Starry Reflections: Capturing the Cosmos on the North Shore
The North Shore of Minnesota, with its stunning natural beauty, offers some truly remarkable opportunities for astrophotography. Our recent trip to a cabin on the shores of Lake Superior provided a perfect canvas to capture the night sky's grandeur, and this shot, taken by a tranquil river, is a personal favorite.
This particular location, right by our cabin, has proven to be exceptional for reflection shots. The stillness of the river creates a natural mirror, doubling the impact of the celestial display above. It's moments like these that make the passion for capturing the cosmos so rewarding.
The Craft Behind the Cosmos
Achieving this shot involved a combination of careful gear selection and dedicated processing:
- Sky Capture: The starry expanse was captured using a Sony a7RV camera with a 20mm f/1.8 lens. To gather enough light and detail from the fainter stars, four tracked shots, each around 60 seconds long, were taken and subsequently stacked in Photoshop.
- Foreground Detail: The terrestrial element, the riverbank and foreground, was captured in a single shot using a 14mm f/1.8 lens with a longer exposure of 3 minutes. This ensures that the foreground is well-lit and complements the sky without being overexposed.
The result is a mesmerizing scene where the stars are not only visible above but also beautifully replicated in the dark, reflective waters of the river, creating a sense of infinite depth and wonder.
We're thrilled with how this image turned out, and we hope you enjoy this little glimpse into the celestial magic found on the shores of Lake Superior!
