The Marshall Point Lighthouse is located near Port Clyde in the state of Maine. Although the grounds are usually closed at night, I was able to photograph the light while attending a workshop led by Lance Keimig who runs the Night Skye Workshops. The workshop was a part of the highly respected Maine Media Workshops and College, based out of Camden, Maine.

I was recently asked about the techniques used to create this image, so I thought I would post the answer here. This was created using a blend of two exposures. The first was a very long exposure of 8 minutes/f8/ISO 800. This exposure yielded the clean, noise-free overall image that also produced the star trails of a length I find pleasing to the eye.

While an exposure of 8 minutes produced a nice clean image, it also grossly overexposed the actual light at the fresnal itself. To correct this deficiency, I took a series of shorter exposures, this time judging the exposure of the fresnal itself. After several tries, I determined that an exposure of 30 seconds/f8/ISO 100 produced a good likeness of the fresnel portion of the light.

When it came time to construct the final image, I placed both the long, 8 minute exposure and the short, 30 second exposure into layers using Photoshop. From there it was a simple matter to blend the properly exposed fresnel into the overexposed fresnel of the long exposure.

Once the blending was accomplished, I used the power of Lumenzia (a luminosity masking plugin for Photoshop developed by Greg Benz) to do the final editing of the image until I achieved results that I felt was satisfactory.

The equipment used for this image: Sony A7Rii | Sigma 20mm f1.4 Art Series lens | MIOPS Smart Trigger | Benro Tripod | Flare Buster lens shade

Bulk Sale – It’s All or Nothing!  [SOLD]

BAND SAW

Grizzly Industrial 14″ Band Saw Model G0555 – Paid $625.00
Shop Fox Heavy Duty Mobile Base D2057A – Paid $69.95
Assorted band saw blades, guides, squares, etc. – Paid approx $200.00

SHAPER

Grizzly Industrial 1 1/2 HP Shaper Model G1035 – Paid $639.95
Shop Fox Mini Mobile Base D2260A – Paid $59.95
Grizzly Industrial 1″ Rabbeting Shaper Cutter, 3/4″ Bore Part C2034 Paid $39.95
Grizzly Industrial 3/4″ Bead Shaper Cutter, 3/4″ Bore Part C2055 – Paid $39.95
Grizzly Industrial 1/2″ Radius Quarter Round, 3/4″ Bore Part C2061 – Paid $38.95
Pro Fence Featherboard – Part T20853 – Paid $64.95
Grizzly Industrial 3″ Dust Hood Part G4840 – Paid $22.95

DRILL PRESS

Grizzly 12 Speed Heavy-Duty Bench-Top Drill Press Model G7943 – Paid $365.00
Wilton 4″ Drill Press Vice Model 69997 – Paid $36.98

TABLE SAW

Craftsman Professional 15 Amp 10″ Portable Table Saw w/ Router Table Extension
Model 21829 – Paid approximately $400.00
Shop Fox Single Roller Stand Model D2273 – Paid $51.95

COMPOUND MITER SAW

Kobalt 12″ 15 Amp Dual Bevel Sliding Laser Compound Miter Saw – Paid $299.00
Craftsman 3 HP Shop Vacuum for dust collection – Paid $58.40

COMBINATION DISK/BELT SANDER

Grizzly Industrial Combo Sander Moder G0547 4″ x 36″ Belt – 6″ Disk – Paid $149.95
(7) Boxes of Woodstock International Assorted Grit Belts – Paid approx. $70.00
(7) Boxes of Woodstock International Assorted Grit 6″ Disks – Paid approx. $35.00

DISK SANDER

Grizzly Industrial 12″ Disk Sander Model G7297 – Paid $189.95
Shop Fox Tool Stand Model D2275 – Paid $56.95
Grizzly Industrial Solid Maple Top – Paid approx. $35.00
(2) Boxes 12″ Sanding Disks Model D1340 – Paid approx. $20.00

Sanding Table

Shop Fox Sanding Table Model W1733A – Paid $184.99

DUST COLLECTION SYSTEM

Grizzly Industrial 1 1/2 HP Dust Collector System G1028Z2 – Paid $339.00
Assorted Dust Collector Fittings, Hoses and Adaptors – Paid approx. $200.00
Dust Collector Remote On/Off Switch T26673 – Paid $47.95

CUT-OFF SAW

Masterhand 14″ Metal Cut-Off Saw (Chop Saw) – Paid $99.00

GRINDER

Clarke 8″ Bench Grinder with Wire Wheel and Cast Iron Stand – Paid approx. $150.00

I will be placing this announcement on various venues, and I suspect, given the steeply discounted pricing, that this equipment will sell quickly. You will be responsible for picking this up in the Omaha, Arkansas area. It will require, at minimum, a pickup truck and a helper. Some of this machinery is heavy, and I will not be able to help with the carrying, lifting, or loading, due to health reasons. I do have a hand truck that you may use to help load this equipment. Payable in cash only, due upon pickup. Please contact me if you are interested at hal@mitzenmacher.net.

This is a re-edit of an image I took two years ago while attending a night photography workshop put on by Lance Keimig’s The Night Skye Workshops. Since then, I have become proficient with Greg Benz’s Lumenzia luminosity masking extension for Photoshop. I thought it would be a good idea to try Lumenzia out on some of my older night images, and have been pleased with the results I am getting. I cannot say enough good things about Lumenzia – it has all the power of any other luminosity masking software I have used, while retaining an ease of use that is almost intuitive once the basic principles have been mastered.

This image was taken at the Terlingua Cemetery, in Terlingua, Texas. If you are unfamiliar with Terlingua, it is a semi-ghost town in the Big Bend region of Texas, almost equal-distant from Big Bend National Park and Big Bend Ranch State Park. The area boasts of some of the darkest night skies in the lower 48 United States. In addition to the natural landscapes that are supurb in the Parks, Terlingua offer some amazingly funky photographic subjects that lend themselves well to night photography. I am anxious to get the time to return to Terlingua again!