Starry Starry Night

Starry Night in Lochalsh (Canon EOS 5D Mark II, EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM lens at 24mm, 20 sec at f/2.8, ISO 3200, tripod)

The festive season kicked off last night with an amazing starry night in Lochalsh.  After switching on the lights in our big window at the front of the house, and taking the dog for a late walk, I could not resist getitng the camera out to try and capture the amazing stars in the sky last night.  These two images are the best, the first being a panorama of two shots taken from the old slipway at the foot of the drive.  The second,  taken from part-way down the drive through some trees, which I think frame the shot really well.  The red light is the navigation light off the point of Skye at the entrance to Kylerhea, which flashes throughout the night to warn ships of the long shallow spit of land that sticks out, under the surface, into Loch Alsh.

Starry Sky Through Trees at Loch Alsh (Canon EOS 5D Mark II, EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM lens at 24mm, 20 sec at f/2.8, ISO 3200, tripod)

Shooting at night like this is not something I have done very much of.  I know that to get sharp stars, as opposed to star trails, you need to keep the shutter speed down below 20 seconds.  However, given the low level of light this means you need to open up the aperture and bump up the ISO.  These images were taken at 3200 ISO, which is pretty high for my Canon 5D Mark II, and there is a lot of noise in these images as a result.  This shows the limitations of a camera that is now over ten years old.  With a more modern equivalent I would have had no problem shooting at this level of ISO.  Oh, well, not sure that would justify the £2,000+ price tag.  Stil, it was a great way to end a fabulous November, weather-wise at least.