Astrophotography Adventures — Field Nights, Virtual Labs

Overview

Meet at golden hour, shoot through galactic rise under dark skies, then finish your images in a guided virtual edit lab. These field-first workshops give you a reliable capture workflow (blue-hour foregrounds, clean sky stacks, optional tracked sky) and the post-processing confidence to produce natural, print-worthy Milky Way photographs—without daytime lecture bloat.

Who It’s For
Photographers comfortable with manual exposure who want repeatable night results. Night-photo beginners are welcome; if you can set shutter, aperture, and ISO, you’ll fit right in.

What You’ll Learn

• Milky Way Planning: Core timing, azimuth/elevation, moon phases, Bortle class, weather windows

• Night Fieldcraft: Safe navigation, light discipline, efficient scouting after dark

• Exposure Theory: NPF-rule shutter limits, ISO vs. aperture trade-offs, preserving star color

• Capture Techniques: Static burst stacking for low noise, optional tracked sky, blue-hour foreground plates

• Post Workflow: Clean baseline edit, stacking/blending for natural results, color harmony, print-safe sharpening

• Lens & Focal-Length Strategy: How ultra-wide vs. wide angles change shutter limits, star size, perspective, and corner sharpness

What’s Included

• Evening/night field instruction (1–3 nights)

• Virtual planning session before we meet (live + recorded)

• Virtual edit labs after the field nights (recorded)

• PDF field advice card, packing list, and meet-point details

• Radio protocols and on-site coaching for light discipline and safety

Not Included
Travel, lodging, meals, park entry fees/passes, personal or gear insurance, and any optional rentals (tracker, lens heater, radio).

Skill & Fitness
Manual-exposure comfort recommended; tripod required. Most locations use paved lots or short, mostly flat approaches. Some nights may include sand, uneven footing, cold/heat, or wind; distances and terrain vary by site and will be clearly stated on each product card.

Student Gear Checklist
Wide, fast lens (11–24mm f/1.4–2.8) • Sturdy tripod • Headlamp with red mode • 2–3 batteries • 128–256GB card • Weather-appropriate layers • Water/snacks
Optional: Star tracker (e.g., MSM) • Lens heater • Intervalometer/remote

Software Requirements (Editing)

• Mac or PC computer • Adobe Lightroom Classic • Adobe Photoshop • Star stacking (macOS: Starry Landscape Stacker, Windows: Sequator) • RC-Astro StarXTerminator (Photoshop/Lightroom plugin)

Example Schedule Snapshot

• Meet: ~30 min before sunset at a paved, GPS-shared lot

• Golden Hour: Foreground scouting and composition pins

• Blue Hour: Foreground plates (bracket if needed)

• Night: Static stacks; optional tracked demo; pano when conditions allow

• Virtual Lab: 1–3 days later (recording provided)

Weather, Conditions, and Safety
We chase clear skies but honor wild places. If clouds, wind, cold/heat, or closures threaten results or safety, we pivot: alternate locations, different timing, or a switch from dunes to firmer ground. We make go/no-go calls using conservative thresholds (heat index, wind speeds, lightning distance, road/park advisories). When a session can proceed safely but conditions are variable, we adapt the curriculum to maximize learning and image quality. If a field night is fully weathered out or access is closed, we reschedule or credit/refund at our discretion. We follow all park rules and required authorizations for photography workshops. Leave No Trace, and respect for wildlife always come first.

Cancellations
Your seat is held with a non-refundable retainer; the remaining balance is due 45 days before the first field night. If you need to cancel, you may transfer your seat to another person at any time. If we can fill your spot from the waitlist, we’ll issue a refund or credit (minus a small admin fee); otherwise, tuition is non-refundable once inside 45 days. If you must withdraw due to illness or emergency, reach out—where possible, we’ll work with you on a credit toward a future workshop.