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Subscribe to RSSJonathan Woods writes: Sleep deprivation leads people to do crazy things. For Norwegian photographer Terje Sorgjerd, a week atop Spain's highest mountain with very little shuteye produced results that even he was surprised by.
Sorgjerd talked with us about the experience of capturing the images.
Terje Sorgjerd
The Milky Way is seen above, through a Saharan sandstorm.
Terje: As I set up to shoot a five-hour sequence of the milky way [above], I got hit by a large Saharan sandstorm. I took cover behind some rocks and eventually made it over to the camera only to find that it had captured some amazing pictures of the Milky Way through the sandstorm clouds.
Jonathan: What I find remarkable about these images is the way Terje is able to capture light without significant manipulations. The human eye has much greater latitude to see details cameras cannot. High Dynamic Range is a form of manipulation that enhances images. In the captions below, Terje is asserting that by not using HDR technology, he has not substantially manipulated these images.
It is also worth mentioning that a photographer who is skilled at his or her craft can make substantial improvements to images when, as Terje references below, making adjustments to the raw image.
Terje Sorgjerd
The sun rises off Mount Teide with views of Grand Canarya. Image shot using a Canon 5D Mark II with 16-35mm/2.8LII and 3-stop graduated neutral density filter to bring out the colors. No HDR or Photoshop. Only raw adjustment.
Terje: After a magnificent view of the Milky Way, it was time to move on to shooting sunrise and what a magical sunrise we got. In the distant background you can see the neighboring island of Grand Canarya.
Terje Sorgjerd
A valley on Mount Teide. No HDR or Photoshop. Only raw adjustment. The video frame is over twice the resolution.
Terje Sorgjerd
The sun sets on Mount Teide. Photographed with a Canon 5D MarkII with 16-35mm/2.8LII and 2-stop graduated ND filter. No HDR or Photoshop. Only raw adjustment.
Terje: As you hike around this island, you will notice how regular and precise the weather patterns really are. I noticed this spot with the clouds moving in a very nice pattern and decided to mark it off as a sunset spot the next day. An absolute marvelous sunset it was.
Norwegian photographer Terje Sorgjerd speaks with TODAY.com's Dara Brown about the stunning images of the Milky Way captured glittering in the night sky from Spain's highest mountain, El Teide.
Terje Sorgjerd
The milky way glows above photographer Terje Sorgjerd in a self portrait. The photo was a 30 second exposure shot through a 24mm/1.4 lens at ISO 2000. No HDR.
Terje: After seven days of hiking and shooting without sleep I was making my way down to the airport when I realized I did not have a single shot of myself and the Milky Way. This was the very last shot and the only one with myself in it. I am lit up by a macbookair screen hid about 10 meters away reflecting off a rock.
Related content:
Watch the original video on Vimeo
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From San Francisco to Paris in 2 minutes (time lapse)
Month in Space
Stunning views of the sun ... and Discovery?!
Terje's website
Leave a Comment:
Nice work! Wish I was you at the time of taking those shots.
Very nice shot! I wish I could take pictures like this! Well done!
Beautiful
Amazing photo! What a great example of what truly exists beyond our small place on earth.
I'm sure those looking down upon us are wondering "why does such a primitive race, those humans, deserve such a beautiful planet. It seems that every step they're ruining it bit by bit."
Debbie downer...
i dunno, i think we'll make it. you gotta have hope we will. we're messy, we pollute, we fight, but we also invent. carbon capture and release, those nuclear plants that run off spent fuel, efficiency with fossil fuels, etc etc. these are all things to (possibly) look forward too.
i think one day we'll know much more about our little corner of the universe.
Gorgeous shots Terje!!!
Beautiful photos - always nice to get unexpected shots, even better when they are spectacular.
From my son, who obviously appreciated these photographs:
I am 10 years old and would like to say that the photos were amazing, my favorite part was when the clouds were bouncing up and down. I learned that cameras capture far more light than the human eye. I would also like to say that I think you did a magnificent job in doing this video. -Isaiah
Thanks Joe!
In consideration of all the matter, energy, natural forces, and the natural laws of the cosmos, they intimate that the cosmos was always there, without a creation or creator.
Therefore, it would defy logic and be unexplainable, it would be unique.
But it is explainable.
In the end, we will know the truth.
I love this!! Gorgeous, awesome!
There was no Observatory or space telescope :(