Stars Over Yosemite Valley

[Kyle Jones]

I took a trek up the Pohono Trail from the Tunnel View parking lot last night to try getting the Milky Way over the valley from a higher than normal vantage point. As much as I love Tunnel View, it is "challenging" for night photography due to the constant activity in the parking lot as well as the light from the tunnel itself. Getting higher also helped me get more of the core above the mountains rather than being obscured by them.

I focused-stacked (manually) this image with 5 shots focused on the stars and then mean-blended in a smart object to reduce noise, and then another 5 shots similarly treated while focused on the foreground rocks.

Any thoughts are welcome.

 

[AlanLichty]

Awesome result - nicely planned and executed.

 

[JimFox]

Super cool Kyle! I had thought about running up there, but instead am leaving in a minute to go to the Alabama Hills.

But there is something about Yosemite and the Milky Way that's so special. I really like this a lot. You got a great night sky, and so much detail on the ground layer as well. Going higher then Tunnel View was a smart choice as it is a pain there at night when a car drives through, my thought for my next visit was right around this spot that you got.

My first thought though was that the ground layer is a little lacking in contrast. But that's so touchy, right now with the lighter contrast on the ground, this image has a very Dreamscape feel to it. Which is not bad either. But I do think if it was mine I would add just a bit more contrast, just to see how it looked. As I said, I know how much of a tightrope trick it can be to go from not enough contrast to too much contrast.

 

[Kyle Jones]

Super cool Kyle! I had thought about running up there, but instead am leaving in a minute to go to the Alabama Hills.

But there is something about Yosemite and the Milky Way that's so special. I really like this a lot. You got a great night sky, and so much detail on the ground layer as well. Going higher then Tunnel View was a smart choice as it is a pain there at night when a car drives through, my thought for my next visit was right around this spot that you got.

My first thought though was that the ground layer is a little lacking in contrast. But that's so touchy, right now with the lighter contrast on the ground, this image has a very Dreamscape feel to it. Which is not bad either. But I do think if it was mine I would add just a bit more contrast, just to see how it looked. As I said, I know how much of a tightrope trick it can be to go from not enough contrast to too much contrast.

Thanks for the feedback Jim and I appreciate the comments about the contrast on the ground. I'll have to play with that to see what I prefer.

My next step is to put together my first-ever timelapse, shot from before sunset until well into the night. Unfortunately my battery died before the MW rose. My attempts (practiced the previous day) to power a dummy battery from a power brick failed to work. I'll have to keep working on getting that to work if I am going to do more of these.

 

[BlackRockArt]

I took a trek up the Pohono Trail from the Tunnel View parking lot last night to try getting the Milky Way over the valley from a higher than normal vantage point. As much as I love Tunnel View, it is "challenging" for night photography due to the constant activity in the parking lot as well as the light from the tunnel itself. Getting higher also helped me get more of the core above the mountains rather than being obscured by them.

I focused-stacked (manually) this image with 5 shots focused on the stars and then mean-blended in a smart object to reduce noise, and then another 5 shots similarly treated while focused on the foreground rocks.

Any thoughts are welcome.

View attachment 88156

Kyle

I love the shot.

This is the most iconic photo spot in the whole Yosemite National Park, perhaps, I have seen so many photos taken here, it takes effort & luck to come up witha different composition, your frame is great.

Oliver

 

[Kyle Jones]

Kyle

I love the shot.

This is the most iconic photo spot in the whole Yosemite National Park, perhaps, I have seen so many photos taken here, it takes effort & luck to come up witha different composition, your frame is great.

Oliver

Thanks Oliver - it is amazing what you can find if you are willing to sweat a little bit (or a lot in my case). It took me several tries to find a composition that I really liked as there aren't many clear spots without something encroaching on the frame, and those can be boring anyway.

I just posted some sunset shots from this spot here.

 

[JimFox]

Thanks for the feedback Jim and I appreciate the comments about the contrast on the ground. I'll have to play with that to see what I prefer.

My next step is to put together my first-ever timelapse, shot from before sunset until well into the night. Unfortunately my battery died before the MW rose. My attempts (practiced the previous day) to power a dummy battery from a power brick failed to work. I'll have to keep working on getting that to work if I am going to do more of these.

What canera are you using? I prefer dummy batteries, though the latest Nikons can be powered from the USB C port. The only issue is the Nikons are very picky about the USB C cable and power source, so I don't use that method too often.

I can send a link later to the dummy battery I use, they make versions for most cameras, and it plugs in to most power banks. Though I had to return one power bank as it would turn off after 5 minutes, I am guessing the power draw wasn't enough to keep it turned on.

But an external battery device is the way to go at night.

 

[Kyle Jones]

What canera are you using? I prefer dummy batteries, though the latest Nikons can be powered from the USB C port. The only issue is the Nikons are very picky about the USB C cable and power source, so I don't use that method too often.

I can send a link later to the dummy battery I use, they make versions for most cameras, and it plugs in to most power banks. Though I had to return one power bank as it would turn off after 5 minutes, I am guessing the power draw wasn't enough to keep it turned on.

But an external battery device is the way to go at night.

I used my Canon R5.

 

[John Holbrook]

Beautiful image Kyle—and thank you for the camera and editing details as well. I also love the sunset shot image you shared as well from the posted link. Perfect compositions.

 

[Jameel Hyder]

Lovely image - like the way the sky came out with the stars.