Milky Way over St. Helens

Awesome captures. That place is high on my bucket list, along with the rest of the northwest.

Todd Lambert wrote in post #16014894
I disagree. Milky Way shots are pretty much dime a dozen in my opinion. The best shots combine a foreground element . If I don't have a foreground element I rarely even bother shooting the milky way anymore.

+1

Dwain

Firemike wrote in post #16012126
I use http://www.spaceweathe​r.com/

Snydremark wrote in post #16014079
U of A runs a website for it at http://www.gi.alaska.e​du/AuroraForecast

Just select the map for your region in the bottom, left and the date. Looks like tonight's likely to be a bit of a bust from this far south, but good

Thanks guys, I will check it out.

gmikol wrote in post #16014307
Well, the weather held out, at least for Saturday night. I was up at Johnston Ridge, and there was another guy over at Loowit Viewpoint (and, I'm told, another was there Friday night).

I'm just getting started with this, so mine might not look quite as nice as the OP's, but I'll share one from my trip later today (I just woke up...)

@doidinho...did you have any problems with dew/condensation while you were up there, or do you have a dew heater? Had a first-time star trail attempt ruined by dew. Also, there's no exif in the photos...how late into the night were these?

--Greg

Greg,

I was there all night; from 10PM-3:30AM. I think the photos I posted were from between two and three.

There was so much dew when I was there. I use a dew heater and had to turn it up as high as it goes.

Todd Lambert wrote in post #16014894
I disagree. Milky Way shots are pretty much dime a dozen in my opinion. The best shots combine a foreground element . If I don't have a foreground element I rarely even bother shooting the milky way anymore.

I am very quickly coming to this conclusion myself.

Nice shot. I did one myself last week but am having a heck of a time processing it to look decent.

So, I went out again on Saturday. Spent more time driving and trying to avoid clouds more than anything else.

I did get a couple shots in dark skies and noticed that since there was very little (if any) light pollution the colors were different; the sky had a green/cyan tint to it. Previously when I shot at night stuff there has always been a bunch of light pollution, so when I adjust the WB it has always been a compromise.

Can anyone comment on the colors in this image? I just have a link to it on my Facebook right now and am not even sure if it will work if we are not friends. I will post it somewhere else later, but in the meantime if you cant see it and want to just add me as a friend. It's 2054 pix on the long end, so lots of detail

https://www.facebook.c​om …1081264356&type​=1&theater

Edit: I fixed the privacy settings so you no longer need to be friends with me to see the image.

Both are exceptional images. However, I really like the composition of #1 slightly more.

-Nick

doidinho wrote in post #16016865
the sky had a green/cyan tint to it. Previously when I shot at night stuff there has always been a bunch of light pollution, so when I adjust the WB it has always been a compromise.

My understanding is that the green glow is natural, and is only visible in profoundly dark skies. I can't remember what it's called, and I can't find the reference to it right now. But if you dig around, you might find some info about it.

The FB photo is great...it has great natural colors.

--Greg

gmikol wrote in post #16017606
My understanding is that the green glow is natural, and is only visible in profoundly dark skies. I can't remember what it's called, and I can't find the reference to it right now. But if you dig around, you might find some info about it.

The FB photo is great...it has great natural colors.

--Greg

I dug around a bit, but didn't immediately find anything. I sent a question to Cliff Mass; will let you know if I hear back from him.

Thanks.

Well...I can't find where I first read about it, but the phenomenon I'm thinking of is Airglow

http://en.wikipedia.or​g/wiki/Airglow

It's faintly visible in both our MSH photos, as well as the one on FB.

A google image search turns up some good examples, as well.

BTW--Any recommendation on dew heaters?

--Greg

Did you have to get special permission to be at Johnston Ridge after it closed?

No...not at all. Certainly none that I'm aware of. Of course, I'm much more of a "better to ask forgiveness than permission" type, at least with regards to access on public lands. There are no gates that get closed at sunset or anything like that.

It's not like I was inside the building, just on the publicly-accessible walkways. In principle, you should make sure you've paid the monument entry fee earlier in the day. I'm not entirely sure this is required for this purpose, though. I actually just sent an email for clarification. I'll post back when I hear something. I have an Annual NW Forest Pass, so I was covered.

There were 2 other cars in the parking lot, but they must have been camping in the backcountry, as I didn't see anyone else at JRO, just the guy at Loowit.

--Greg

Lovely shots Robert.

Yes, I definitely think that coloring is air glow. Most people mistake it for light pollution but it's pretty common and you'll see it here and there. I hate it personally, as it's a **** to process around. It can tend to skew the colors a good bit and make things look over-processed if you're not careful.

Unfortunately, it's not really visible to the naked eye, so it's hard to tell if the sky has it that night or not. I tend to shoot with an iPad in the field, so with the retina display on it, I can generally see what quality skies I'm getting within a few shots.

Not that you can avoid it, but many a night, where the skies are nice and dark and the MW is glorious, the air glow shows up and ruins it for me. Well, not really ruins it, but certainly isn't ideal in my mind. But, nothing you can do about it, other than keep trying - the adage of fishing comes to mind!

Again, great stuff, Robert. Really digging that location and you're shots look great.
[Sorry - typed Greg, when I meant Robert - duh!]

Thanks for the airglow clarification guys.

Regarding permissions, I called and the response I got was
"We would prefer you not to be here after dark".

I then asked I there were locked gates or anything like that. They responded "no, and that the the observatory manager just told them to say that they prefe people not to be there after dark".

My intentions were benign and I feel my presence would have detered any malicious activity rather than encouraged it, so I decided to go.

Right...I would guess that's pretty much just CYA kind of language, to help keep stupid people from hurting themselves on the trails (or possibly vandalizing things). As far as I know, there is no legal prohibition against being up there at night.

EDIT: Just heard back from the MSH people. The monument fee is required, even after-hours. This can be in the form of a day-use monument pass, an Annual NW Forest Pass, or any of the inter-agency passes (America the Beautiful Pass, Senior Pass, Access Pass (individuals with a disability), Volunteer Pass, or Military Pass).

--Greg