The book describes how to —
• Shoot and process “nightscapes” – still images of landscapes taken at night by the light of the Moon or stars …
and …
• Shoot and process time-lapse movies of the stars & Milky Way,
... all using DSLR cameras
The 580-page multi-touch book includes —
• 18 HD videos (no internet connection required) demonstrating time-lapse techniques
• 50 step-by-step tutorials on how to use software such as Photoshop, Lightroom, LRTimelapse, ON1 Photo RAW, and more
• Photo 101 sections on the basic concepts of photography and video production
• Astronomy 101 sections explaining how the sky works
• Reviews of gear – How to use popular intervalometers and motion-control units
You’ll learn —
• What are the best cameras and lenses to buy
• How to set your cameras and lenses for maximum detail and minimum noise
• How to shoot auroras, conjunctions, satellites, comets, and meteor showers
• How to shoot nightscapes lit only by moonlit, and how to determine where the Moon will be to plan a shoot
• How to shoot and stitch panoramas of the night sky and Milky Way using Photoshop and PTGui
• How to shoot tracked long exposures of the Milky Way using camera trackers
• How to develop Raw files, the essential first step to great images and movies
• How to process nightscape stills using techniques such as masking, adjustment layers, and smart filters
• How to shoot and stack star trail images made of hundreds of frames
• How to assemble time-lapse movies from those same hundreds of frames
• How to plan a time-lapse shoot and calculate the balance of exposure timevs. frame count vs. length of shoot.
• How to process hundreds of frames using Adobe Camera Raw, Bridge, Photoshop, and Lightroom
• How to shoot and process advanced “Holy Grail” time-lapse transitions from day to night
• How to shoot motion-control sequences using specialized dolly and pan/tilt devices
• How to use time-lapse processing tools such as LRTimelapse, Panolapse, Sequence, TLDF, and Advanced Stacker Actions
• What can go wrong and how to avoid problems in the field
What’s in the book —
Getting Started
Chapter 1: Choosing and Using Gear
Chapter 2: Twilight Time
Chapter 3: Auroras
Chapter 4: Other Amazing Sky Effects
Chapter 5: Moonlit Nightscapes
Chapter 6: Milky Way Nightscapes
Chapter 7: Stacking, Stitching and Tracking
Chapter 8: How to Reduce Noise
Chapter 9: Processing Still Images - Basics
Chapter 10: Processing Still Images - Advanced
Chapter 11: Taking Time-Lapses
Chapter 12: Advanced Camera Control
Chapter 13: How to Shoot Holy Grails
Chapter 14: Avoiding Common Problems
Chapter 15: Processing Time-Lapse Movies - Basic
Chapter 16: Processing Time-Lapse Movies – Advanced
Chapter 17: The Final Cut
Chapter 18: The Time-Lapse Lifestyle
To learn more go to http://www.amazingsky.com/nightscapesbook.html
About the Author
Alan Dyer has authored or co-authored several print guidebooks for amateur astronomers, notably The Backyard Astronomer’s Guide with Terence Dickinson.
Alan’s astrophotos have appeared in calendars and magazines such as SkyNews, Astronomy, Sky and Telescope, and National Geographic. They’ve been featured on websites such as CBSNews.com, NBCNews.com, Spaceweather.com, UniverseToday.com, and Astronomy Picture of the Day.
Alan serves as a contributing editor to SkyNews and Sky and Telescope magazines.
