It's definitely not easy, that's for sure. I've tried it dozens of times. I'm lucky enough to travel up north to places where you can see the stars. And I mean REALLY see. You need dark skies with no light pollution for things to turn out the way you want them.
When I first tried a few years ago, I remember jumping up and down around my tripod thinking I got an awesome shot. And that happened several times after that as well. And the shots improved each time. There was always a reason to be excited.
This time, however, I KNEW. As soon as I took it, I KNEW I got the shot.
Astrophotography is a lot of guess and check. It takes a lot of patience. It takes time. It takes small changes for big results.
You start with a high ISO, and a slow shutter speed. You NEED a tripod. Manual focus starts at infinity and you just adjust the focus ever so slightly each time you snap that shutter until BAM! you get it just right!
Here is a progression of my astrophotography over the years, until I got, yes THE shot!
This shot was taken over Lake George on Memorial Day weekend. How stunning right?!
Needless to say, I am stoked for a summer up north to explore more with my camera at night with the stars!
Shoutout to my friend Mike Gillis for all of his help and expertise with this. He's full of knowledge and super talented! You can follow his photography at @mikegillis_photography.
Live creatively, friends.