First Milky Way attempt

So this was my first stab at shooting the Milky Way. I was out backpacking in the Sierra. I'm happy with it for a first shot. In the future I think I'd like to get an interesting foreground object in the picture. Any suggestions on the best way to do that? Do most of you shoot the foreground separately and then use masks in photoshop? I tried that but the line where the layers met looked funny because I didn't do a great job with the mask. Maybe I just need to improve my photoshop skills.

Very nice. I like the first one a lot.

The second one is good, but it looks like you've got a stack of a relatively short exposure image stacked with a much longer exposure image which is kind of weird. Did you stack multiple images for the second image? I like the fact that the wide angle was roughly centered over the celestial equator showing the straight line in the middle and the two sets of curves approaching the poles. The plane flying through the lower left is a cool detail too.

They are all 30 sec exposures stacked on the second one. I think I shot it for either an hour or hour and a half - I can't remember. Half way through the moon started rising lighting up the peak on the right.

what were your settings for the first shot? I really like it! nice job!

How do you get detail like that in the Milkey way? Can you post a picture of the shot before editing? Is there a big difference?

Dorseyn wrote in post #16470115
How do you get detail like that in the Milkey way?

Most importantly - find a really, really dark site.

very nice! I've just got into some landscape astrophotography myself. I'm having the same problems with using layer masks and the horizon line against the sky not looking natural.