holy smoke, this looks surreal -- very real, but yet, almost diorama-like, as if the light is not quite natural and the background is just slightly painted and the tree is a little too sculpted. It's truly wonderful.
I like the star trails in this one.
Ya that tree is gorgeous
that tree rocks. looks so daylightish. awesome bob!
You should get a sock puppet to keep you company during that time.... I am thinking of getting one :) When you pull long nights like that, you need a friend. Unless you already have one! In which case, you're lucky. :D
Nice shot, the shadows created by the moon do make it look a little more like daylight but it still retains a somewhat surreal look in the foreground, although I can't quite put my finger on why. I do also love the star trails in the background, well done.
Cool shot. Definitely a very interesting surreal effect.
beutiful! the light looks almost artificial... the trails add to it:)
bob, you really are underway to become the master of nightshots
this one is a beauty too, the colours are much warmer of course (the difference between our earthcomponents... water and earth)
yesterday i went sailing and i had to think on this image you too of this abandoned winter yachtharbour...
can assure you it was pretty cold too on the water but my brains needed this windy intermezzo you know
appreciate your work very much bob
I love trees, and I second that sock puppet thing :)
Like this one a lot Bob. Looks almost liek you lit this scene with a giant flash...
That is a great shot bob. The effect of the light on the tree and the star trails is really surreal and kind of spooky. Well done!
Erm, I hate to step out of line, but isn't the tree slightly out of focus? Cool pic, but looking closer it seems that it looks very soft. I would have thought this would just be the wind even if very gentle, but even the base looks soft too.
Dave -- the only thing I can say -- the freakin' wind was HOWLING -- I have a nice Bogen tripod -- but it's probably not what one should use in 15-25mph winds :-) Also -- I probably didn't do that great of a job focusing -- not sure ...
Do you normally just have to rely on the focus scale on the lens for you super long night pics? I wish I had something like that on my litle Fuji, autofocus is rubbish and the electronic viewfinder is pointless.
Dave - I focus at infinity -- but I assure you, the softness in this image comes from the wind -- if you look at the far left - you can see the trees sort of bending... the grasses weren't moving to much because there was like a mound just behind me -- blocking the wind at the lower levesl -- but wasn't much help for anything above the waist!
Shooting at 16mm (I shoot at 10mm most of the time) - allows one to focus on infinity and get everything in sharp focus... If you look back at my pier shots, you'll see that. Those shots were taken when the wind completely died down... I'll be posting more in the next few days -- hopefully, you'll see what I mean... Electronic viewfinders are not a great thing for night shooting, for sure...
Be sure to check out John's night tutorial at Orbit1.com -- he taught me everything I know!
I didn't notice the shadows before, somehow they make the whole thing even more beautiful and ethereal.