Stars over Denali

A clear sky provided the rare opportunity to capture the night sky above Mt. McKinley. The wispy clouds did not interfere. It seems that even late in August the Alaskan sky doesn't get completely dark.

I made this photograph between midnight and 1:00 AM and the northwestern sky still was not completely dark.

I normally shoot this kind of photo with a very wide angle lens, 24mm or shorter. Because the sky was still light enough, I shot it a 50mm, ISO 5000 and a shutter speed of 10 seconds. A completely dark sky, requires a shutter speed of 25 seconds and therefore a focal length of no more than 24mm. I liked being able to use a 50 mm focal length to make the mountains a larger part of the photo.

Photo by Allen Utzig

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