How can I keep both a person in the foreground and the Milky Way sharp in one photo?
Asked 3/17/2017
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2 answers
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When I photograph the Milky Way, I focus at infinity and use about a 20-second exposure, and the stars look fine. But if I include a friend in the foreground holding a torch, the person looks blurry. How can I get both the foreground person and the Milky Way sharp and clear, ideally in one shot?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
9y ago
2 Answers
1
Sounds like you're dissatisfied with the depth of field. Not everything in the photo can be in focus at one time. With astrophotography, you probably are going to be using the largest aperture, which is going to make the issue worse.
The best thing to do is take 2 shots and blend them with Photoshop or other such software. Alternatively, if you insist on achieving this in a single shot, then you may have your friend stand further back from the camera, and crop the final image. This will reduce the defocus blur on him.
Originally by user37674. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user37674
9y ago
0
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The issue is depth of field. For Milky Way shots you’re usually using a very wide aperture, which gives shallow focus. If the lens is focused near infinity, a nearby person may fall outside the sharp focus zone. A 20-second exposure can also make any movement from the person show up as blur.
The most reliable solution is to take two photos and blend them later: one exposed/focused for the sky, and one for the person/foreground.
If you want to do it in a single shot, the practical option is to place the person farther from the camera so they’re closer to the same focus distance as the background, then crop if needed. That reduces the out-of-focus blur.
So in short: for best results, shoot separate foreground and sky frames and combine them; for a single exposure, move the person farther back and keep them as still as possible.
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