This shot was an after thought. My original plan was to do a timelapse of the Milky Way rising over the twin volcanoes Parinacota and Pomerape, reflected in a small glacial lake.

• Camera: Canon 5DmkII
• Focal length: 24mm
• Aperture: f/2.5
• Shutter speed: 20 seconds
• ISO: 3200
• Date: March 2011

To get to that spot, however, required a hike of around 5 km at 4200m. I set off mid afternoon, found the spot, setup by late afternoon and got back to the car in deep twilight…hiking is hard at high altitude! Originally I had hoped to setup the second camera at another spot with a different view of the volcanoes, but that wasn’t going to happen now that it was dark. So instead, I found this spot within 50m of the car. Funny, I actually like it – or rather the extended timelapse – more than the first.

This is a frame from a timelapse sequence covering sunset through to moonlit night.

• Camera: Canon 5dmkII
• Focal length: 24mm
• Aperture: f/8
• Shutter speed: 20 seconds
• ISO: 3200
• Date: May 2011

The afternoon was thundery with some nice cummulonimbus clouds. The last remnants of one is seen sweeping across the sky above the Pinnacles.

There’s a story to this one. I set up 2 cameras the night before the conjunction on an isolated peak at the end of Cajón Del Maipo. The cameras were on a timer for timelapsing, so I would be long gone and sleeping in a warm bed at the refugio when they started firing.

• Camera: Canon 5dmkII
• Focal length: 24mm
• Aperture: f/2.5
• Shutter speed: 20 seconds
• ISO: 3200
• Date: March 2011

Well the drive back to the refugio was the story. Winding my way down the track I came across a truck balanced at the road edge on 3 wheels, with one in free air. Two guys were beside it and flagged me down. Now my spanish is close to non-existent, so after some wasted seconds of verbal comms we moved to sign language and it dawned on me they wanted a tow! Me in a small rented suzuki 4×4 towing a small truck back off the side of a cliff! Hmmmmm! Against my better judgement I agreed (I couldn’t leave them out there, could I?). Well after 3 or 4 failed attempts we did it, but there was a pretty ugly smell coming from my engine. Waving the guys goodbye, I proceeded on down the mountain. I hadn’t gone far when I noticed the gear stick seizing up and not long after it seized completely. I was stuck in 1st gear, still some kms from the refugio. To cut a long story short, I made it, but next morning the clutch fully died and we had to wait most of the morning for a tow truck from Santiago to haul us home.

There’s a story with this one. I set up 2 cameras the night before the conjunction on an isolated peak at the end of Cajón Del Maipo.

• Camera: Canon 5dmkII
• Focal length: 24mm
• Aperture: f/2.5
• Shutter speed: 20 seconds
• ISO: 3200
• Date: March 2011

The camera’s were on a timer for timelapsing, so I would be long gone and sleeping in a warm bed at the refugio when they started firing. Well the drive back to the refugio was the story. Winding my way down the track I came across a truck balanced at the road edge on 3 wheels, with one in free air. Two guys were beside it and flagged me down. Now my spanish is close to non-existent, so after some wasted seconds of verbal comms we moved to sign language and it dawned on me they wanted a tow! Me in a small rented suzuki 4×4 towing a small truck back off the side of a cliff! Hmmmmm! Against my better judgement I agreed (I couldn’t leave them out there, could I?). Well after 3 or 4 failed attempts we did it, but there was a pretty ugly smell coming from my engine. Waving the guys goodbye, I proceeded on down the mountain. I hadn’t gone far when I noticed the gear stick seizing up and not long after it seized completely. I was stuck in 1st gear, still some kms from the refugio. To cut a long story short, I made it, but next morning the clutch fully died and we had to wait most of the morning for a tow truck from Santiago to haul us home.

This is a frame from a timelapse sequence for the Ancient Skies Project. I spent 5 nights at Lake Ballard in late August, early September 2010.

• Camera: Canon 5dmkII
• Focal length: 24mm
• Aperture: f/2.5
• Shutter speed: 22 seconds
• ISO: 3200
• Date: August 2010

The week prior was quite wet in the region, and I was fortunate a thin layer of water was migrating across the lake on the day I arrived. You’ll gather from other images on this site that I’m in love with star reflections….so I was more than happy!

A big thanks to Grant Wakefield and SkyScan Europe for providing funds to capture these images. Some timelapses produced by Grant that include this and others images can be found here:

This is a frame from a timelapse sequence for the Ancient Skies Project. I spent 5 nights at Lake Ballard in late August, early September 2010. The week prior was quite wet in the region, and I was fortunate a thin layer of water was migrating across the lake on the day I arrived. You’ll gather from other images on this site that I’m in love with star reflections….so I was more than happy!

A big thanks to Grant Wakefield and SkyScan Europe for providing funds to capture these images. Some timelapses produced by Grant that include this and others images can be found here:

• Walu Ngalindi
• Ancient Skies Australian Night Sky Timelapse

This is a frame from a timelapse sequence for the Ancient Skies Project. I spent 5 nights at Lake Ballard in late August, early September 2010. The week prior was quite wet in the region, and I was fortunate a thin layer of water was migrating across the lake on the day I arrived.

• Camera: Canon 5dmkII
• Focal length: 24mm
• Aperture: f/2.5
• Shutter speed: 20 seconds
• ISO: 3200
• Date: August 2010

You’ll gather from other images on this site that I’m in love with star reflections….so I was more than happy!

A big thanks to Grant Wakefield and SkyScan Europe for providing funds to capture these images. Some timelapses produced by Grant that include this and others images can be found here:

WALU NGALINDI from GRANT WAKEFIELD on Vimeo.

• Ancient Skies

This is a frame from a timelapse sequence for the Ancient Skies Project.

• Camera: Canon 5dmkII
• Focal length: 24mm
• Aperture: f/2.5
• Shutter speed: 20 seconds
• ISO: 3200
• Date: August 2010

I spent 5 nights at Lake Ballard in late August, early September 2010. The week prior was quite wet in the region, and I was fortunate a thin layer of water was migrating across the lake on the day I arrived. You’ll gather from other images on this site that I’m in love with star reflections….so I was more than happy!

A big thanks to Grant Wakefield and SkyScan Europe for providing funds to capture these images.

This image was taken 4 days after new moon. This is a period I like to refer to as the ‘magic moon’ – around 2 or 3 nights before and after new moon. This is when the moon is bright enough to nicely or dimly expose the landscape, but not too bright to wash out the Milky Way and stars.

• Camera: Canon 5dmkII
• Focal length: 16mm
• Aperture: f/2.8
• Shutter speed: 30 seconds
• ISO: 3200
• Date: June 2012

The result is a nicely balanced image with lots of colour, lots of stars and a unique feel. If possible I try to plan my night photography around these days of the month.

Albany has one the most beautiful coastlines in Australia. It’s located in the southwest of western australia and predominantly faces south, but has many views to the west and east. This view takes in Bald Head looking due East. I hope to do more night photography around here in the future.

Another beautiful bay near Albany, Western Australia. This time the moon was almost full.

• Camera: Canon 5dmkII
• Focal length: 24mm
• Aperture: f/8
• Shutter speed: 20 seconds
• ISO: 3200
• Date: June 2012

Full moon is great for getting those deeper depth of field shots – more of your scene in focus from near to far. The extra light means you can stop the lens down to f/8, keep the ISO at 3200, exposure around 20s (for 24mm) and have a scene with sharp focus and minimal star trails. Just to prove this was taken at night, check the stars in the upper left hand corner ;).

This image shows orbicular granite set against southern star trails.