Nubble Light - first try at stars (and a few with a 10-stop)

eoren1 · November 27, 2010

Tonight was the annual lighting of the Nubble lighthouse in York, Maine. Got there at 3:30pm in time for high tide and a somewhat disappointing sunset. Shot a bunch on long exposures with my 10-stop ND and then bracketed a few for HDRs. The damn beacon light did not turn on which took away from the shots :pissed

At 5, the caroling started around the Xmas tree. It was freezing at that point...oh and a squal came through! Santa came by on the firetruck. Then at 6pm, there was a countdown to the lighting. The lights came on and then...gone! Tried again but no go. They had at least 1000 people there braving the cold and no one thought to do a dress rehearsal :scratch

Anyway, the crowd cleared out and, with the headlights gone, I noticed the stars. I pulled up Ron's star tutorial and went to work. Only managed a few frames before a second wave of cars (and headlights) came to ruin my shots. I plan on shooting the stars again when they figure out those lights.

Appreciate any comments

1. 10-stop goodness

2. 10 stops and bracketed

3. No longer an HDR:wink - wasn't crazy about how this one came out and decided to process a single frame instead

4. The stars

edited to change HDR shot to single exposure and corrected title

PGM · November 27, 2010

I like them all--but especially #2 (because of the colors) and #4. That #4 stars shot just has amazing perspective. I love how the lighthouse and its island are lit up, and yet so small compared to the vastness of the sky and stars. Sort of looks like an island floating in the universe. Great shots all! Best, Pam

eoren1 · November 28, 2010

Thanks Pam
Appreciate the comments
I was really hoping for lighting on the lighthouse but I guess this will have to do...for now

I got rid of #3 which was an HDR and replaced it with a single exposure image that I like better
E

lfortier · November 28, 2010

Glad I missed it. I would have frozen my shutter off! Hope they get the lights working as I'll be by to get a shot before Christmas.

Love your star shot with the lighthouse.

eoren1 · November 28, 2010

Thanks Lee
I'm waiting for some better gloves and a flashlight to come before trying this again.
Imagine it'll be really nice after some snow too!

coscorrosa · November 28, 2010

The light in the first shot is really nice, although I find the midground with the sky reflections more interesting than the foreground, I would make the midground the foreground which would also give you more clouds in the shot.

The star shot looks good. It's hard to tell because the lighthouse is (relatively) small but it looks like there may have been some loss of detail due to noise reduction. I would clone out the stripe above the light house too. This location definitely has potential for night/star shots.

eoren1 · November 28, 2010

Thanks a lot Ron
Appreciate your thoughts on these
Agree on the first shot. I sort of liked that crevice there but will crop it tighter and compare
The lighthouse held up surprisingly well given iso 3200 on the 50D. I had tried to get a longer exposure at iso 100 to blend in but a wave of cars came in for the annual lighting (not realizing they were an hour late and that the event fizzled). Will definitely plan to shoot it again when lit and, possibly, after some fresh snow.
Gotta say, after spending time out there, I don't know how you haven't lost fingers and toes during your shoots. Gonna invest in a better pair of gloves before venturing out again.
E

TreyHoff · November 28, 2010

Nice Job....I've got one of the 10-stops on my list, but it seems B&H and others are out of them. Great star shot and I love how the lighthouse/rock maintains the light.

Doug Solis · November 28, 2010

What a beautiful location. Really nice series of shots. I really like the exposure on #1 and the fact that the lighthouse is larger and sitting in a nice power point. I'd love to see #4 in its large format....I really love how the light falls off the lighthouse and island to black, that is very powerful. Well done.

eoren1 · November 28, 2010

Thank you Doug
Here it is bigger (and with a bit of content aware fill):

eoren1 · November 28, 2010

And the cropped #1 as per Ron's suggestion

hawkeye978 · November 29, 2010

Really nice set, E. I like the new crop on #1. In the original my eye kept going to the sky because it was so much brighter. I wonder how #1 would look if you darken up the sky a little. It might balance the exposure and also bring out more of the sky color. I also really like the perspective in the star shot.

eoren1 · November 29, 2010

Thanks Tom
Was wondering when I would see you on this thread...can always count on you when it comes to Nubble!
You planning to shoot the lights? Waiting for the first snow??
Thanks for the comments and suggestions.
E

hawkeye978 · November 29, 2010

E

I've been kept hopping at work. Lots of traveling with no time to shoot. I'd like to get up to York again sometime soon.

I found the best thing for cold fingers is to expose them to the cold so many times that you damage the nerve endings and then it doesn't hurt nearly as much

. That may not be the optimal solution, however.:D

eoren1 · November 29, 2010

I'm not shooting again til I get my 'glomitts' (coolest name ever) and my fancy 190 lumen flashlight to help me nail focus on the lighthouse

schmoo · December 1, 2010

eoren1 wrote: »

Thank you Doug
Here it is bigger (and with a bit of content aware fill):

This is just incredible! You may have quibbles with it but I'd call that a successful shoot.

I've been reading up lately about tides and nautical phenomena up that way. I'd love to visit the coast up by Maine and Nova Scotia someday.

eoren1 · December 1, 2010

Hey Schmoo
Thanks for the kind words
Tides are awesome but can also be a pain in the butt when it comes to photography. Entire landscapes change in the spam of minutes to hours and, if the light isn't quite right, you miss that planned shot
That being said, let me know if you end up heading out here. The north shore of mass and southern Maine make fir great scenes
E

Nubble Light - first try at stars (and a few with a 10-stop)

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