Our Galactic Neighborhood

luigi · #1 18-09-2010, 08:35 AM

Hi All,

I shot this image last weekend on a trip to a dark site. Great conditions but very humid I had a nasty fight against condensation (I can ask for everything!).

It shows the Milky Way and the two Magellan Clouds near Azul, Argentina about 300km away from Buenos Aires.

http://www.luisargerich.com/recent/haf83126#haf83126
(click to see larger)

Data:
Canon 5DII
Nikon 14-24 F2.8
Astrotrac Mount
ISO1600 F2.8 14mm 10x1minute
Stacked with DSS

Cheers!
Luis

TrevorW · #2 18-09-2010, 10:59 AM

excellent widefield Luis

Octane (Humayun) · #3 18-09-2010, 11:56 AM

Luis,

What a fabulous shot! Interesting composition, too.

You guys have to stop posting these 12-24mm shots, otherwise, you're going to send me broke!

Keep it up, mate. : )

H

luigi · #4 18-09-2010, 01:10 PM

Trevor, H, thank you!

H a 14-24 in your future I see (Say loud in Yoda´s voice)

CometGuy · #5 18-09-2010, 05:14 PM

Very nice Luis

bkm2304 (Richard Brown) · #6 18-09-2010, 06:11 PM

Love the terrain in the foreground, Luis. Puts the milky way and Mag clouds in dramatic perspective.

Richard

alexch (Alex) · #7 18-09-2010, 06:21 PM

Very very nice Luis!

How do you find the Astrotrac?
Alex

luigi · #8 19-09-2010, 12:25 AM

@Richard & @CometGuy thanks guys!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by alexch

Very very nice Luis!
How do you find the Astrotrac?
Alex

I like the astrotrac a lot, even with a very very rough polar alignment using just a compass and declination I could expose for 1 minute instead of 20 seconds without it. With proper PA you can go for really long exposures. I tried 1 minute with a 200mm lens without visible trails too.
In this case I exposed for 1 minute because I was having a condensatin nightmare so I had to wipe the lens often.

danielsun · #9 19-09-2010, 12:41 AM

Wow Luis! I spent quite some time in your site looking at all you photos and have to say that all your work is truly brilliant!!!

Cheers Daniel.

Ric · #10 19-09-2010, 02:19 AM

Excellent work Luis.

This one is a beauty.

Cheers

alexch (Alex) · #11 19-09-2010, 02:27 AM

I looked at the image again and I think DSS stacking might have "eaten" a few stars in the top corners, I've had it happen a few times and had to reduce the number of stacked images for the problem to go away.

The middle section is fantastic with nice bright detail!

Cheers,
Alex

Quote:

Originally Posted by luigi

@Richard & @CometGuy thanks guys!!

I like the astrotrac a lot, even with a very very rough polar alignment using just a compass and declination I could expose for 1 minute instead of 20 seconds without it. With proper PA you can go for really long exposures. I tried 1 minute with a 200mm lens without visible trails too.
In this case I exposed for 1 minute because I was having a condensatin nightmare so I had to wipe the lens often.

strongmanmike (Michael) · #12 19-09-2010, 10:12 PM

The Milky Way looks beautiful!...but If I may be honest Luis the scene doesn't look believable. The sky looks like it has been pasted in on top of the hills. Maybe it's because the hills are so well and evenly illuminated and there is such a hard edge between land and sky? These deep Milky Way and land shots are becoming popular but I find very few look real and believable, almost always ending with something that looks pasted together in photoshop, the key for me is to see something that looks like I am there...?

I know it's not the Milky Way but this work of yours looks very believable, like I am there, it is beautiful work.

Mike

luigi · #13 20-09-2010, 01:07 AM

@Daniel, @Ric: Thanks a lot!

@Alex: Ty again and I think you are right DSS might have eaten some stars at the corners.

@Michael: Ty for your feedback. You had to be there, the scene really looked like the photo.I can send you one of the RAW files if you need to believe. It's as real as it can be.

Hypnotist (Bartholomew) · #14 20-09-2010, 02:16 AM

Hi Luis,

I absolutely love that pic. I wish I could take the same kind of pics with my Nikon D40x.

Bart

gregbradley · #15 21-09-2010, 04:26 PM

Great shot. I agree with Mike it appears you have pasted the hills into a Milky Way image and if not it certainly looks that way.

What adapter are you using to mount your Nikon 14-24 to the 5D?

The Nikon 14-24 is definitely the lens to get.

Greg.

luigi · #16 22-09-2010, 06:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gregbradley

Great shot. I agree with Mike it appears you have pasted the hills into a Milky Way image and if not it certainly looks that way.

What adapter are you using to mount your Nikon 14-24 to the 5D?

The Nikon 14-24 is definitely the lens to get.

Greg.

Thanks Greg! To be honest I didn't paste anything. I would have chosen a better foreground if I intended to make a composite image

As-Is the composition is not very strong but it is real.

I have an old adapter from 16-9, I rotate the lens to select aperture. Works well.

The new adapters have a lever instead, they take 4 to 5 weeks to arrive and are quite expensive so I'm ok with my very very old adapter.

strongmanmike (Michael) · #17 22-09-2010, 09:09 AM

Hmm? Ok fair enough, it is probably due to the fact that the hills are so well lit..? The scene may look more real if the hills were no so evenly and well illuminated..? It may also just be a function of the dynamic range handling and the fact that the scenes field of view is so similar to a naked eye scene that the brain (well mine and Gregs anyway

) doesn't believe it as it is so far from the visual reality ..?

Mike

Lester · #18 22-09-2010, 12:30 PM

Very nice image Luis, thanks for the view. All the best.

sly (John) · #19 22-09-2010, 02:47 PM

I love this wideview!
Really GREAT!

rcheshire (Rowland) · #20 22-09-2010, 08:50 PM

Bien hecho Luis... ?Donde esta? Patagonia

Excuse my Spanish. That's a breathtaking view.

Astrotrac is doing a great job.

PM sent.