Star trails encircle the world famous Elephant's Perch in Idaho's Sawtooth Mountains. Taken from Shangri-La (aka Saddleback Lake) at 8,350 feet above sea level ...
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Star trails encircle the world famous Elephant's Perch in Idaho's Sawtooth Mountains. Taken from Shangri-La (aka Saddleback Lake) at 8,350 feet above sea level in October 2014, just before midnight.
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Contest Finalist in The Night Sky And The Stars Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Lapse Of Time Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Mountains And The Night Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Painting With Light Photo Contest
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Contest Finalist in Stars Photo Contest
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Runner Up in Mountain Tops Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Mountain Tops Photo Contest
Winner in Long Exposure Photo Challenge
Winner in Mountains and Skies Photo Challenge
Contest Finalist in Wide Angle Views Photo Contest
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sibylle
April 23, 2015
Great photo! We climbed that face, and since I carried in rope, tent, stove, food for 6 days, I did not bring my good camera... Glad you got the photo!
CanoMan
August 27, 2015
Well done. Night photography is a passion of mine and I'm working to get better at it. You are now my inspiration to not give up.
Pat_NikonNut
December 07, 2018
Hi this type of photo has fasinated me for a long time and this is a great photo. I will try to find that software, thanks
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Behind The Lens
Location
I took this photo on the edge of a cliff about 25 feet above the lake, deep in Idaho's Sawtooth Mountain range. The area appears on maps as Saddleback Lake, but is known more informally as Shangri-La. Once you get on the other side of a 2+ mile-long lake, it's another 2.5 hour climb to reach this incredible area at 8,350 feet above sea level. The large peak just beneath the north star is known as the Elephant's Perch, which at an elevation of 9,870 feet (3,008 meters) is one of Idaho's most famous rock climbing destinations.Time
This nighttime image is a composite of over 120 photos, taken over an hour's period, starting around 10:30pm.Lighting
As this was shot at night, the critical lighting was a function of light from the stars and moon. I specifically planned this trip around a waxing 1st quarter moon, because I knew that it would give me just enough light to brighten the intriguing foreground (which visibly includes many climbing routes on the Elephant's Perch wall), without overpowering the stars. From experience, I also knew that in these mountains, where there is essentially zero light or air pollution, attempting star trails without a moon creates too much clutter--there are so many stars that it is difficult to take it all in. So, the known factor was light of the moon, and the unknown was the weather; I lucked out with clear skies, so I also got the light I needed from the stars.Equipment
I shot this with a Canon EOS 5D Mark III body, a Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II lens, a Gitzo travel tripod with a Manfrotto ball head, and a Canon remote shutter release.Inspiration
I've been fascinated by star trails for years, and have had to put off backpacking for the last few years due to the all-consuming responsibilities of being a new dad, so my one goal this summer was to haul my camera gear deep into the mountains at least once. With some research, I discovered that the north star sits just atop the famous Elephant's Perch peak, leading me to believe it would be perfect for star trails. I literally had this photo imagined in my head months before I was able to get up there and make it happen.Editing
As anyone who has attempted star trails knows, it takes some time to get them right! In this image, I first batch processed the 120+ frames in Lightroom, doing very basic adjustments of white balance, noise reduction, and lens calibration. I then merged them together using the amazingly-free StarStaX program. From there, I went back into Photoshop, where I cleaned up the sky (removed satellites, planes, and shooting stars), dropped in a clean image of the foreground, and brought the sky back into the reflection of the lake. I made some minor edits from there to the composite and called it a day.In my camera bag
As a Canon shooter, I typically stuff the following into my Lowepro and Tamrac backpacks: Two 5D MKIII bodies, an assortment of lenses (16-35mm f/4 L, 16-35 f/2.8 L II, 24-70mm f/2.8 L II, 70-200mm f/2.8mm L II, 100mm f/2.8 L, 135mm f/2 L, 200-400mm f/4 w/ 1.4X built-in extender), Manfrotto & Gitzo tripods, Manfrotto ball heads, a variety of filters (ND, Graduated ND, Polarizers), tele-extenders (1.4X & 2X), Canon SpeedLights, and PocketWizard remote triggers.Feedback
Star trails are a tricky beast! Unlike most digital photography these days, you can't just take a quick photo and know you got it from a glance at the back of your LCD. You need to invest significant time just to take the many exposures needed (think 30-60+ minutes), and you won't know what the trails will look like until you blend all the individual captures together in the software later. Since you're shooting in the dark, you'll be shooting in full manual and will need to know your camera settings inside and out, and dress warm enough to not lose your mind. You have to choose a night that has zero clouds, ideally no wind, and the right amount of moon for where you are (usually no moon is best to get the brightest stars, but as I mentioned, where I live we get too much of a good thing if there is no moon). You really have to spend the time to get your composition right, which is that much tougher when you can't see well through the lens. Using the in-camera level is a great way to keep your horizon straight, and focusing will be a challenge as you'll be hard pressed to use auto-focus, and will necessarily have to switch to manual focus before shooting. It is key to be far away from city lights, cars, other hikers, etc. A good sturdy tripod is a must. I suggest getting a headlamp that has a red light function, as it will help maintain your night vision, and impact your camera the least if you have to turn it on for some reason (though ideally you wouldn't!). Unless your camera has a built-in function for it, you'll have to use a remote shutter release--there will be no touching your camera once you start shooting, and you need each exposure to be fired as quickly in sequence as possible. Don't forget to cover the eyepiece before you start shooting to prevent light leak. StarStaX is a must-use software for blending the images together, and ample time to dedicate to post will be essential if you want a clean final result. I highly recommend watching online tutorials before you haul your gear hours into the mountains, as many great tutorials are available for free and you’ll thank yourself for it later. Get after it, and love it--worst case scenario, you'll spend an incredible evening under that the stars, ideally with a good friend or two. Most importantly, don't forget the whiskey--something has to keep you warm!