Nikon D700, Nikkor 14-24mm f2.8. Exposure: 25",  Aperture: f/2.8, Focal Length 14 mm,  ISO 1600 . Super light Manfrotto traveling tripod (carbon fiber), cheapo remote trigger. 


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Thanks a lot for this extremly interesting tutorial. Very complete indeed.

... where is my bike? ... 

Excellent tutorial Nicolas. I was keen to learn more about how you went to work to produce this enchanting image, and it answered all my questions ... and more.

Nicolas, thanks so much for your interesting tutorial on this extraordinary photo!
Between the lines on technics, it also reads like a chapter out of an adventure-book and I love that too:)

Thank you very much Nicolas for allowing us into your thinking and practice. It is a beautiful image! :)

Thanks a lot Paul and I'm glad you liked it!  :) 

No, you don't need to use filters at all, this would only make the situation worse because you would have to increase the shutter speed time to capture the same amount of light and this will make the stars leave their trails and most important, you would have to bump up the ISO and you always want to keep it to the minimum. Y crees que ya no he visitado mi país favorito de Sudamérica? :)  Un mes y medio viajé en 2005, desde el Tayrona hasta el santuario de Santa María de las lajas en Ipiales. Parando en todo el camino, Cartagena, 'quilla, Medellín, Pereira, Manizales, Bogotá, Popayán, San Agustín, Tierra Adentro, Pasto. Por lejos mi país favorito en nuestro continente. San Agustín y Tierra adentro me dejaron boquiabiertos!.
Lo único que me dió tristeza fue que me asaltaron en Popayán y me robaron mi cámara de film y los films que había tomado en todo el sur. :(  Pero siempre tengo intenciones de volver! 

Absolutely right Fred. Thanks for reminding me of this! Frédéric (I get the accents right too, you see? ) hehehe 

Hello Nic (avoiding the accents),

great tutorial and image - congratulations.

many thanks for Great tutorial :)

Thanks for your tutorial Nicolas.

A good write up Nicolas but what is this infinity focusing all about... :-) I need to read up on it I guess.

Just a thought, you could do all the above in the RAW file using Nikon's Capture NX2 if you so desired.

Useful tutuorial though as I haven't gotten into night or very low light photography yet, usually because I like to be in the pub by the time its dark......

JP

Indeed you can John, because of the U-Point technology Capture NX has, and that would be the only feature I appreciate in that horrible software Nikon is so stubborn in keeping. That U-point technology is very similar to the one on Nik's products only difference is that in terms of speed, flexibility, reliability and performance Nik's is aeons ahead. you can shoot afterwards, I know the stars will all look blurry to you and it won't be a focus problem ! haha 

I must be the only person that actually likes it....

Thanks for the tutorial, bravo to your efforts!  
Just found out you live in Chengdu which is my home town. I have one question, as a foreigner, is it allowed to go Tibet freely? 

I'm really happy it's you on that bike and not me.... I would definitely go for the SUV, hopefully with a working heater  :-)

I'm glad you like the tutorial Yan ni huo laozi oh? wo bu xiaode ni shi sichuan ren !! ;)   Chengdu feels like home to me :)))  except for the lack of sun, I love to bits living here :)not in the Tibet Autonomous Region, for that hen mafan ! but in Chuanzang gaoyuan and Qingzang gaoyuan there is no problem and these regions of the tibetan plateau have a lot more concentration of Tibetan culture and a lot more amazing and remote landscape, so I'm glad they are not closed to foreigners. As you know, in Chengdu we are only a step away from the magnificent plateau and I cycle there every week-end and every chance I got

Thank you so much for the tutorial Nicolas, the story behind is as impressive as the picture, you make me longing to such cycle adventures, although I would never do these kind of trips alone......

Best regards
Jan

txs for the indepth 'how I did this...' I had it down for multiple exposures and possibly a composite as well - always good to learn :)

An excellent tutorial, very clear and superbly narrated, I have read it without stopping - from the beginning to the end! I was actually asking myself how such a wonderful image can be taken and then edited... the replies were already here... And also, your biking journeys witness much courage and perseverance!

Thank you for sharing all these with us, Nicolas!

Buenisima la photo y fantastico Tutorials. 

Hi Steph! sorry for the late reply, I know exactly what you mean about the weight of that combination. 

I will give you a quick description of what I take, but I think you will like to know that I am right now working on a article about cycling and photography. It will hopefully be published in a great photography site. I will keep you posted. 
 But here's is what, after lots of experience, trial and error, take. I have a lowe pro outback 100. In that one I take the D700 with any of my lenses. This always hangs over my shoulder crossing my chest. This way I have quick access to it whenever I stop for shooting. 
 For the rest I have re-adapted my  Ortlieb Ultimate handlebar pannier to take the two remaining lenses + SB-600 + Polarizer and a couple more things. Chargers + umbrella go in one of the other panniers and the tripod I tie it to the Tubus Cargo, next to the drybag which is relatively soft. 
In total I take D700 + 24-70 f2.8 + 14-24 f2.8 + 70-300 VR + SB-600. It is an awful lot of stuff but it pays off in the end. For the super long trip I am planning in the future, I will go only with primes. These trips are relatively short so I can afford the extra weight. 

As I said, I will hopefully have an in-depth article on how I take all this soon. I will definitely let you know :) 

Hi Nico,

Hi,

Hi,
I'm glad you wrote this tutorial. Very complete and "mood creator".

But i still have one question: i am a bit surprised to see the skull in relative focus give the fact that you focused to infinite and used F2,8. How far was it from the camera? I know that the focal of 14mm is a big factor, but is there something else involved?

Thanks,
Radu

Hao! Hao! Hao! Hao! The picture, the message, the effort, and the toruail are all impressive. My reading: The skull represents the temporary world while the stars hint eternity; the skull shows death, while the bright star above suggests new birth. Aesthetical, philosophical, yet natural. Zan   

Hi Radu, I'm glad you liked it. :) 

Well, there's two things here. You see the skull in relative focus because of the small size of the photo. Having reduced it helped a lot, the big one is not so sharp. It's ok, but not tack sharp. 
14mm does help too, BUT, this is not due to the f2.8 aperture, this is due to not focusing properly at that time. At 2.8, focused on infinity the results are pretty sharp all over, give it a try and you'll be impressed. 

nice descriptions, and with great results
but then it was probably not Haarder and get there :)
it's just for fun

Wonderful tutorial Nicolas! Thanks for sharing all the great details.

Nicolas, 

thanks so much Sudhir!  

well, I didn't try to experiment much after this because it was -12C and i had been cycling an incredibly hard road to get there so I was pretty much out of energy. You are right, capturing star trails would've been another great experiment. There are a couple of reasons why I didn't do it. First I think it's because they became too cliché. I still like them A LOT but I wanted to portray reality and not alter it, i.e we see the stars like this, not with the trails.
Also, I still don't know how to find the center of rotation, so I would've been randomly choosing wasting time and still not finding the circle of trails. 
Another reason has to do with the limitations. I was cycling in very remote regions so access to electricity was extremely limited, thus I wasn't able to play long with my only two batteries because that would put at risk so many other shooting opportunities i couldn't afford to lose. Plus, in such cold weather, batteries wear out a lot faster than in regular conditions. 

Thanks a lot for your comments and suggestions :) 

Excellent picture and an absolutely amazing tutorial.... love it!!!

Appreciate all your effort and thanks for sharing such an wonderful composition here. This is definitely an inspiring image for all of us here.