D5600 but I think I would need a lens upgrade from the kit lens to get decent results.
> ...


Would that blur be caused by the Earth's rotation?


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## rbconbautista (Oct 11, 2019)

To take these shots I would prolly have to use a few rolls of c41 color print film just to get maybe a handful or two of good shots.


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## Etoimos (Oct 11, 2019)

rbconbautista said:


> Would that blur be caused by the Earth's rotation?


  That is correct.  The earth's rotation will cause star trails to start to form in an image with longer shutter times.  The exact shutter times will depend on the focal length and aperture of the lens and the sensor size in the camera body.



rbconbautista said:


> To take these shots I would prolly have to use a few rolls of c41 color print film just to get maybe a handful or two of good shots.



Digital cameras have really changed the game of photography.  I started my journey into photography shooting only color slide film back in the mid to late 90s.  Shooting slides really made me work on the technical details since whatever I captured in camera was what I got.  No processing possible after the fact.  But switching to digital in the early 2000s is what really accelerated my skills and eye for composition.  The instant feedback digital gives can't be beat for learning.


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## K9Kirk (Oct 11, 2019)

Etoimos said:


> @K9Kirk here is the MW photo I took on my phone while my real camera was doing some star trail stuff.
> 
> View attachment 180616
> 
> It is by far substandard compared to my real camera and lens (my phone's camera is not that great at regular photos either), but it is capable of getting the MW.  At 13 seconds there is still noticeable star trails forming and I had the ISO maxed out.



Thanks, I may play around with my camera equipment and see what I can produce. I may even get off my lazy butt and make one of these:


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## Etoimos (Oct 11, 2019)

K9Kirk said:


> Thanks, I may play around with my camera equipment and see what I can produce. I may even get off my lazy butt and make one of these:



Make sure to share your results with us.  That barn door tracker is kind of neat and the mathematics behind it are cool.  It is way to labor intensive for me during the photo taking process though.  For the MW you don't really need to track it anyways.  It might be cool for getting some smaller things like planets and galaxies.


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## K9Kirk (Oct 12, 2019)

Etoimos said:


> K9Kirk said:
> 
> 
> > Thanks, I may play around with my camera equipment and see what I can produce. I may even get off my lazy butt and make one of these:
> ...


Forgive my ignorance on the subject but is the MW stationary, it doesn't move like most of the stars in the sky???


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## Etoimos (Oct 12, 2019)

K9Kirk said:


> Forgive my ignorance on the subject but is the MW stationary, it doesn't move like most of the stars in the sky???



Technically it is the Earth that is moving (rotating), but yes, it moves across the sky similar to the stars.  The Galactic Core (GC) rises and sets just like the sun and the moon.  That is what most people what to capture in their photos.  It is the big, bright area in my photos above.


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## Etoimos (Oct 12, 2019)

I should add, that the GC is not always visible here in the northern hemisphere.  We can't really see it from about late Oct to early Apr as it never breaks the horizon (with the earth tilting away from it during our winter months).


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## Hennessy8 (Oct 15, 2019)

Etoimos said:


> Several years ago I decided that I wanted to learn how to photograph the Milky Way and started researching the internet to learn how it was done.  I purchased a Canon 6D and Rokinon 24mm F1.4 lens to capture the images in higher quality as my standard equipment was not quiet up to the task I was asking of it.
> 
> Over the years I've traveled to different dark sky locations that were not too far away to make the images below.  I shoot all of my Milky Way photos as an single exposure.  I use light painting to illuminate my foregrounds when needed.  Shooting with this method does require me to process the foreground separately from the sky and then blend the two separate processes together (I use a simple layer mask in PS).
> 
> ...


LOVE the last one!!


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## Etoimos (Oct 15, 2019)

Thank you @Hennessy8


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## johngpt (Oct 15, 2019)

K9Kirk said:


> Etoimos said:
> 
> 
> > K9Kirk said:
> ...


Sky Guide app on my iPhone is great at visualizing the Milky Way and other celestial objects so I know at what I'm looking. It or another similar app should be available for all phone operating systems.

Etoimos, spectacular images.
You've inspired me to get down to the VLA more frequently. And thank you for mentioning that the galactic core isn't visible during those months here in the Northern Hemisphere.


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## K9Kirk (Oct 15, 2019)

johngpt said:


> K9Kirk said:
> 
> 
> > Etoimos said:
> ...



Thank you, I appreciate that.


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## Etoimos (Oct 16, 2019)

johngpt said:


> Sky Guide app on my iPhone is great at visualizing the Milky Way and other celestial objects so I know at what I'm looking. It or another similar app should be available for all phone operating systems.
> 
> Etoimos, spectacular images.
> You've inspired me to get down to the VLA more frequently. And thank you for mentioning that the galactic core isn't visible during those months here in the Northern Hemisphere.



Thanks John.

I personally use PhotoPills for planning my shots.  Not only does it show dates, times, and locations for the MW, it does the same for sunrises and sunsets.  Want to know when the sun will set directly over that cool tree you found in the woods, this app will tell you the exact date and time it will happen... many years in the future.

If that was not enough, it also has tons of photography calculators built in.  When I bought it years ago it was $10.  I'm not sure what it costs now, but I've found it to be the best photography app I've ever used and well worth the price.  If you have ever see it, check it out for sure.

Fair light and fast lenses,

Keith


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