Desert Night Sky Photography

Saturday, January 28, 2012
Classroom lecture: 12:30 pm – 4:00 pm
Outdoor lab (weather permitting): 5:30 pm – 8:30 pm

Sunday, January 29, 2012
Classroom image & processing discussion: 10:00 am – 12:00 pm

Instructor: Dennis Mammana
Fee: $100 / $90 for ABF members

If you enjoy photography and are fascinated by the desert night sky, this two-day hands-on workshop is for you! Noted night sky photographer Dennis Mammana will teach participants how to use even the simplest of cameras—along a few tricks-of-the-trade—to create magnificent celestial portraits.

During the afternoon, students will learn to use their cameras and tripods to set up, shoot and evaluate your photos under the night sky. After a break for dinner on your own, participants will return to the Visitor’s Center to try out their new knowledge under the real desert sky.

The following morning, a follow-up in-class session will present images from the previous night for discussion and will explore some image processing techniques that will make your photos pop.

Participants should bring a camera―digital or film―that can be adjusted to take time exposures and focus manually, a solid tripod, a remote control or cable release, their camera user manual and a flashlight (with a red LED or covered with red cellophane). Please have a good working knowledge of your equipment before taking the workshop. A laptop and CDs (or thumb drive) will be useful to copy your images for display the following morning.

ABDSP Visitor Center
200 Palm Canyon Drive
Borrego Springs, CA 92004

About the Instructor
Dennis Mammana, M.S., Astronomy, has delivered the wonder and mystery of the cosmos to audiences for over three decades. A nationally syndicated newspaper columnist with Creators Syndicate and author of six books on popular astronomy, Mammana is also an accomplished night sky photographer and invited member of TWAN—an international team of the most highly acclaimed sky photographers on the planet. Mr. Mammana writes about and photographs the heavens from around the world, but mostly from his desert home in Borrego Springs. His work can be enjoyed online at dennismammana.com.