Roughly 80% of North Americans can no longer see the Milky Way from where they live. There are still places where the Milky Way arches from horizon to horizon, bright enough to cast a shadow. This is a guide to finding them, planning the shoot, and dialing in the settings that turn a dark night into a keeper frame.
Trip reports, wildlife encounters, and the quiet hours in the field that make every image worth the wait.
From a moonlit pond in central Colorado to a bustling beaver colony in Grand Teton, these are the stories of photographing nature’s ecosystem engineers and the quiet hours of waiting that make every encounter worth it.
Snow falling. A bone-chilling wind cutting through every layer, instantly freezing me in the fourteen-degree temperature. Seriously questioning my decision to leave the warmth of home during a snowstorm to photograph the Sandhill Cranes, I made my way in the dark to a frozen bird blind at Bosque del Apache. Silence.
What was supposed to be a quiet, easy night turned into one romantic afternoon… for the moose! We’d decided to take a break after teaching back-to-back workshops for a quiet sunset shoot when a couple of swamp donkeys stole the show.
Astrophotography guides, dark-sky locations, and notes from long nights under the stars.
Quick and easy must-haves for each location. For the workshop locations I teach at, see the full gear list. Not a generic checklist, but the actual gear I take to different locations.
Quiet, patient work at the water's edge, often at dawn or dusk.
Blowing sand and dust are a constant here, and desert nights get cold fast.
Bulls are unpredictable this time of year — distance and awareness come first.
Pre-dawn blinds and frozen ponds — dress for well below freezing.