 |
| An example of the process, with Jean Pierre and Sisi. The exposure time was 15 seconds but we really only had to remain still a fraction of a second. ~ taken with a canon IXUS 80 IS, 15 sec exposure at 200 ISO, f#2.8 |
 |
| The orion nebula with the trees in view. Note that had the flash not been used, they would have looked more like those in the background. The lighting allows a nice blend between nature and the sky. Note that you can see the Great Orion Nebula (to the lower left of Orion's belt) ~ taken with a canon IXUS 80 IS, 15 sec exposure at 200 ISO, f#2.8 |
 |
| This last one is awesome, which was a variant tried by Sisi. I'll let you guess what happened ;-) |
Overall, this is a great technique. Why is this a DIY post? Because I'm still exhausting the uses of my cheap 4 year old point and shoot camera (still a grad student, not living with my parents and with limited budget :-|).
Anyone can do this. You just need a camera with an exposure time that may be adjusted to a reasonably long time (here, at least 7 seconds was fine). If you don't have a flash, just use a few flash lights and shine them for a brief period. It's a pretty obvious technique for a professional photographer but not something a point-and-shoot owner would necessarily be aware of.
I have a few other projects here but I will log them once I get some more substantial results with my flimsy telescope :-D, and I have time (could we all not use a little more time).
