Tip: Star trail photography

This photo was taken at 4 in the morning in the Dominican Republic. It was a starry black sky with no sign of sunrise, perfect for taking star trail shots. Film SLR cameras (the kind with removable lenses) work far better than digital cameras, however it is possible to take these images with professional DSLR cameras, as long as you can keep the shutter open for long periods of time.

STEP 1. Use a 50mm lens or a zoom lens set to approximately 50mm. Set the camera on the tripod, and set the focus to infinity (manual focus, as it will be too dark to operate auto focus)

STEP 2. Compose your photo so that a foreground object is in the image, such as a tree or building. Make sure it is a fair distance away, and that it does not fill the frame entirely.

STEP 3. Set your aperture (f-stop) to the lowest number (ex. f2.8, or f4.5, etc.). Your shutter speed should be set on the Bulb or Time setting "B" or "T"

STEP 4. With a cable release attached to the shutter, take the picture. The shutter will now be open for as long as you desire. For the first shot, try 10 minutes, then 15 minutes, and if you feel adventurous, a few hours. The longer you keep the shutter open, the longer and more dramatic the star trails become.

STEP 5. When you are finished close the shutter via the cable release. Now go to bed.

An added benefit to waking up before dawn is that your long exposure may pick up some early morning pink and red pre-sunrise light. In this photo I was fortunate enough to have the sky dark with shooting stars, but the bottom part warming up with reddish light. You will need to experiment with sunrise times; start your long exposure well before you see any hint of morning light. Good luck!

Thanks to professional photographer Mark Hemmings (www.markhemmings.com) for writing this photo tip.