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Fine Art Photography by David Morefield from Houston, Texas

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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.

  1. Scout locations by satellite view on Google Maps prior to travel
  2. Focus your location search on areas free of light pollution, I use DarkSiteFinder.com
  3. Map out as many possible locations as possible so that you can have a variety of foregrounds in your shots.
  4. Download the “Aurora” app on your phone so that you can stay up to date with aurora forecasts during your trip.
  5. 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.
  6. Check Weather and gauge your activities based on whether you can see the stars or not.
  7. 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:

  1. DSLR or Mirrorless camera that can shoot in manual mode
  2. 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.
  3. A sturdy tripod. Nothing is worse than taking long exposure photos on a tripod that can’t stay still ruining all of your shots.
  4. 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.
  5. A Headlamp – It’s dark out there
  6. A lawn chair
  7. 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.

Hamilton Pool

Waterfall at Hamilton Pool by David Morefield

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.

Buffalo Bayou Shoot with BAC Photography and Design

Houston Across the Bayou

By David Morefield

 

Last night, I met up with a photography group that I enjoy hanging out with BAC Photography and Design Photography Club. The group was started by the founder of BAC Photography and Design, Brandon Campbell. The group is open to anyone who wants to join for some shutter time and then typically some sort of tasty food afterwards.

Last night’s outing took us towards downtown Houston along the banks of the Buffalo Bayou. There are some great views of the city’s skyline from that angle and of course, shooting with others is always fun. We started by the Joe Jamail Jr. Skatepark and then migrated towards the Theater District of Downtown Houston. Through this group, I have met quite a few like minded folks who all share a passion for photography. Along with the enjoyable experience of going out on a cool night without mosquitoes, we enjoyed jokes and other conversation. It’s like a mini-vacation really.

Aside from the social aspect, it is group settings like this one that I like to talk to others and get ideas about what I want to shoot, what techniques I would like to try, gain valuable critique on my own marketing efforts, etc… If you are a photographer and you have a group like this near you, regardless of your skill level, I would recommend hanging out and sharing with the group. The way I see it, “Sometimes a teacher, always a student.”

Of course, I was very excited to see another Nikon shooter last night. Most of the group are Canon shooters, so the age-old debate continues. Once we had reach the footbridge that crosses Buffalo Bayou and into Downtown Houston, I was delighted to see the view that the vantage point offered. The buildings, water, bridge and stars all came into frame giving me a shot that I really liked. What is funny is that I have shot around this location several times, but never had ventured this far down the path. Again, had it not been for the group outing, I may not have shot this location for quite some time to come.

After we had concluded our photoshoot, we left to have dinner at Torchy’s Tacos on Shephard. It was not the regular kind of tacos that I am used to eating from my trusted taco truck down the street, but it was nice to try something a little different. At the end of the night I had made some new friends, spawned some new ideas and got some great shots in the process. That is part of the joy of photography.

Where will I be shooting next time? I guess we’ll just have to wait and see. As a teaser, I will let you know that I am planning a trip in the next couple of months and I expect to get some awesome shots, but I am not going to announce where it will be just yet.

Alvin Car Show

1953 Mercury Monterey

By David Morefield

On Saturday, my buddy Jeremy and I went to the Alvin Car Show in Alvin, TX. There were hundreds of great cars there on display, but the one that really caught my eye was a 1953 Mercury Monterey. This car looked like it had just left the dealership a couple of days ago, it was beautiful. The owner and his wife were very nice and answered all of my questions about their car. From the inside to the outside, this car was immaculate. I have never even seen of a 1953 Mercury Monterey, so to see this quality of a specimen was a real treat. Every detail right down to the pinstriping was period correct. The owner calls his car “Maybellene.”

The owner told me that the man who did the pinstriping in now deceased, but he had done pinstriping back in the 50s and his style was consistent with the way he did it back then. In the trunk, they had 3 cans labeled Oil, Gas and Water and they had been painted with the 1953 Ford Motor Company 50th Anniversary logo. According to the owner, he has owned the car for over 15 years, but this was his first car show. I found it truly amazing that this car has not been shown off before, a car like this needs to be in a museum. Of course, the owner explained that he and his wife like to cruise in it occasionally.

I was taken by the 1953 Mercury Monterey, that I only briefly looked at the other cars. There were a few cool ones, like the Smoothie that was there, but unfortunately, I did not write down what the car started out life as being. This “Smoothie” had been reengineered to lose the horns and bring out the curves of the car, making it more of a custom cruiser than anything else. I was definitely fun to look at, but it was hard to shake the thoughts of Maybellene.

Catching AirLater in the morning at the Alvin Car Show, there were some skaters and bicyclists that were cruising up and down the skate park in the park, so I went to check out that action. This one cyclist specialized in “Flatland Freestyle” riding; in other words, he needs no ramps or frills, he just does tricks on his bike on flat land. It was amazing to watch this guy turn his bike upside down and still be riding it around. There were some kids riding skateboards having a good time with the halfpipe there. I was able to get a couple of shots of them as they were grinding rails near me.

A little later, another cyclist arrived and apparently he was not a Flatland rider, he was all about catching air and flying with his bike. I caught some shots of him before we had to leave.

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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 […]

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