28/03/2026
First mission of the year, and what a way to start.
We spent about two hours hiking in with all our photography and camping gear on our backs, pushing through dense tussock, crossing creeks, and slowly making our way up the valley. When we finally reached this spot and time later Chris found this little patch where we decide to camp.
This was my first night using a star tracker along with some new gear, so there were definitely a few challenges. I wasn’t sure if the panorama would stitch properly in post. I shot the foreground around midnight before crawling into the tent for a short sleep under one of the clearest and stillest nights I’ve experienced.
The alarm went off at 4am, time to get ready.
Everything lined up just as planned, the Milky Way core rising into position. I was especially excited to see what the tracked shots with my new MSM Nomad, and the level of detail in the sky was unreal.
To top it all off, red airglow filled the sky, and the zodiacal light lit up the base of the Milky Way core, something pretty special to witness in person.
Super grateful to experience and capture Aotearoa’s dark skies in such a remote and beautiful place.
CATEGORY
Panorama/tracked/stacked/blended
GEAR
Sony Alpha 7III
Sony 24mm f1.4 GM
Sirui tripod
Move Shoot Move Nomad star tracker
EXIF
Sky, 2 rows x 9 panels, 60s x 3 frames, f2.8, ISO 800, 24mm
Foreground, 1 row x 9 panels, 120s, f2.8, ISO 2000
POST
Lrc, Ptgui, SLStacker, Ps
