I have been working on developing a new processing technique for the past few weeks and I was finally able to collect some data that would work well. I call the technique "Variable High Dynamic Range" (VHDR) imaging. Normal HDR imaging involves taking exposures of different lengths and combining them to produce a single image. VHDR takes that one step further, in which different parts of the image have different high dynamic ranges. Location: Rocky Mountain National Park, CO Date: 2011-09-05 Camera: Canon XSi (modified) Lens: Sigma 20mm f/1.8 Mount: Still Tripod, Astrotrac Shot: VHDR (Variable High Dynamic Range) Mosaic Land: 3x30 seconds f/4 ISO 800 (Mosaic) 3x120 seconds f/4 ISO 800 (Mosaic) 3x300 seconds f/4 ISO 800 (Mosaic) Sky: 9x10 seconds f/2.8 ISO 1600 (Mosaic) 9x60 seconds f/4 ISO 800 (Mosaic) Tracked Processing: Photoshop, Topaz DeNoise 5
Location: Near Carr, CO Date: 2011-07-02, 2011-08-18 Camera: Canon XSi (modified) Lens: Sigma 20mm f/1.8 Mount: Still Tripod, Astrotrac Shot: Mosaic Land: 3x120 seconds f/3.2 ISO 800 Sky: 21x432 seconds f/5 ISO 1600 Processing: Photoshop, Topaz DeNoise 5
This is the first in a series taken on a week-long adventure starting with the ALCON conference at Bryce Canyon National Park, the moving to Red Canyon, Zion National Park, and finally Death Valley National Park. What could be more disappointing that gathering 400+ amateur astronomers in one of the darkest locations in the continental US only to have a huge storm pass overhead. Thankfully this storm had come and gone by the time night rolled around, but it still gave quite a show during astronomical twilight - a period of time when the sun is between 12 and 18 degrees BELOW the horizon. To the human eye, this is the time of night where a lot of stars start to make their appearance and the sky begins to turn to black. However, to a camera, this is the time where the sky appears a brilliant shade of blue, the stars shine bright, and the glow of the Milky Way can be seen. On this moon-less night, that is exactly the case. The intense thunderstorm was captured during astronomical twilight, leaving a calm view of the Milky Way in its wake. Just as the storm was passing by, one more object streaked across the sky - an Iridium Flare. Location: Piracy Point, Bryce Canyon National Park, UT Date: 2011-06-29 Camera: Canon XSi (modified) Lens: Sigma 20mm f/1.8 Mount: Still Tripod, Astrotrac Landscape/Clouds: 11x30 seconds f/2.8 ISO 1600 Milky Way: 10x2 minutes f/2.8 ISO 1600 Lightning: 8x10 seconds f/2.8 ISO 1600 Flare: 1x30 seconds f/2.8 ISO 1600 Processing: Photoshop, Topaz DeNoise 5
