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Shoutout to the ranger at Great Basin who showed me how to shoot the Milky Way
I was 3 nights into dark sky photography and kept getting star trails. He walked me through his setup, told me to use a 20 second exposure at ISO 3200 with my f/2.8 lens. First shot came out crystal clear. Anyone else have a park ranger or stranger help them nail a shot on the spot?
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nina1801mo agoMost Upvoted
That 20 second thing is the photography equivalent of someone telling you to turn it off and on again. I swear half my astro shots from before that tip look like I was trying to photograph the sky while riding a unicycle. Great Basin rangers probably have a running bet on how many confused tourists they'll rescue from star trail hell each night. I had a similar thing happen at a rest stop in New Mexico where a trucker showed me that my tripod had a hook on it for hanging a weight bag. Felt like an absolute genius realizing I'd been using a glorified selfie stick for years. Glad you got the shot though, those dark sky parks are no joke when you finally get it right.
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thomas_roberts1mo ago
That bit about "20 second exposure at ISO 3200 with my f/2.8 lens" is exactly the kind of tip that saves a whole trip lol. I've been there too, fighting with star trails and getting so frustrated, then one person just walks you through it like it's nothing. Really cool that you got that kind of help in a place as dark as Great Basin.
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