Nothing beats a beautiful spring day like a trip to the Chicago Botanic Gardens. Just 30 mins away from downtown - nestled in Mary McDonalds woods – this well kept & curated garden, provides a deserved break to the Urban feel of Chicago. Are u tired of the concrete jungles, wanna breathe some fresh air – not tainted by pollution – just head down to Chicago Botanic Garden – a worthwhile place to get ur Zen back :) And did I say this is a lovely place to enjoy a sunset too …
As you would have read from the news, the new meteor shower – Camelopardalis - was expected to adorn the skies during the early morning of 5.24.2014. When I heard about this meteor shower, I was pretty existed. Time of the event being a weekend – check. Location – northern continental US – favorable. Clear skies – check. May be the stars just aligned for this :) Camelopardalis - I was wondering about the name, as it has been as long as the giraffe's neck, when I came across this ! The giraffe's species name, camelopardalis (camelopard), is derived from its early Roman name where it was thought of as a composite creature, described as having characteristics of both a camel and a leopard. The forecasted peak time for the meteor shower was from 1 –3 AM CST. It was not as much as hyped (~100 / hr), but the night was still clear and Milky way was magnificent. Around 4 AM, took out my flash light and started playing to get a star war style crisscross with the milky way. Just then the celestial gods decided to bless – look - a shooting start in the same direction my camera was positioned, as if to slice the Milky way. This was not one of the shooting star i saw in person. I was busy walking up & down and playing with the flash light. But I will definitely settle for this shot instead :) Lesson to self : Never given up, just go out and do what you like, you never know when the stars will align :) Note: Are you just getting started with night photography ? Do check out this article !
This is a single RAW shot processed for the milky way. The ambient light bought in the details of the falls and bit of reflections. Shot this while chasing the Perseids last year. I liked this shot for how this brings out the grandeur of the milky way. At the same time, it is amazing how walking couple of steps and lighting the foreground can bring in such a different feel. Here is the shot with a bit of light painting on the foreground. It is amazing how much camera’s can see these days. even far superior is what the eyes can see :) darkness of the night stillness of the forest rumbling of the falls twinkling of the stars grandeur of the milky way - adorned by a shooting star !
