Nightscapes and Flowers (Patreon)

When you photograph flowers and other macro subjects with the Milky Way night sky, you have the option of focus stacking (and getting both the flowers and the sky in focus), or focusing just on the flowers and letting the sky go naturally out of focus.

Which technique do you like better (click on image for a larger view)?

Last month, while in the Grand Teton National Park, the yellow Mule's Ears flowers were in full bloom (left image). These are a sunflower-like plant that are native to the western USA mountains. Small mammals and birds utilize Mule’s Ears for nesting and cover, and it provides forage for deer.

Normally, I would do a focus stack and make both the flowers and night sky in focus (like the right photo of the lupines, which were also blooming). This time I chose just to focus on the flowers and let the Milky Way core go out of focus. I like the effect, as the out-of-focus stars enable you to better see how each star (or area) has its own unique color.

TECHNIQUE & EXIF for the Mule's Ears: Canon 6D astro-modified (visible + H-alpha) + 50mm lens • 30 seconds | f/2.8 | ISO 2000 (normally, you'd need an ISO of 4000 to 6400; however, out-of-focus stars seem to be brighter!) • I lit the flowers with two Lume Cube LED panel lights.

Note: if you were NOT letting the stars go out of focus, you'd need a shutter speed of less than 8 seconds (preferably 6") to stop the star movement when using a 50mm focal length; however, since the star is out of focus, a slightly elliptical "circle of confusion" is not noticeable.

To get both the lupines and the sky in focus on the right image, I recommend my two-stage focus stack technique (all in one exposure) on page 111 of my Milky Way NightScape eBook (which all of my Patreon supporters have access to).