If you’ve been following up with my series of AlSalmi getaway and startrailing sessions and you couldn’t make it, this is a short notice, but I’m sure you’d like it.

There’s a peak for meteor shower by 19:30, so this might just be a good day to head in an optical-pollution isolated spot and star gaze (And perhaps get food poisoning from bad hotdog… Just saying).

Want to join in? You know the drill:
All you need to do is contact me by one of these methods

• Contacting me by this form
• Message me through twitter
• Email or call me if you already know my email and number (Specially those who contacted me earlier or attended previous sessions)

Meeting up

As usual, we’ll meet up in the parking lot across the street from Mishref CO-OP by 16:30, leave by 17:00 (17:30 max).

Arrival

We should arrive by 18:30 ~ 19:00. We’ll arrive in a quiet place so don’t get too freaked out

What to prepare

• Photography-wise
  • A camera with cable release (And don’t you forget it. I ALWAYS DO)
  • A memory card that’d hold 500 pictures. Not that you’ll use them all, but just in case. A rough estimation:
    • If your sensor is 18MP and below, 16GB is perfect
    • If your sensor is bigger than 18MP, bring a couple of 16GB sticks
  • A tripod. I’d honestly recommend a heavy and stable one, but light one could work
  • Lenses:
    • If you want to do startrails or take pictures of the sky in general, a 18-55mm lens maximum. I recommend anything below (A fisheye lens works wonders).
    • If you want to take pictures of a specific object, well, you most likely know what you’re doing so can’t recommend a lens for you
  • Patience
• Generally
  • Food and drinks
  • Mats and chairs
  • Jackets. The temperature would drop below 15 Cecilius
  • Flashlights

General tips and hints

1. Point your camera toward Polaris (North Pole). Stars rotates around it.
2. If you want to do startrails, don’t use BULB mode. Stack 20~30 seconds long pictures with this software.
3. Set your ISO to anywhere above 300. I’d personally recommend anything between 400 and 1600.
4. CHARGE YOUR BATTERIES!!.
5. Raise your aperture (As in, drop the f-stops number) as much as you can!.
6. If you want to take pictures of Milkyway
   1. Raise the ISO to anything from 800 to 3200.
   2. Set your shutter speed to 5 ~ 15 seconds.
   3. Set a 10 seconds timer (Count down before taking pictures).
   4. Use your cable, not the shutter button on the camera. Do this so you don’t shake up your camera.
7. Patience. Lots and lots of it.

Let’s all enjoy this trip!

SHARE THIS WITH YOUR FRIENDS!! VIRTUALLY EVERYONE IS WELCOME 😀

NOTE

Please, don’t call an hour before departure because you’ll just confuse me, us, and yourself too! We’d miss some opportunities waiting for you or go ahead of you and give you directions where you’d get lost in the middle of nowhere… Just don’t, call prior please!