Capture fascinating images of the Milky Way by using these correct techniques
YOU have probably seen mesmerising images of the Milky Way on the Internet. It’s the colourful band of millions of stars visible in a clear night sky.
Of course, most of the time, we can hardly see it because of light pollution from the cities and moon light.
The only way you can have this phenomenal view is to go somewhere remote and far away from the city.
The following are some tips that will help you get awesome shots of the Milky Way.
Just make sure that you go with some friends as you’ll be shooting in a remote, dark place. All the images here were shot in Bromo Mountain in Surabaya, Indonesia.
DARK MOON PERIOD: The Milky Way is hard to see with the naked eye so it is best to shoot it during the dark moon phase, the period when the moon is not reflecting direct sunlight towards Earth.
It is also the time of the last visible crescent of a waning moon. The duration of a dark moon varies between 1.5 and 3.5days, depending on its ecliptic latitude.
USE SUBJECTS: To make Milky Way shots more interesting, use subjects like trees, human standing, a house or vehicle, powerful flashlight pointing to the skies, etc, as the foreground.
In this photo, I captured my friend pointing his torch light to the skies, creating a nice effect.
The wider and faster the lens, the better to take photos of the Milky Way as the length of the stars may take up the whole frame and you need as much light as possible.
A wide lens, at least 12-14m, with an aperture of at least f/2.8 is the best tool for these shots.
A wide 14mm f/2.8 lens was used for this image.
USE A TRIPOD: This is a must if you want to shoot the Milky Way because you’re going to expose your camera for 10 to 20 seconds.
If you don’t have a tripod, place your camera on something sturdy such as in between rocks. You may be able to capture some shooting stars if the skies are clear enough.
USE CELESTIAL APPS: Finding the Milky Way with the naked eye can be challenging, especially at an unfamiliar place.
To overcome this, use celestial apps like Sky View Lite, Star Walk and other related apps which can easily show you the position of the Milky Way even though it is still below the horizon.
These apps show and name all the planets and stars in the skies, including satellites. I use the Sky View Lite app most of the time for Milky Way shots.