PS#2: Dugout Wells at Night

This image was taken on my recent trip to Big Bend on the night before my workshop began. This location is at Dugout Wells, a lush, green spot in the open desert.

Windmill and Milky Way
(click for larger image)

Shooting Specs:
Camera: Canon 5DII
Lens: Canon 24mm f/1.4L II
Shutter Speed: 25 sec.
Aperture: f/2.0
ISO: 3200
Camera mounted on tripod

Before leaving for Big Bend, I spent some time thinking about the area and locations to shoot the night sky after sunset. I was familiar with the Dugout Wells area, and I remembered the working windmill there. Silhouetting the windmill against the stars and Milky Way was my only objective with this photo.

On location, I decided to take a wide angle shot to capture a lot of the sky and also some of the horizon. The windmill is small but still a prominent feature in the frame, and Nugent Mountain also appears and adds some interest to the horizon.

This is a location that I returned to with the workshop participants a few night later.