The Raging Stillness #2
This is a photoblend of 91 X 30 second exposures using the brilliant Startrails photoblend action that you can download from here
This is the 45 minute storm in one shot – in other words it’s the opposite end of the spectrum from the timelapse version I recently posted here
Trippy huh!
The large white streak in the sky is the moontrail, the little ones are startrails. The long lines sweeping across the sky are planes taking off and landing and the ones on the water are fishing trawlers.
A couple of curious things in this image. The first is the clear section of cloud above the main lightning strikes versus the blurred cloud around them. I think this is the result of these clouds being flashlit by each of the 20 odd lightning strikes whereas the other clouds were lit evenly by the moon in each image and hence blurred in the blend (hope that makes sense).
The other weird thing is that strange green line just above the middle planetrail near the centre of the image. It isn’t parallel to the startrails so isn’t one of them and satellites move so fast that one of those would have shown up as a long streak like the planetrails – any ideas?
Taken off the cliffs at Bundeena, Royal National Park, Sydney Australia.
Canon EOS 1Ds MkIII
EF 16-35mm f/2.8 LII USM
Tv: 30sec
Av: f/3.5
ISO: 200
FL: 17mm
Stats as of 16/11:
1 Sales – poster to Mystery Buyer on RB
88 Comments
51 peopleFavorited by
8686 Views
The Raging Stillness #2 belongs to the following groups:
!* Dark Cabaret *!, 5000+ views, All Things Poetic, Artistic, Philosophical, Art Inspired by Dreams, Astronomy, Canon DSLR (One Image Per Day & A Canon Camera Must Be In The Description Before It's Accepted), Colour and light, Dimensions, Eerie Lighting, Extreme Weather , Graphic Editing 101, Hard Science Rocks, Landscape Photography, Light Trails, Lightning and Storms, Live, Love, Dream: May you have a Blessed Christmas Season , Mood & Ambience - Strictly Photos, Moody, Dark, Evocative (no nudes), Myths, Legends and Fairytales, National Parks of the World & Great Parks Of The World, New South Wales Photography, Passions, Practising the Dark Arts, SEA, Severe Weather, Shoot The Moon, Skyscapes, Sold! , Something To Say, Spiritual Art, Style! Class! Elegance! Excellence!, Sydney, The Shire (Sutherland Shire, NSW, Australia), Timelapse/Long Exposure Photography and Your Magic Place (PLACES only!!) Available for sale asGreeting Cards, Matted Prints, Laminated Prints, Mounted Prints, Canvas Prints and Posters

Antanas
great work, well done
Peter Hill
This is superbly inspirational as well as being, well … superb.
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks Peter – glade you like it.
Erin Lyall
This is so inspirational, makes me want to go out and try it. Fantastic work!
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks Erin – go for it – it’s lots of fun.
steen
outstanding geoff…..love it
digitalmidge
Wow this is just killer fabulous…I’m knocked over, I love lightening, I used to storm chase as well in my younger days…love your work, awesome.. ;-)
Zoe
natapee
wowsers I’ve not seen anything like this before.
elisab
A lot of work for a great image.
George Lenz
nice piece.
Duncan Waldron
You’ve got quite a bit happening in here, Geoff – quite an image. If only you’d got a fireball, that would have been brilliant. I’d say the green line is an internal reflection of the moon. It’s certainly parallel to the moon’s trail, and is not a crisp, thin trail.
Duncan Waldron
Just looked at your animation, and you can see a faint image slowly moving upwards, as the moon rises, so I’d say it has to be a reflection on the moon. Grab the time slider and keep moving it back & forward, and you should be able to see it quite easily (it’s a dot that rises more slowly than the stars around it).
Geoff Coleman... replied
Well clever you – that makes lots of sense – so much for the UFO theory! Thanks – the image is a little over the top but I kind of liked it for that.
Juilee Pryor
this is just so stunning…. breathtakingly amazing….. such a multi layered and complex work and so lyrical and poetic at the same time….. wonderful image…. well done you….
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks heaps Juilee – glad you enjoyed it.
Stewart Wood
Very nice. I had a go at some real star trails but too much light where i live.
Douzy
This is so impressive Geoff. Looks like you’re always trying to stretch yourself! (I mean who does 91×30 sec exposures!!). You should definitely submit your photos for science books.
Duncan Waldron
Your image is nothing like “over the top” Geoff! Star trails, when done well, are great stuff – particularly if the pic has other merits, which yours clearly does :)
Lindsay Knowles
Awesome Geoff.
Michael Bermi...
This is something else Geoff!
Just had a look at your animation on Flikr. I am speechless mate.
What a cracking idea too!
Blimmin Duncan’s gone and squashed all the mystery out of “The Green thing” in this image.
We could have run with a UFO story for weeks!!!!
lol
Awsome work mate!
Geoff Coleman... replied
Lol – terrible when someone gives a simple explanation when an exotic one is so much more fun! Thanks Michael – glad you liked them.
EOS20
Fantastic Image!! Well done. :)
Christian Hartung
another great shot, and awesome edit, well done
filthy6
This is just so totally cool. Awesome!
Mel Sinclair
wow, the moontrail – never thought that that was possible, awesome stuff though!
Matt Halls
This is an incredible result Geoff!! Very clever work and a real treat for the viewer..
Annette Blattman
wow Geoff, inspiring work and the video is great. I’ve downloaded the action but have yet to try it out. Keep up the good work
Nancy Collinge
Great example of how brilliant star trails can look! Motivating me to get out my film(!) SLR and make the effort to trek away from the street light at the bottom of the garden.
Matt White
Great shot champ. Never seen anything like it.
soulexperience
nice shot during a storm too good work
Basia McAuley
WOW! Awesome!
Daniel J. McCa...
Brilliant work, Geoff!!
Rhana Griffin
The effort behind this image boggles my mind… the result thrills my eyes.
Dave Aarons
Great work
Lea Henning
perfect work ^^
Christina Vasi...
holy cannoli!! i saw the animated one you posted and WOW!!! that was awesome!! im in awe!!
Heath Holden
Wowzers! That’s crazy, if you said there was a volcano in the middle somewhere I’m sure I wouldnt be the only one fooled!
Nikki Trexel
WOW…now THAT took some time and talent and artistic skill. it’s all amazing…you’ve done a marvelous job.
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks Nikki – yeah it was a tonne of work but quite like the way it turned out.
fishlady77
wow this is awesome great job
Matt Lauder
Oh my god… this is stunning…. what an incredible process.
Mark Ross
This is too much! What a masterpiece! You’ve got your head on straight all right Jeff. You should show these images to someone who has connections to some great sources. At least one of these photos should be displayed in a public forum in a big way… like taking over a major wall in a train station or some such thing, really! Great, great, great!
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks for your lovely comment Mark – very much appreciated. Unfortunately I have no connections to even mediocre sources let alone great ones lol.
SaRaHKnOwDoG
Now THIS, is a great star trails shot !! The clouds are amazing as you point out. Wonderful ! This is what i Loved about doing night-time long exposures with natural light and the help of flashes, torches, fires …... You never know quite what your going to get ?? It kinda is like magic ?? What is that lil green streak ? Let us all know if you find out anything ? Thanx for sharing.
SaRaHKnOwDoG
Geoff Coleman...
Thanks Sarah for your lovely comment – it is definitely the thrill of not knowing until you get home and start processing that makes night-time shots so particularly exciting. Definitely alchemical – the digital equivalent of the darkroom. The green streak is a blending of lens flare from the moon I think.
Peter Harpley
hats off to you ! You have made such a dramatic image – not just a prosaic time lapse – you have could the feeling of the storm with the ‘vortex’ effect of the stars – well done
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks for your lovely comment Peter
dinghysailor1
soo brilliant!!:)) and loved the animated storm llink too ! you are a really spcial photographer with a unique gallery – awesome! and well done on the homepage and 20000 views too! loud cheering from sunny scotland!
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thank you my friend – I always look forward to your lovely comments.
Ryan Piercey
WOW!! Totally amazing shot!! Very well done!
Joanne Bradley
Wow wow wow! Your work is excellent!
Dawne Olson
Very very impressive work!
Julie Thomas
i am absolutely amazed at your talent!! what a brilliant piece of photography. I watched the animated version about 20 times and still find it totally mind-boggling!! outstanding work!
Geoff Coleman... replied
What a lovely comment Julie – you made my day. I’ve got a new animation of a moonrise on that Flickr account you may want to check out.
Julie Thomas
Oh, just checked out your moonrise… totally mesmorising! I am in awe for the 2nd time today!!
Geoff Coleman... replied
Well thank you.
Gideon Swart
great one geoff!!
no,ive no idea what that green line could be.its just too short for any ideas.strange,but a beauty!!well done!!
Barnesy
Awesome Geoff…..WOW
Miriam Dobson
wonderful image. i have a canon 400d but the problem i have experienced when trying to shoot multiple long exposures (as you have done here) is that the camera insists on taking time to save each exposure once it’s been taken, rather than shooting truly continually. The result of this it that I end up with a disjointed overall image once exposures have been combined – during the time the camera was saving images and not taking them, there are gaps in the startrails. Do you know how I’d be able to get around this on the 400d?
Geoff Coleman... replied
I would have thought the 400d could write more quickly than this but without knowing its specs I can’t say for sure. It’s more likely to be your memory card. If it’s old or cheap than the write speed will be limited. I’d try getting a Scandisk Extreme III or equivalent – it’s absolutely worth paying the extra to get the maximum write speed you can for a memory card if you want to do multiple exposures. Good luck.
Stuart Adams
wow!
BlaizerB
absolutely amazing work. cheers
Steffanie Pad...
woooooooooooooooooooooooow!
how do you do this!
AMAZING!!
Steffanie Pad...
oh never mind, I just read the discription haha
Still amazing….
DawsonImages
Nice, amazing startrails
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks Mike – pretty trippy this one but I like its intensity.
JohnThunderbird
ten-outa-ten
simonesphotos
What an incredible scene of Earth’s raging planet and it’s celestial neighbours, this image should be on the cover of every astronomy and photography magazine!!!
Neil Boucher
Unbelievable!!! But with you Geoff, it isn’t surprising. Wonderful Wonderful Wonderful!
Geoff Coleman... replied
What a lovely comment – thanks Neil
Richard G Witham
This is a beautiful image, and your description is very informative. Thank you for sharing the info on how you achieved this extraordinary photograph.
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks Richard – glad you found it useful.
Janice Sheen
stunning. totally stunning.
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks Janice – glad you like it.
PhySpi
This would be one of my favourites Geoff, thanks very much, good work!
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks Rowan – appreciate your comment.
dinghysailor1
still one of the most remarkable captures around! congratulations on the poster sale and best wishes for many more!!
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks heaps my friend
van049
AMAZING & INCREDIBLY BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!xx
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks again.
Peter Redmond
That is some amazing worke there Geoff, thank you for sharing how you captured the shot.
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks Peter – appreciate the feedback.
Xavier Sieckme...
Awesome stuff! Cool you put in so much effort for just one shot.
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks Xavier for your lovely feedback.
Garry Schlatter
I am flabbergasted…you got it all in one composition. This is masterclass. Thanks for sharing
Geoff Coleman... replied
That’s a particularly lovely comment – thanks Garry
Helene Kippert
This is superb geoff – a truly amazing shot
Geoff Coleman... replied
Thanks Helene – pretty intense eh.
LeighN 22 days ago
Another awesome shot Geoff!!!
Featured the group, The Shire
Geoff Coleman... replied 20 days ago
Thanks heaps for the feature and lovely comment Leigh – very much appreciated
Themis 19 days ago
I love this series, I noticed them before I joined RB and could leave a comment, but I did send the link to my friends :-) Excellent! And inspiring! (I’m not using these words lightly)
Geoff Coleman... replied 19 days ago
What a lovely comment and thanks for showing other people as well – very much appreciated.