Latest Posts by wayne-pinkston - Page 2

Portal by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook This is massive Natural Bridge or Arch. Low Level Lighting (LLL) used to illuminate the scene. There are 2 Goal Zero Micro Lanterns hidden under the arch to illuminate the undersurface. There is a Cineroid LED light panel on a light stand to my left to illuminate the foreground, and 2 more small lights illuminating the far ridge. With a structure this massive it can be a bit of work to get the lighting even. Lots of repositioning and reshooting. This is a vertical panorama with the images taken horizontally and the series of images sweeping upwards. 14-24 mm lens, 14 mm, f/2.8, 20 sec., ISO 6400.

Where the Hoodoos Have No Names by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook Where the Hoodoos Have No Names. Sometimes the Low Level Lighting (LLL) works out just the way you desire. My goal is typically to have the light come in at an angle to accentuate the surface features, and in this case it brought out the texture well. The location was constrained by rock on both sides so I bounced the light off a rock wall to the left. This usually makes the night less harsh and diffuses the light more. The LLL was done with a single Cineroid LED light panel. Stacked image, 18 light frames, 14-24 mm lens at 23 mm, 15 seconds, f/2.8, ISO 10,000.

From a Watery Origin by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook Tufas arising from their watery origins. These tufas are composed of calcium carbonate which precipitates out of the water from springs lying along the lake bed over millennia. Some are seen arising from the lake while others are now exposed on land after the shoreline has receded. Stacked image for the sky, long exposure for the foreground (3 minutes at ISO 1600).

Utah’s Canyon Country by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook The Colorado River passes through the canyons of Utah. This is a breathtaking vista and one of my favorite spots to visit in central Utah. This is a panorama of multiple vertical images with the long exposure foreground images and separate images for the sky (from the same location consecutively), blended in PS. FG: 35 mm, 240 sec, f/1.8, ISO 2000. Sky: 24 mm, 15 sec, f/2.8, ISO 8000.

Reflections by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook Reflections: The Greater and Lesser Magellanic Clouds are reflected in the shallow waters of the Great Barrier Island in New Zealand. The Magellanic Clouds are irregular dwarf galaxies that orbit the Milky Way. They do have a “bar” of stars or brightness centrally but are not classic spiral galaxies. Observation and theoretical evidence suggests that the clouds have been greatly distorted by tidal interactions with the Milky Way as they travel close to it (Astronomy.com). ___________________________________________ As an observer from the Northern Hemisphere it was fun to see the features of the Southern Hemisphere sky, like the Magellanic Clouds. These lie near the “southern arm” of the Milky Way and are not visible in the Northern Hemisphere. ___________________________________________ Usually we just have to coordinate the position on the Milky Way, the moon cycles, landscape location, and weather to get the desired shot. Here there was one more factors, the tides, which I was not used to considering. At low tide there is a very thin layer of water along the shore which was perfect for capturing reflections. Luckily this occurred around 1 - 2 a.m. when the stars were in excellent position. Stacked image, 14-24 mm lens, 14 mm, f/2.8, 20 sec., ISO 12,800. ___________________________________________ If you want an excellent guide to good shooting spots on the Great Barrier Island contact Carol @darkskysanctuary on IG.

The Castle Gate by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook The Castle Gate: There is Low Level Lighting (LLL) from 2 sources. There is a small Goal Zero Micro Lantern just behind the tunnel turned down low, and a Ceneroid LED light Panel on a light stand behind me and to the left, also turned down low. The Cineroid has a variable color temperature and is set to about 4000-4200K. The rock here is very red-orange, and if you use a light temperature much lower (warmer) that this then the rock turns very unnaturally red. Stacked image, 19 mm, f/2.8, 15 sec., ISO 10,000.

Window to the Stars by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Spectacular alcove in Utah with a “window” in the roof. There are petroglyphs far to the left and the alcove opens into a ravine with vegetation and a couple of small temporary or intermittent pools of water. There are 5 photographers in the photo. They look very small, can you spot them? There is also a small pool of water within the alcove with reflections. Very cool spot! Panorama, 20 sec., f/3.2, 17 mm, ISO 12,800.

Dobie, the House Elf. 🤓 Well, it looks like Doby to me, lol. If you don’t know who Doby is, well there’s no point in explaining. Maybe I’m loco 🤪, or maybe I’m easily amused, but I see things in the landscape. Erosion creates fabulous sculptures throughout the world, but there is a plethora in the SW USA. ___________________________________ This has been a busy year. I’m way behind posting last summer’s work and I’ve barely touched this years work. I’m going to make an effort to get active on IG again, after slacking off recently. ____________________________________ This is a stacked image with additional focus stacking, 8 images for the sky and another 8 for the foreground. Cheers, Wayne (at Where the streets have no name) https://www.instagram.com/p/BzTpnMAhJF7/?igshid=r3t72izmza0l

Totem Pole Panorama by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook Panorama of the Totem Pole in Monument Valley, Utah. 11 images, 24 mm vertically, f 2.8, 15 sec., ISO 12,800. Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Mittens Panorama by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook The Mittens Monument Valley, Utah. Panorama of approximately 11 images taken vertically with a Rokinon 35 mm f/1.4 lens. _______________________________________ You need a guide to go into the park at night. Contact Majestic Monument Valley Tours and ask for Quanah. ____________________________________ Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family! Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Starstruck by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook This is taken in Arches National Park in the Arch called "North Window", with 2 friends from Moab. I had been wanting to shoot some photos of people silhouetted within the arch for a while, but did not get the opportunity until Sept. Thanks Dustin and Kelsey! This is a blend of 2 photos, one for the sky and one for the people, taken at the same focal length and f stop but different focus and shutter speed. Low Level Lighting used, with 2 small Goal Zero lantern within the arch and a Ceneroid Light Panel outside the arch on the right. Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Among the Hoodoos by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook This was taken in the badlands in northern New Mexico. There are multiple areas you can visit outside of the better known Bisti Badlands. In this photo I was using Low Level Lighting to try and create a sense of depth to the field of hoodoos in the foreground. If you want a guide to the area consider contacting Kialo Winters at Navajo Tours USA. To all Night Photographers - There will be a large Nightscaper Conference in Moab May 1-3, 2019. There will be multiple speakers over 3 days and nightly excursions. You can find more information here: intothenightphoto.blogspot.com/ Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

The Great Kiva at Chetro Ketl by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook The Great Kiva at Chetro Ketl in Chaco Canyon, New Mexico. The Ancient Puebloan Ruins in Chaco Canyon are fascinating in the day, even more interesting at night. The kivas are monumental structures thought to have religious significance. They were roofed over with beams and packed dirt, creating a gathering place on the roof. You entered vertically from the roof by a ladder. The structures within this kiva are particularly intact. There were fire boxes, floor pits, and a hole in the floor called a Sipapu, that symbolised the opening in the Third World through which the people emerged into the world. This is a panorama or 8 vertical images with a Nikon D850 and Sigma 14 mm f/1.8 lens, at f 2.5, 25 sec., and ISO 8000. The sky is more complex than usual with the clouds, airglow, and light pollution. There is relatively little light pollution in this area, but the clouds magnify it. Low Level Lighting used. You need a Special Use Permit to go into the park at night, and it is time consuming and costly to get one. A big thank you to @jocksphotos for letting me accompany him. Thanks Jock! Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Stardust Dreams by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook That’s Anastasia flying in the North Window at Arches National Park. Wandering around at Delicate Arch in Arches NP I saw two people posing in front of the arch in ways that regular people just cannot do, like bending over backwards, or standing on your hands bending backwards. 😳 We eventually got to talking and I mentioned I take photos at night and they offered to participate. It turns out that they are incredible athletes specializing in Acrobatics. Check out Daniel at @acro_climber or @acro_shoots and Anastasia @baikalstorm on Instagram. These amazing acrobats posed that night in North Window in a number of poses that would be difficult in the daytime, but even harder at night. They were posing on the edge of a rock face, on hard uneven ground, in the dark, and holding each other up. Remember, the photo is lightened, it is nearly completely dark out there! So a big thank you to Daniel and Anastasia! In this photo Danial is holding Anastasia up in the air with his feet. The person on top is called the “flier”, so I erased Daniel and moved her up a bit to make her really “fly”. Sorry Daniel! There is one photo for the sky, and then another photo of the acrobats taken at the same focal length and ISO, but with a flash on the acrobats. The 2 photos were combined. Sigma 14-24 mm lens, 24 mm, f 2.8, 20 sec. (sky), 2 sec. (people), ISO 12,800. Hope you enjoy! Wayne Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

A Whale of a View by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook This is an arch called “Eye of the Whale” in Arches National Park. It is one of the more obscure and less visited arches. You have to take a dirt road for a couple of miles, or several kms, to get to the arch. The road alternates with rocky areas and deep sand, so a high clearance 4WD vehicle is required. It’s a fun spot off the beaten path. This is a panorama of 6 vertical images taken with a Sigma 14 mm f/1.8 lens at f 2.8, 30 sec, and ISO 12,800, with a Nikon 850 camera. The Arch is deeper than most, almost like a short tunnel. My first thought when hearing the name was “why would someone name an arch that”? Anyway, when you approach the arch from the path it really doses look like a giant eye, and even photos from inside the arch look like you are viewing from inside a giant eye. Hope you enjoy! Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Moccasin Arch by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook Panorama, 4 images, 14 mm, f/2.8, 25 sec., ISO 8000 Moccasin Arch in Monument Valley. The Arch is a huge cavernous alcove with an opening in the side of the "roof". This is a photo of some of my fellow photographers taking photos within Moccasin Arch. I was taking photos of them while they were photographing the arch. It turned out that I liked this one more than my views looking straight outward from the arch. The photographers in the photo give you a sense of scale. The Arch is huge! A big thank you to Quanah from Majestic Monument Valley Tours for taking us there. Thank you! He is highly recommend if you want to take a night tour in Monument Valley (day tours also). Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Feeling Small in Big Hogan by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook This is a vertical panorama in Big Hogan Arch in Monument Valley, Utah. After taking the panorama I photographed myself with the same lens and settings and added it to the panorama in the same position. As you can see, Big Hogan Are is aptly named. It is huge. You feel like you are standing in a cathedral. The hole at the top is actually overhead in reality. The appearance here makes it look like it is in the front wall, but that is the result of trying to fit the inside of a sphere onto a rectangular image. You need a guide to enter Monument Valley at night. If you are interested in a night tour contact Majestic Monument Valley Tours and ask for Quanah. Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Hoodoos and Bones by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook Oh, if the land could only speak, what a tale it could tell... For tours to this area contact Kialo Winters at Navajo Tours USA. Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

The Mage by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook Mautao the Mage had traveled far to reach the Sculpted Lands of the Ancestors. The lore of old held that the lands were carved by fire in the time before Man, and that the eternal smoke of the Dragon’s Breath still arched through the sky at night. The People now suffered from the Wasting Sickness and he had been sent to intervene with the Gods of Old. Rain and game had become scarce and the little food to be had was from foraging and meager crops. The New Gods had not answered their prayers, so Mautao appealed to the Gods of the Ancestors residing above. An image from a fantasy shoot in the New Mexico Badlands. Thanks to Kialo Winters of Navajo Tours USA, who is the Mage! Contact him for tours in the area! This is a Lighting Blend, one exposure for the sky and foreground with Low Level Lighting, and the same image repeated with a muted flash (from behind the rocks) for the Mage. An experiment with night photography, characters, and microfiction. Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

To Walk a Pale Land by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook To Walk A Pale Land. Part of a series from the New Mexico Badlands. This is a panorama of 9 vertical shots taken at 14 mm with a 14-24 mm lens, f/2.8, ISO 12,800. I was about 6-8 feet from the larger hoodoos on the sides, very close. There was considerable distortion in the individual photos from being so close, but the combined photos in the panorama eliminated the distortion remarkably well. People frequently ask me about nodal rails and parallax. The current versions of Lightroom and Photoshop do remarkably well at eliminating parallax error in the photos. I do have a nodal rail and take as many panoramas as I can manage, but I do not bother with the nodal rail. I do not use it, and have never had an issue with parallax preventing stitching or distorting the image. In this image I was trying it o catch the rising MW between the hoodoos. Taken in May 2018. There are no paths in the New Mexico Badlands, and multiple places you can visit. If you want guidance consider contacting Kialo Winters @chacorunner, at Navajo Tours USA, highly recommend! Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Hoodoo Hill by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook Hoodoo Hill, New Mexico Badlands. Single exposure with Low Level Lighting. Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Paiute Falls, San Juan River by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook This is a super wide panorama of Paiute Falls along the San Juan River in the Navajo Nation. I was honored to go here with Quanah Parker of Majestic Monument Valley Tours. The view is so wide that the falls look small. There are 22 images taken with a Rokinon 24 mm f 1,4 lens at 15 sec., 8000 ISO, and f 1.8. This was my favorite pano lens (past tense) until I dropped and broke it about a week later. Sigh... In this scene I really like the combination of the red and green air glow mixed with the light yellow/orange light pollution. Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Small Canyon in Nevada by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook Small Canyon in Nevada. 7 images stacked in Starry Landscape Stacker. 12 mm fisheye lens, f 2.8, ISO 8000, 25 sec. Why 7 images? Who knows, probably lost count, lol. Love that “red” Navajo Sandstone! Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Whispers of the Past by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook An old house in New Mexico. Lighting with Low Level Lighting with a Gaol Zero Micro Lantern. There are 2 exposures for focus stacking, one for the foreground and one for the sky, both at 14 mm. Sky shot at 15 sec., f 4.5, 15 sec., and ISO 10,000, foreground shot at 25 sec., f 4.5, and ISO 10,000. I shot the foreground at f 4.5 to get more depth of field and forgot to change it for the sky. Oops... Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Heart Arch by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook Stacked Image Foreground 9 images 17 mm, 30 sec., f 4.0, ISO 12,800 Sky 9 images 17 mm, 15 sec., ISO 12,800 Heart Arch or Window. Once upon a time on a small Mesa far, far away. 😊 I do not know if there is a real name for this small arch (I suspect not), but I’m going to call it Heart Arch. I saw a photo of this small arch on the internet which led me to see out the location, and fortunately I found it on my second day of searching. The Arch is located on the very edge of a cliff with a drop off of an estimated 100-150 feet, 30-50 m. Fortunately it could be lined up with the MW from the safe side of the arch, but unfortunately there was a lot of light pollution in this direction from a city about 100 miles, 160 km away. Still worked out ok though. There is focus stacking with a 9 image stack for the sky and an 9 image stack for the foreground, processed in Starry Landscape Stacker. Low Level Lighting done with a single Goal Zero Micro Lantern. Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

To Walk an Alien Land... by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook To Walk an Alien Land... He sat foot upon the barren rock of a new world, new to man. There was a residual atmosphere of Nitrogen and Carbon Dioxide but little or no Oxygen. There was widespread evidence of erosion indicating a prior abundance of water but there was little surface water now. They had spent decades in deep sleep and a small exploratory force had recently been awakened by the autopilot to resupply within the nearest system. There was little need for anyone to leave the ship as all resupply functions could be performed remotely by robotics. Spacesuits were still primitive and rarely used, but there were always a few who savoured the experience of walking a new world... If you like photos like this then come and join us in a workshop in July in this location. For details see my website or DM me here at Flickr. Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Eggshells and Cracked Eggs by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook Blend (Focus Stack) Nikon 810A, f 2.8, 20 sec., 17 mm, Nikon 14-24 mm lens Cracked Eggs and Eggshells. This is taken in the Bisti Badlands in an area know as the "Cracked Eggs" or the "Alien Egg Factory". This was done in a workshop during the May New Moon. It is about a 1.5 mile hike from the parking lot. The badlands are a mesmerizing place at night with a very otherworldly feel. In this photo I was trying to capture a close view of a "cracked" egg along with the Milky Way. There is a close focus on the "eggshell" and a far focus on the sky. I am giving a Landscape Astrophotography Workshop in the New Mexico Badlands in July, two 3 day workshops, July 8-10 and July 11-13. If interested please contact me through my website. We will cover Landscape Astrophotography with classic night landscapes and then add people/figures into the compositions. Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

The Totem Pole, Monument Valley by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook The Totem Pole in Monument Valley. You need a local guide to visit Monument Valley at night. I can recommend Majestic Monument Valley tours if you are interested. I am planning something different and new that I hope will be a lot of fun. I am planning Fantasy Nightscape Workshops during the July new moon. There will be 2 three day workshops, in July 2018, July 8 through 10, and July 11 through 13. Photographer Eric Gail will also be an instructor. The workshop will be in the New Mexico Badlands. This area has multiple “Otherworldly” locations. This area gives us multiple sites that will be suitable for photographing fantasy scenes. This workshop will be different in that we will compose the photos with Fantasy Figures. It will be like Comic Com under the Milky Way. We will first capture the composition in a standard fashion without a person and then with one or more fantasy figures in the photo. We will provide costumes including an Astronaut (full spacesuit), Alien, Predator, Lord of the Rings (Aragorn-Strider), Conquistador, Star Wars (including Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, Obi Wan Kanobee, Jango Fett), Witches, and Wizards, Steampunk, and Medeival figures, Conquistador, etc. If that is not imaginative enough you can bring your own fantasy outfit! We will be shooting in an Otherworldly setting so costumes or figures that fit the setting would be best. Suggestions are welcomed! There will be lectures in the late afternoons for about 2 hours depending on group interest. We will cover and practice Landscape Astrophotography, Low Level Lighting, and Composition, in addition to planning, and scouting for Astrophotography. Additionally we will cover using smartphone apps such as TPE, Photopills, True DoF (Depth of Field) and Gaia GPS, and Google Earth, etc. These are instrumental in my planning and scouting. If you are interested please mail me here at Flickr. Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

The Wizard of Bisti by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook Part of a fantasy Series. New Mexico Badlands. Panorama, 11 images, 24 mm, f 2.0, 15 sec., ISO 8000. Low Level Lighting used. There is a light behind the hoodoos (not doing much, lol), and an LED light panel on a tripod behind me and to the left. For more images like this please take a look at Wayne Pinkston Photography . Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!

Recapture Pocket Panorama by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website, Instagram, Facebook Recapture Pocket is an area on hoodoos near Bluff, Utah. There are 2 fields of hoodoos here. I call this Hoodoo Arch because it is an arch that is mostly just 2 connected hoodoos. There is Low Level Lighting (LLL) with a Gaol Zero Micro Lantern behind the arch and an LED Light Panel on a tripod about 50 meters behind me and to the right. Panorama: 11 images, 20 mm, f 2.0, 20 sec., ISO 6400, Nikon 810A Hope you enjoy! For more images like this please take a look at Wayne Pinkston Photography . Thanks for all the kind support over the last year, it is much appreciated! A big thank you to the wonderful Flickr family!