background Archives - FluffyShotMe

Tips for Shooting the Aurora Borealis

The Preparation

When shooting the Northern Lights, there is a bit of homework that should be conducted before traveling to attempt to get any shots. This step is often overlooked and can lead to poor results when ignored.

Scout locations by satellite view on Google Maps prior to travel
Focus your location search on areas free of light pollution, I use DarkSiteFinder.com
Map out as many possible locations as possible so that you can have a variety of foregrounds in your shots.
Download the “Aurora” app on your phone so that you can stay up to date with aurora forecasts during your trip.
Visit the sites that you plan to shoot during the day so you can check for road conditions, whether the location is as good as it appeared on the map, etc… You may want to take an odometer reading from a reference point in order to be able to come back in the dark.
Check Weather and gauge your activities based on whether you can see the stars or not.
Okay, you have done the preparation and you are ready to leave to go shoot the Aurora! Well, not so fast. Before leaving to shoot the Aurora, I would recommend pre-focusing your lens (I will get into that in a minute).

What equipment is needed for shooting the Aurora?

In order to have the best chances of shooting the Aurora, I would recommend the following equipment:

DSLR or Mirrorless camera that can shoot in manual mode
A fast wide Angle lens somewhere in the 14-24 mm range. By fast, I am referring to the aperture; an f/2.8 is what I used and it was fine, but if you have a f/1.4 or f/1.8 that should work well.
A sturdy tripod. Nothing is worse than taking long exposure photos on a tripod that can’t stay still ruining all of your shots.
A remote shutter release – in order to minimize camera vibration, you will want to actuate your shutter with a remote and not touch your camera at all.
A Headlamp – It’s dark out there
A lawn chair
A slower runner than you if there are bears

Let’s talk about Focus

Before leaving to go to your location, you will want to Pre-Focus your lens. Once you are out in the dark, it is difficult to get proper focus, so this is very important.

By using the Photopills app, you should be able to look up the Hyperfocal length of your lens and camera combination. According to the Hyperfocal Table in the Photopills app, my 14mm wide angle will reach hyperfocal distance in approx 8 feet at f/2.8; meaning that if I focus on something 9 feet away, I my background will remain in focus.

I pick an object outside of the hyperfocal length and get tack sharp focus on it. In order to check, I look at other objects further away to make sure that they are in focus as well. Once I have my lens dialed in, I disable Autofocus and using Gaffer tape, I tape down the focus ring of the lens. Once taped, take a picture and zoom in to confirm that you are tack sharp, if not, you could end up hunting and pecking in the dark, which is no good.

Camera Settings to Start

Camera settings are going to vary given the environmental conditions, but I would say a good start would be to try to keep Shutter Speed around 4 – 6 seconds, the aperture open all the way (in my case f/2.8) and then adjust ISO accordingly to get the exposure that you want. I found that shooting around iso of 5000 was about right for me.

One Last Thing

While you are out there shooting the Aurora Borealis, don’t forget one thing – Have fun with it. It is unbelievably beautiful and it is an experience that you will never forget.

Alabama Constitution Village

By David Morefield

While visiting Huntsville, Alabama for a family reunion, my son and I visited the Alabama Consitution Village. The Alabama Constitution Village was great! I had no idea that the State of Alabama’s Constitution was signed in Huntsville, Alabama back in 1819 in order to organize the State of Alabama as the 22nd state in the union.

The Alabama Constitution Village is full of the sights, sounds and smells of what would have been there back in the early 1800s.

We visited the John Boardman’s Print Shop where they allow you to operate the old press and print something off of a plate. Once printed, you then place your print on stacked cheesecloth drying racks and wait 2 days for the ink to dry. You leave the John Boardman’s Print Shop with the smell of ink still in your nostrils and a sense of respect for how long it took to get anything printed. A run of 500 prints could take three days to complete, assuming the plate was ready to go. The shop has many letters of the alphabet that can be arranged on a plate in order to print something. These letters are arranged in two separate cases, one on top of the other and in order of the alphabet. Capitol letters are kept in the top case, while the small letters are kept on the bottom. This is the origin of calling a letter that is Capitalized an “Uppercase” letter as opposed to a “Lowercase” letter.

Clement Comer’s Law Library is also onsite and offers a glimpse of what it was like to be an attorney preparing for a case back in the early 1800’s. There is also the Federal Land Surveyor’s office, a Post Office, a Blacksmith’s Shop and sheriff Stephen Neal’s residence.

Of course, my favorite place at Alabama Constitution Village is the Cabinetmaker’s shop. They have craftsmen that still build things in the cabinetmaker’s shop the same way that they did back in the early 1800’s. Some of the tools are just genius and although they operate differently, the function of the tools remains the same.

There are two lathes; one is a handcrank lathe that requires one person to turn the lathe with a big spoked wheel while the other uses a chisel and the other is pedal powered lathe that is counterbalanced by a hickory branch suspended form the ceiling. looking at these tools, I was impressed with the engineering that went into how make them.

There was also a bandsaw that was also pedal powered and counterbalanced from a hickory branch along the ceiling. Basically, you would push the pedal down in order to move to sawblad down and then when you release the pedal, the tension on the branch would return the sawblade to the up position. The cabinetmaker showed us how easily his pedal powered saw cut through the wood. Of course, I am sure it takes practice to find the rhythm in order to make consistent cuts.

I love word etiology and one of the things that I learned is that once you had useda handmade nail in a door, you had to knock the end of the nail to the side. Once this had been done, the nail could not be reused. This brought the term, “Dead as a doornail” into common usage.

Panama City Beach Florida

By David Morefield

This past week, my family and I went to Panama City Beach, Florida. I have great memories of Panama City Beach as a kid, so I not only get to relive those memories, but make new ones whenever I go back.

The first morning that we were in Florida, my family and I went to Wright Baptist Church in Fort Walton Beach, Florida where my cousin Jeremy Gates is the pastor. After church, we went to lunch and caught up on the past twenty years. I had not seen my cousin since I was in High School, so it was great to get to spend some time with him and meet his wife and daughter.

Tuesday afternoon, we rented a pontoon boat from Adventures at Sea and took it to Shell Island. If you have never gone to Shell Island, then I would highly recommend checking it out while you are in Panama City Beach. Shell Island is located across the bay from Tyndell Air Force Base and is not inhabited. Basically, you find a place to anchor your boat and then walk through the island to the other side where you can have a beach all to yourself. While snorkeling in the bay, we found starfish and countless sand dollars; which was a whole lot of fun. I even had a puffer fish follow me around for a while.

Wednesday morning, I woke up early and drove down the Russell-Fields Pier otherwise know as the City Pier. It was a cloudy morning and there were some ominous clouds in the sky, but thunderstorms come and go quickly in Panama City beach, so I figured I would get to the pier and see how the weather was. As I got out of my truck lightning struck the water about 500 meters past the pier, so I quickly aborted the photo shoot that morning. I ended up going to Thomas Donuts to pickup up breakfast and returned to the beach house as a hero.

The weather was more favorable the next morning, so I went back out to the pier around 5am. I love to shoot early in the morning and the light was perfect. The clouds in the sky reflect the colors of the sunrise and I just love the colors that can be captured at that time of morning.

The Russell-Fields Pier is a 1,500 foot long pier that provides not only some great fishing, but some fantastic views of the Panama City Beach coastline. I ended up staying out at the pier for a couple hours watching all of the activity. In retrospect, I was glad that I did not go to the pier earlier in the week. I observed Black Tip Sharks swimming within 30 feet of the shoreline and it’s probably best that I was blissfully ignorant of this earlier in the week while at the beach. I think sharks are cool as long as they are behind glass, but swimming in open water with them is not my idea of fun.

At the end of the week, we all felt recharged and had a great time. The beach house that we stayed in was great for a family week at the beach and was actually cheaper than staying in a hotel. If you are headed to Panama City Beach, Florida and you are looking for a recommendation of where to stay, look no further. The beach house that we stayed in not only had a great kitchen, but it even had an icemaker in the wet bar. This meant that I did not have to run out for ice everyday before walking out the backdoor to the beach, which was awesome. Here is the link to the Beachfront Oasis.

Hamilton Pool

By David Morefield

This weekend, I went on a drive to Austin, TX just to get out and see what I could find. Early Saturday morning, I had planned to go to the University of Texas campus to get a shot of the UT Tower. Being an Aggie, I must plan to go there under cover of darkness so that I don’t risk life and limb. Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate with me on Saturday morning, it was drizzling and foggy.

I decided instead to go to Hamilton Pool out near Dripping Springs, TX. I have always wanted to go there, but the times that I have tried in the past, I got to the gate too late. This time, I was first in line to get into the park.

What can I say about Hamilton Pool aside from agreeing that it is an absolutely gorgeous area. You park and then walk about a quarter of a mile down a steep path to get to the creek and then walk another quarter mile along the creek to the get to the pool itself. This place is huge! What I found really interesting is that it seems completely hidden. I can only imagine what it was like when it was first discovered.

After taking some shots at the pool, I took the trail to the Perdenales River, which is a good mile in the other direction. Walking a mile or two shouldn’t be a big deal, but when you are on nature’s stairclimber, it is quite a workout; not to mention having to carry to all of my photography equipment. I was rewarded with a very peaceful view of the river once I reached the end of the trail, but again, the weather was not in my favor. It started raining, so I just enjoyed sitting in the rain while watching a couple Cardinals fly around chasing each other. Has it not been for the rain, I would have been all about taking some shots of the cardinals.

As the rain stopped, I thought I was going to have my chance, but then a group of people laughing and cutting up came bumbling down the trail, so I figured that it was time to leave.

If you have not been to Hamilton Pool, I would highly suggest that you go and check it out. The next time that I go to Hamilton Pool, I’ll take a book with me and just enjoy the escape from the rest of the world.

The Cole Theater in Rosenberg, TX

By David Morefield

A photography group that I enjoy hanging out with met for dinner prior to walking over to the Cole Theater in the Historic Downtown Rosenberg District to take pictures. The owner of Another Time Soda Fountain, Renee Butler, gave us a guided tour of the haunted theater after we had some great food at her restaurant. Dessert was provided by Old Main Street Bakery which is located next door to Another Time Soda Fountain.

Another Time Soda Fountain is a restaurant that is located in a building that is around 100 years old. The soda is mixed by soda jerks from an old fashioned soda fountain. If you would prefer to try to mix some flavors, they can do that too! I personally love their Lime Phosphates. The restaurant serves all-American comfort food such as Cheeseburgers, Sandwiches and Soups. Of course, what would a Soda fountain be without Ice Cream, right? Their Banana Splits are to die for, which is why I am glad that I live 30 miles away, otherwise, I’d be there everyday.

The Old Main Street Bakery recently opened and is run by Nicholas Maresh. After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America, Nicholas responded to his hometown’s demand for a local bakery and started the Old Main Street Bakery. Last night’s sampling was of their Kolaches, Coconut Cookies and Apple Strudel. I particularly was impressed with the Coconut Cookies and I am hoping that someone will keep them in mind when thinking about my birthday next week (/hint).

After everyone had enjoyed dinner and hanging out, we ran out into the rain to go the Cole Theater. Somehow, the nice pleasant evening had changed into a stormy night and the temperature dropped by about 20 degrees. What better than to take a tour of a haunted theater on a cold, dark and stormy night?

Renee told us about the usher that has been spotted by multiple people as he walks up and down the aisled policing the theater. Apparently, the upper balcony area gives people a rather dark feeling as well. The theater was built in 1919 and the signs of segregation in the South are still present at the theater. There is a separate entrance for minorities and separate seating. There is an old strong box cemented into the wall near the front of the building and I curiously turned the dial on the safe to check it out. The bearings on that dial spun just as if the safe was brand new, which was impressive.

The Theater still has most of the original seats and the sconces on the walls are a great example of the Art Deco styling of the time when the theater was built. The floor of the theater slopes from back to front and there is a pit under the stage for an orchestra. Renee plans to renovate the theater and make it a welcoming place for everyone in the community.

Tips for Shooting the Aurora Borealis

The Preparation

What equipment is needed for shooting the Aurora?

Let’s talk about Focus

Camera Settings to Start

One Last Thing

Alabama Constitution Village

Hamilton Pool

The Cole Theater in Rosenberg, TX

Helpful Tips and Other News

Who likes stickers?

Kenya Mission Trip January 2018

Kenya Flood Relief – How to Help

Photography Tutorials

Tips for Shooting the Aurora Borealis