The Christmas Star: the conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn on the shortest day of the year

The winter solstice brings many things. Celebrations, holidays, the longest night of the year, rebirth, and much more.

On December 21 of 2020, it also brought the “The Christmas Star”, what people called the great conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn. The two planets were separated by just six arc minutes, equal to about one-fifth the apparent width of the moon.

 

A rare celestial event

In our night sky, the two planets haven’t appeared this close and visible to most of the population since March 5, 1226. Sure, they came close in 1623, but just for a short while in northern South America, central Africa and Indonesia. If you missed the conjunction, you can live vicariously through my photos or polish up your camera in 2080.

I stood outside with several other groups of people in Vasquez Rocks, CA. Some were in folding chairs, admiring with silence and reverence.

About the photos

I showed up at Vasquez Rocks after a long drive over the mountains to avoid traffic, driving there with my wife, who wanted to see this historic event. I had my camera set up for only about twenty minutes, perched up about twenty feet above the desert floor. Although I did bring light painting equipment, I decided that I wanted to keep the iconic Vasquez Rocks in shadow to bring more attention to the Jupiter-Saturn pairing. I shot all photos between 5:43 and 5:54 PM.

 

The above photo was shot at a focal length of 95mm. With this, more than the others, you can see the two distinct planets quite easily.

 

Above, a couple is walking around the rocks where years ago, Captain Kirk made his stand against a lizard creature called the Gorn in “Star Trek”.

Let me know if you saw the conjunction in the comments below!

 

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MY WEBSITE:
Head on over to the Ken Lee Photography website to purchase books or look at night photography and long exposure photos.  My latest book, “Abandoned Southern California: The Slowing of Time” is available there and Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Target, Booktopia, Books A Million, IBS, and Aladin. If you enjoy the book, please leave a nice review.

SOCIAL MEDIA:
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PODCAST:
Behind the Shot video podcast – interview February 2020

VIDEO INTERVIEW:
Conversation about night photography and my book with Lance Keimig of National Park At Night

ARTICLES:
A Photographer Captures Haunting Nighttime Images of Abandoned Buildings, Planes, and Cars in the American Southwest – Business Insider by Erin McDowell
A Photographer Explores Southern California’s Desert Ruins – Los Angeles Magazine article by Chris Nichols

 

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Easter Meteor, Vasquez Rocks

Please click on the photo to view it larger and more clearly!  Thanks!

 I bought a new camera and lens. I wanted to test it out, so I drove up to Vasquez Rocks, less than an hour from my house, and experimented with higher ISOs than I usually use. I got lucky and photographed a Lyrid meteor. I saw the meteor as it fell. It was magical.

And yes, I know I did a very similar angle to this a year ago. I was just testing out the camera and wanted some comparison. Besides…it’s a good angle.

Title:  Easter Meteor
Info: Nikon D610, Tokina 16-28mm f/2.8 lens, my Dad’s heavy 1970s Sears aluminum tripod. Exposure time 30 seconds at f/2.8, ISO 1000. “Light painted” with an Energizer headlamp. Lyrid meteor. 19 April 2014 midnight.
Photographer: Ken Lee Photography
Location: Vasquez Rocks, California, USA

He comprado una nueva cámara y la lente. Yo quería probarlo, así que me condujo hasta Vasquez Rocks, a unos 45 minutos de mi casa, y experimenté con un ISO más alto de lo que normalmente utilizo.  Tuve suerte y fotografié un meteoro Líridas. Vi el meteoro en su caída. Fue mágico.

Título: Meteor Pascua
Info: Nikon D610, Tokina 16-28mm f/2.8, pesado 1970 Sears trípode de aluminio de mi papá. 30 exposición f/2.8, ISO 1000. Pintura de luz con Energizer headlamp. Lluvia de meteoros Líridas. 19 abril 2014 de la medianoche.
Fotógrafo: Ken Lee Photography
Ubicación: Vasquez Rocks, California, EE.UU.

Equipment:  Nikon D610, Tokina 16-28mm f/2.8, Feisol tripod.

VISIT ME, VISIT ME!
You can see more of these photos here  on my Ken Lee Photography Facebook Page (poke your head in, say hi, and “like” the page if you would, uh, like), on 500px, or my Ken Lee Google+ Page. We discuss long exposure, night sky, star trails, and coastal long exposure photography, as well as lots of other things, so I hope you can join us!

And you can go to the Ken Lee Photography website, which has more photos from Ken Lee.  Thank you very much for visiting!

 

Easter Moon – Night Sky Photography, Vasquez Rocks

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I  was walking back to my car. I turned around and saw this beautiful view. Immediately I unpacked my gear and took this photo, light painting the foreground and cliffs. Many times the last photo I take in an evening is the best or strangest one.

I wanted to test out my new camera and lens, so I drove up to Vasquez Rocks, about 35 minutes from my house, and experimented with higher ISOs than I usually use.

Title: Luna Pascua
Info: Nikon D610, Tokina 16-28mm f/2.8 lens, my Dad’s heavy 1970s Sears aluminum tripod. Exposure time 30 seconds f/2.8, ISO 320. Light painting with a Dorcy LED flashlight. April 20 1:43 a.m. 2014.
Photographer: Ken Lee Photography
Location: Vasquez Rocks, California, USA

I was walking back to my car. I turned around and saw this beautiful sight. I immediately unpacked my gear and took this photo, light painting cliffs and foreground. Often the last photo I took at night is the best or strangest of all.

I wanted to try my new camera and lens, so I drove to the Vasquez Rocks, about 35 minutes from my house, and experimented with a higher than I normally use ISO.

Equipment:  Nikon D610, Tokina 16-28mm f/2.8.

VISIT ME, VISIT ME!
You can see more of these photos here  on my Ken Lee Photography Facebook Page (poke your head in, say hi, and “like” the page if you would, uh, like), on 500px, or my Ken Lee Google+ Page. We discuss long exposure, night sky, star trails, and coastal long exposure photography, as well as lots of other things, so I hope you can join us!

And you can go to the Ken Lee Photography website, which has more photos from Ken Lee. Thank you very much for visiting!

 

Mountain of the Gorn – Vasquez Rocks Night Sky Photography

Recognize this?  This is the rock that Captain Kirk ran up when battling the Gorn!  I believe this is where he found this perfectly round rock, just sitting on the ledge, and rolled it down on the lizard man, only to find that he was not killed. Now, two weeks ago, I shared the star trails version of this image.  These pinpoints of light, beautiful stars hanging in the sky, were too much to resist, so I thought I’d share this with you as well.

Please click on the photo to view it larger and more clearly!  Thanks!

The interesting thing – at least to me, a night sky photographer – is that although I’m using a 50mm lens, which is considerably more zoomed in than the 11-16mm that I usually use AND the exposure is 30 seconds, which often shows trails, the stars don’t show very much trailing at all, appearing more or less as pinpoints.

This is a little different from most of my star trails because I didn’t use a wide angle lens, choosing instead to go with a 50mm prime lens, the Nikkor f/1.4 50mm.

When I focus, I often shine a very bright light on the foreground and then use the camera’s autofocus to do the rest, then simply switch to manual.  Not here.  The lens kept hunting.  After a few minutes of this, I reluctantly abandoned this idea, and focused using Manual, continually tweaking until I felt the photo looked as sharp as possible.  Looks like I nailed it in the photo, but it took a while.

Title: Mountain of The Gorn
Info: Nikon D7000, Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 lens, 30 second exposure,
ISO 320 f/4. Light painted with Dorcy spotlight. 11:46 pm on 19 April 2013.
Photographer: Ken Lee
Location: Vasquez Rocks, California, USA

Equipment:  Nikon D7000, Tokina AT-X 116, Feisol tripod.

VISIT ME, VISIT ME!
You can see more of these photos here  on my Ken Lee Photography Facebook Page (poke your head in, say hi, and “like” the page if you would, uh, like). We discuss long exposure, night sky, star trails, and coastal long exposure photography, as well as lots of other things, so I hope you can join us!

And you can go to the Ken Lee Photography website, which has more photos from Ken Lee.  Thank you very much for visiting!

 

The Agility, and, I Hope, The Cleverness Is Mine – Vasquez Rocks Night Sky Photography

“Light painting” in Vasquez Rocks.  This is a combination of a bright moon – it was 60% illuminated on this evening – and a very bright flashlight called a Dorcy spotlight, and a quick flash of red light from the Energizer headlamp.

Please click on the photo to view it larger and more clearly!  Thanks!

Digital cameras are often sensitive to red, and even just a quick wave of the red light from my not-so-bright headlamp produced this incredibly rich red color in the foreground.

The rock formations here are fascinating, as Spock might say.  After all, Vasquez Rocks, where I shot this, was where Captain Kirk battled the Gorn in “Star Trek” in an episode called “Arena”.  The title is a quote from Captain Kirk as he is speaking about the Gorn.

Title: The Agility, And, I Hope, The Cleverness Is Mine
Info: Nikon D7000, Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 lens, 15 second exposure, ISO 640 f/2.8. Light painted with Dorcy spotlight. 11:02 pm on 19 April 2013.
Photographer: Ken Lee
Location: Vasquez Rocks, California, USA

Equipment:  Nikon D7000, Tokina AT-X 116, Feisol tripod.

VISIT ME, VISIT ME!
You can see more of these photos here  on my Ken Lee Photography Facebook Page (poke your head in, say hi, and “like” the page if you would, uh, like). We discuss long exposure, night sky, star trails, and coastal long exposure photography, as well as lots of other things, so I hope you can join us!

And you can go to the Ken Lee Photography website, which has more photos from Ken Lee.  Thank you very much for visiting!

 

The Gorn Star Trails – Vasquez Rocks Night Sky Photography

Recognize this?  This is the rock that Captain Kirk ran up when battling the Gorn!  I believe this is where he found this perfectly round rock, just sitting on the ledge, and rolled it down on the lizard man, only to find that he was not killed.

Please click on the photo to view it larger and more clearly!  Thanks!

This is a little different from most of my star trails because I didn’t use a wide angle lens, choosing instead to go with a 50mm prime lens, the Nikkor f/1.4 50mm.

When I focus, I often shine a very bright light on the foreground and then use the camera’s autofocus to do the rest, then simply switch to manual.  Not here.  The lens kept hunting.  After a few minutes of this, I reluctantly abandoned this idea, and focused using Manual, continually tweaking until I felt the photo looked as sharp as possible.  Looks like I nailed it in the photo, but it took a while.

Title: The Gorn Star Trails
Info: Nikon D7000, Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 lens, lens. 9 and a half minutes, each exposure f/4 for 30 seconds at ISO 320. Light painted with Dorcy spotlight. 19 April 2013 midnight.
Photographer: Ken Lee
Location: Vasquez Rocks, California, USA

Equipment:  Nikon D7000, Tokina AT-X 116, Feisol tripod.

VISIT ME, VISIT ME!
You can see more of these photos here  on my Ken Lee Photography Facebook Page (poke your head in, say hi, and “like” the page if you would, uh, like). We discuss long exposure, night sky, star trails, and coastal long exposure photography, as well as lots of other things, so I hope you can join us!

And you can go to the Ken Lee Photography website, which has more photos from Ken Lee.  Thank you very much for visiting!

 

Half Savage, But There Is Hope – Vasquez Rocks Night Sky Photography

The landscape where Captain Kirk battled the Gorn, Vasquez Rocks, with a night sky photo illuminated by moonlight.  The rock formations in this area are fantastic and inspiring.

Please click on the photo to view it larger and more clearly!  Thanks!

If the moonlight is already beautiful, I will tend not to “light paint” the foreground.  No reason.  Natural lighting from the moon can look pretty great.  Just depends.  Or I’ll try it both ways and experiment, as “light painting” can make an otherworldly shot even more…well, otherworldly.

With this photo, I was able to get away with just a 15-second exposure, which reduces the amount of trailing stars would do with a longer exposure, having the stars appear more like pinpoints of light as we typically view them.  I love both more natural kinds of night sky photography as well as longer exposures with star trails.  They’re both really a huge passion of mine.

Title: Half Savage, But There Is Hope
Info: Nikon D7000, Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 lens, 15 second exposure, ISO 640 f/3.2. Mountain illuminated by the moon. 20 April 2013 12:33 am.
Photographer: Ken Lee
Location: Vasquez Rocks, California, USA

Equipment:  Nikon D7000, Tokina AT-X 116, Feisol tripod.

VISIT ME, VISIT ME!
You can see more of these photos here  on my Ken Lee Photography Facebook Page (poke your head in, say hi, and “like” the page if you would, uh, like). We discuss long exposure, night sky, star trails, and coastal long exposure photography, as well as lots of other things, so I hope you can join us!

And you can go to the Ken Lee Photography website, which has more photos from Ken Lee.  Thank you very much for visiting!

 

James T Kirk Star Trails – Night Photography at Vasquez Rocks

Vasquez Rocks is the location where Captain James T Kirk battled the Gorn lizard man.  And why not?  It’s an otherworldly location where one can easily imagine oneself on another planet.  To push that along further, I photographed this at night during a 60% illuminated moon, shooting star trails to accentuate the alien landscape.

I like to shoot with low ISO, as low as I can get away with, and a noted astronomer and night sky photographer for TWAN (The World At Night, an international team of sky photographers) commented, “I’ve got to start trying lower ISOs… this is as clean and pretty an image as I’ve seen!”

Perhaps part of it is I am used to using cheap budget DSLRs to shoot night sky photos.  And part of it is that I really don’t like noise.  Unless I put it in there!!  😀

Please click on the photo to view it larger and more clearly!  Thanks!

Title: James T Kirk Star Trails
Info: Nikon D7000, Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 lens, 33 minute total exposure after stacking. Each individual photo was a 30 second exposure, ISO 400 f/4. Natural lighting. 20 April 2013 1:42 am.
Photographer: Ken Lee
Location: Vasquez Rocks, California, USAThanks for the love and encouragement!

Equipment:  Nikon D7000, Tokina AT-X 116, Feisol tripod.

VISIT ME, VISIT ME!
You can see more of these photos here  on my Ken Lee Photography Facebook Page (poke your head in, say hi, and “like” the page if you would, uh, like). We discuss long exposure, night sky, star trails, and coastal long exposure photography, as well as lots of other things, so I hope you can join us!

And you can go to the Ken Lee Photography website, which has more photos from Ken Lee.  Thank you very much for visiting!