19/05/2025
HOW CAN THIS BE ONE OF MY ALL-TIME FAVOURITE PICTURES!?
A noisy, blurry photo of the milky way with a bright light at the bottom of the image, and this is an all-time favourite!? I have captured many photos of the night sky that look so much better, so what's going on here? Is age finally impacting my mental ability?
Well, there's quite a few reasons why this image is so special to me. Last year I did a tour throughout the country to capture a video for a prominent college group. I had to travel substantially and after leaving Cape Town late, I arrived at the most special guest house in Calvinia just after sunset, around 8:30. I was in love with the place and the sky was just so clear that I grabbed my camera, with the 50mm and took a random shot to see what was possible.
To those who know, usually astral photography is done with a tripod and long exposure, and sometimes with a tracking device that matches the rotation of the earth - well, this was done handheld with a portrait lens and no stabilization. 2/5 of a second shutter speed translating into a bit of blur, and that after a 6+ hour journey and a day's work, is not to bad at all for my age. Because I was taking a snapshot in Auto mode the iso was a very high 25600, so the noise is not too bad at all considering.
One of the reasons that make this so special, is that the light at the bottom is actually the moon. Astral photography needs a dark night, away from towns and light to get the best images. this was not only captured next to a light, but the camera was aimed straight at a light source, the moon. To get the milky way with the moon, without photoshopping is very rare. So this makes the image extremely special, especially if considering that it was basically a snapshot.
All of the above pale in comparison to the main reason that this image is so special to me: THE MEMORIES!
When I see this photo, it brings the most beautiful memories to life. Beautiful landscapes, amazing people and very special emotions. Photographers so often forget the value of association with an image. It might be a candle, a face, moody light and so much more. Capturing mood and emotion is becoming a lost art. Do I wish I had taken out the tripod to get a better image? Yes and no. The "better image" might have been prettier, but would not have conveyed how tired I was when I snapped it, how special the sky was to be able to capture this with a full moon, and all the emotions I felt when I safely arrived at this beautiful little spot, in a small town called Calvinia, in the middle of the Karoo.
