For about 10 years I’ve been trying to get a decent shot of the Milky Way while on a trip in Colorado. Getting in location plus getting the settings right was always a challenge, especially when opportunities are often limited by weather.
During this year’s trip there was one night of good weather. We ended up just a few minutes from our condo, shooting just outside the town of Winter Park in the old Idlewild ski area. Instead of running from light, I tried to incorporate it.
Canon 5D Mark III
Canon 17-40 f/4 @ 17mm f/4
30 seconds
ISO 2500
I started with my 24-70mm 2.8 since it was faster, but I decided wider with a higher ISO was probably best to capture as much of the Milky Way as possible.
Ideally, I’d use a faster wide prime to get better results in the future, but I was still happy with these results.
Canon 5D Mark III
Canon 17-40 f/4 @ 17mm f/4
49 seconds
ISO 4000
Next year I’m going to hope for a few clear nights and try again and see if I can keep improving. There are an amazing number of stars that can’t be seen from St. Louis or even the more rural areas of Missouri that can be captured in Colorado.
It’s worth noting how quickly a long exposure show’s Earth’s movement:
