Patience is a virtue
Patience and Planning. The two ingredients that made this shot.
I've wanted this shot for 2 years now, but conditions must become optimal on multiple levels for it to fire.
The coast must have no fog. Do you know how rare that is, on the coast, late at night, during summer?
The tide must be one of the lowest of the year. Complete negative low tide. Small swell is also a big factor.
And finally, the Milky Way alignment window is very specific, so you must have your calculations precise or you will botch your attempt.
Everything came together last month and I called my good friend Josh Crites with the good news regarding weather. We drove down at 2:30am and scored until 4am. The bonus cherry on top was it was the first time we both had scored Shark Fin with no other photographers around. We shot the classic dead center cave comp first, then with 15 minutes left in our window to shoot we scooted towards the water and to the left, trying to get the entire Fin in the frame. This is the first cave shot of the Milky Way I've seen this far out and with so much Fin visible.
The green light to the right was a fishing boat throwing light from around the northern rim of the cove.
This shot is a blend.
Sky - 14 shots stacked.
14mm
f/2.2, 15 seconds, 8000iso
Cave foreground:
2 shots stacked
Main image: F/4, 10 minutes, iso 1250
Secondary image with me pointing at milky taken by Josh.
F/2, 20 seconds, 5000 iso
Patience is a virtue
Patience and Planning. The two ingredients that made this shot.
I've wanted this shot for 2 years now, but conditions must become optimal on multiple levels for it to fire.
The coast must have no fog. Do you know how rare that is, on the coast, late at night, during summer?
The tide must be one of the lowest of the year. Complete negative low tide. Small swell is also a big factor.
And finally, the Milky Way alignment window is very specific, so you must have your calculations precise or you will botch your attempt.
Everything came together last month and I called my good friend Josh Crites with the good news regarding weather. We drove down at 2:30am and scored until 4am. The bonus cherry on top was it was the first time we both had scored Shark Fin with no other photographers around. We shot the classic dead center cave comp first, then with 15 minutes left in our window to shoot we scooted towards the water and to the left, trying to get the entire Fin in the frame. This is the first cave shot of the Milky Way I've seen this far out and with so much Fin visible.
The green light to the right was a fishing boat throwing light from around the northern rim of the cove.
This shot is a blend.
Sky - 14 shots stacked.
14mm
f/2.2, 15 seconds, 8000iso
Cave foreground:
2 shots stacked
Main image: F/4, 10 minutes, iso 1250
Secondary image with me pointing at milky taken by Josh.
F/2, 20 seconds, 5000 iso