So Sorry It's Over - Palouse Falls, Washington

Thanks to everyone that participated in my Free Star Photography Workshop Give Away Contest. I'll select a winner sometime this week and make the announcement. Besides this spot, all this summer star photography workshops are now sold out. If you're still interested in one, feel free to drop me a line to be placed on the waiting list for next year.

So you might have noticed there is a new menu bar at the top of this website, what do you all think? Like it or not? Some feed back would be great. I also recently updated my Post Processing Before & After Page with some new images, tips & tricks. 

If you missed it here is a quick star photography tutorial that I wrote for 500PX. It gives quick overview all of the stuff I cover in the Free Star Photography Tutorial contained on this site.

Tutorial — Photograph The Night Sky http://t.co/moAzRXtkjW
— 500px (@500px) August 8, 2013

The Shot

I went to Palouse Falls during the early months of this year with Meghan and Paul. We had some really nice conditions, but man was it cold. You can grab a shot like this if you hike 5 min up to the top of Palouse Falls. There are a ton of cool compositions all over that park so make sure to hike around a bit:)

Post Processing Info ( Grab some discount codes to the programs below at bottom of About Me Page )

Processing Time: 1.5 hours

Music: Dogsblood Coachella Set

Drink: Snake Doctor IPA from McMenamins Pub In Seattle

Lightroom 4  ( Check out my Learn Photography Page for all my tutorials )

1. 3 Exposures captured at -2EV, 0EV and +2EV.
2. Adjust 0EV RAW file in LR4 then sync others to match all settings less exposure.
3. Export to (3) JPEGS

Photoshop CS6

1. Apply Tony Kuypers Luminosity Masking Actions & Techniques using channels to selectively blend the three files into one well exposed file.
2. Color balance and slight overall saturation adjustment OnOne Perfect Photo Suite
3. Selectively adjust contrast and vibrance using luminosity masks.
4. Nik Output Sharpener
5. Apply slight vignette with Nik Color Efex Pro 4, Darken / Lighten Center preset.
6. Use spot brush to remove sensor dirt and fix up a few messy spots.

After the Magic

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Before the Magic ( RAW file no adjustments )

The Last Drop - Palouse Falls, WA

It's extremely exciting to have the chance to take 18 photographers up to Mount Rainier National Park this weekend and teach them everything I know about star photography, including shooting and post processing. Everything is looking good to go including the upcoming meteor showers. I'm headed out for the week, so I'll leaving you all with some good star photography info and a bunch of pictures. Enjoy the weekend & happy shooting.

For anyone else that wants to learn star photography this weekend here is a list great resources I provide on this website along with my Free Star Photography Workshop Give Away Contest which is now running.

FREE Star Photography Tutorial
Online Star Photography Post Processing Group Workshop

Star Photography Post Processing Video Tutorial

In the Field Star Photography Workshops @ Mount Rainier ( 2 spots remain for the season )

Complete Star Photography Picture Portfolio

For anyone that was not aware you can always find all the tutorials contained on this website at www.DaveMorrowPhotography.com/learnphotography

The Shot

The night sky in the Palouse Region of Washington State is so dark that sometimes you can't see your own hand. This makes it a star photographer's paradise. I remember taking this shot only a few minutes before the moon came up and completely destroyed any chances of Milky Way shots. 

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Here are a few other stars shots I snapped off...

Winter Glow - Palouse Falls, WA

As of now my new Luminosity Masking Video Tutorial is now on sale. I will cover my full luminosity masking workflow, including how to make them for yourself and use them to process pictures ranging from stars to landscape and beyond! The package also includes my Luminosity Mask Photoshop Actions and an in depth high resolution video. For the next 3 days you can get 30% off the list price by using the coupon code BIG30 when checking out:)

Dave's Luminosity Masking Video Tutorial

The Shot

I went to Palouse Falls a few weeks back for the 3rd time and really wanted to capture a different view of the whole thing. Early one freezing morning walking around the upper viewpoints I found this slick little composition.... Hopefully you enjoy it:)

Click here to buy a print!

Last Days of Summer

The leaves are starting to change in Seattle, I can not believe how fast the summer season has passed. Fall is one of my favorite seasons to take pictures, so there is still a lot more work to do in the PACNW before I start traveling abroad for the winter months. Any suggestions for new places to travel?