It’s only recently that I’ve taken an interest in star trail photography after reading this great article over at Naturescapes.net.
A few friends have asked me about it so I thought I’d go through my method when I’m out shooting.
Equipment
- Digital SLR capable of bulb mode with a remote shutter release (can be cable or IR). In my case I use a Nikon D40, with a IR remote.
- Tripod – the camera needs to be steady the entire length of the exposure. I use a Manfrotto.
- Lens at its widest focal range – I use a Sigma 10-20mm at 10mm
Camera Settings
- Widest aperture and focal length for your lens – eg. 10mm @ f3.5
- Manual focus mode set to infinite
- Camera set to bulb mode
- Camera set to remote trigger mode if you need to
Method
- For the best results you’ll want little to no moon – you can check out the phase of the moon online before hand.
- I setup my tripod and have my lens facing south using a compass on my watch.
- The camera is adjusted with the settings above and the shutter is triggered remotely.
- I then leave it for 20-30min and come back and trigger the shutter again.
Some of the results are below:
i really like this method but i ddint ever realise that the exposure had to be oppen for such a long time?
never mind thanks for the tip
olly