It's amazing how many people never look up. The skies can be many things to a photographer - a backdrop, a light source, a diffuser. Sometimes just a nice source of teal for your orange foreground. When you decide to use the skies for your subject, especially the night skies, the very first thing you are going to notice is the moon.
There are some very beautiful objects in the night sky, and the thrill of using the camera to see what your eyes can't see is enormously rewarding. The trouble is that the stars, planets and nebulae that fill the night sky are very dim and very, very far away.
If, like me, you want to get great looking photos of the night sky, but can't afford the gear required to capture some of the deep sky objects, you're left with night landscapes, and the moon. So here's some tips for shooting the moon.
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Kite Aerial Photography (KAP) is something that has appealed to me for some time, and earlier this year I decided to build a KAP rig, buy a kite, and take some photos from up in the air.
Recently I posted my first KAP photos, and will be posting more in the future.
I intend to write post more information about my experiences with KAP over the coming months, but thought I would start off with a post describing what KAP is all about, and the equipment that is typically used.
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If you are an iPhone user like me, you must hate the way the battery drains after about 3 hours of use. Michael Herb came up with a super cool way to keep your iPhone charged at all times. The Xtend portable generator.
OK, you got me, the Xtend does not really exist in real life (though it would be such a cool DIY project). But not all is lost. Instead of charging your cell, you can have a behind the scenes look on how this photograph was created. Michael was kind enough to walk DIYP readers through his workflow of creating this image.
It may be hard to believe but using some image magic, the photograph was taken using a small bath and a bed sheet. (You can watch the entire process on video at the end)
It's all Michel from now on...
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Ever seen those pictures where the stars streak across the sky in a big arc? Or maybe the whole sky looked like it was spinning?
What you saw was star trails. The streaks were light left behind on the sensor or film from the star as it traveled across the sky in front of an open camera shutter. In fact, it only seems that way. What actually being recorded are stationary stars and the rotation of the earth that makes them spin. Kinda like you were standing on a vinyl record while it is playing. (yes, vinyl record, it is a form of ancient iPod).
For me, the images seem to have a certain magic or mystery about them. You must have heard a photographer talking about capturing that perfect moment in time. Well for capturing star trails you will need to capture the perfect hour or two in time. For such amazing looking images the technique to capture them is really quite simple. Keep reading for a complete set of instructions from start to finish.
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We're seeing an increasing number of posts on our forums expressing confusion about ISO and asking why we don't test cameras based on their 'true' ISO values. So we've just posted the first of a two-part explanation of ISO, what it means, the role it plays in photography and how apparent discrepancies in reported values can occur.
