Category Archives: Photography
Summer Milky Way Rising Airglow and Earthly Lights
Milky Way Rising: Airglow and Earthly Lights
Stellar Tuesday – May 14, 2013.
As previously mentioned the weather here in Summit County, Colorado has been overcast, gray, and snowy for nearly 10 weeks so I was ecstatic to get out and shoot on such a clear night a few days back. In this image we see the Summer Milky Way rising over the Williams Fork Range in the Central Rocky Mountains of Colorado. The lights in the background are coming from nearby mountain towns as well as a soft glow from the city of Denver.
The Reds and Greens are what is known as Airglow. Basically, oxygen particles becomes ionized or excited during the day by sunlight. When they try to return to their normal state, they release visible light and microwaves. This is very similar to the way a glow-in-the-dark sticker works. The Green is about 50 miles high in the atmosphere and the Red is higher. For more on: Airglow.
Other news: Breckenridge Theatre Art Gallery show is in the making full swing and its going to cost me a small fortune so I have added a coupon code: BTAG for any order off shop.danielmcvey.com to save 15%. By purchasing now you can help me finance this project. Your order is much appreciated. Thank You.
Milky Way Rising Shaula and Lesath
Milky Way Rising – Shaula and Lesath
My first Milky Way Rising image of 2013 which includes my favorite part of the galactic disk which includes Scorpius Stingers: Shaula and Lesath. The past 8 weeks or so here have been marked w/ snowy, grey, and cloudy days with short windows of opportunity which have naturally conflicted with my schedule. This night was no real exception w/ enough cloud cover clearing at around 3am to get this shot.
Earthsky How many stars on a clear moonless night
This week I had another appearance on Earthsky.Org in their article about how many stars can be seen on a clear moonless night. How long does it take for you eyes to adjust to a dark sky? Care to take a guess? 
Why not read the article to find out more. I know for myself that I can’t see a lot of Points that can be seen by others but lucky for me, I use the camera as my seeing eye.
Big thank you to Deborah Byrd and Earthsky for their continued support for my photography.
May 3 was First Friday at the Denver Photo Art Gallery and despite cooler temps in Denver and the Rockies playing at home, the turn out was great and I had the opportunity to meet many people including several people from the Social Network World.
The next First Friday Art Walk on Santa Fe is June 7. I will be at the Denver Photo Art Gallery at 833 Sante Fe Dr from 6-9pm.
Got Time? Last weekend I went photo mounting crazy with over 30 prints mounted for the Breckenridge Theatre Art Gallery show as well as New and Replaced Bin Prints for DPAG.
Getting ready for Breckenridge Theatre Art Gallery
Stellar Tuesday this week will bring my first Summer Milky Way image of 2013. As many of you know the weather here has generally been snowy, grey, and / or cloudy for the past 8 weeks + making Astrophotography a near impossibility w/ just a dew windows of oppurtunity. Last night I found a break in the clouds at around 3am after a few hours of frustration. Patience paid off and I can’t wait to show the new image.
Antzls for Breckenridge Theatre Art Gallery First Friday on Santa Fe May 3
Help me Finance the Breck Show and $ave – Coupon Code: BTAG for 15% off Anything
As you can imagine, I have been plugging away at getting things ready for the show at the Breckenridge Theatre Art Gallery opening on July 13 from 4 – 6pm. This weekend alone I matted and mounted 35 prints for use in the Sale Bin or to mount into 16 x 20 frames. This Friday I meet with my printer / framer about my LARGE PRINTS.
I am including 2 Antzl Project Canvases in this display (maybe more once I get the entire space figured out) Dark River of the Milky Way and Harvest Moon. I received the order on Friday and posted some photos to my Facebook Page that are seen here.
It seems that downtown Breckenridge will be sinking some money into the Arts District. Here is a short article on the plan for the Arts District that includes the Breckenridge Theatre Art Gallery.
Don’t forget the Coupon Code: BTAG to save 15% at shop.danielmcvey.com . Purchases will help fund the Breckenridge show.
Reminder that this Friday is the First Friday Art Walk at the Denver Photo Art Gallery (8th and Santa Fe) in the Art District on Santa Fe from 6-9pm. Please see Postcard below and click for more info on this event.
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IDS Week Special Breckenridge Theatre Gallery Exhibit
Welcome to International Dark-Sky Week / Global Astronomy Month where we try to bring attention to the problems associated with light pollution and simple ways to reduce our impact such as turning off unused lights, use of motion sensors, and IDA approved downward pointing lights available at fine home improvement shops. Read More.
I am proud to announce the #IDSWeek Special. I am selling this canvas at cost plus a $40 Donation / Membership to International Dark Sky Association in support of IDS Week. Read More: Dark River of the Milky Way photo.
Sunday Antzl Challenge Winning Photo
I had a great time at the April edition of First Friday 2013 at Denver Photo Art Gallery in the Art District on Santa Fe in Denver, Colorado. The crowd was massive and I had a chance to meet so many people and talk about International Dark-Sky Week and Photography. Thanks to all the people that came out. Truly a great time.
Sunday AntZl Challenge: A couple weeks ago I entered my photo in the SAzC and with the help of many people on Facebook my photo was voted the favorite. Then I asked whoever wanted to be in the raffle for the AntZl Dollar$ to sign up and we did a random selection for the gift of $50.00 in AntZl Dollar$. Kerri Willerford won and had her own Antzl Project Canvas made. Congratulations Kerri. The canvas looks amazing. Thank you Antzl!
On July 13, 2013 I am excited to announce a 1 month exhibit at the Breckenridge Theatre Gallery. This exhibit will be all night photography but will be completely different than the Denver Photo Art Gallery. The opening is from 4-6pm and refreshments will be served. Your support would be appreciated. More info will be available as the event develops.
Stellar Tuesday Global Astronomy Month Landscape Photography Magazine Gore Range Monochrome Series
(Early) Spring Time in the Rockies
Stellar Tuesday Astro Image: (Early) Spring Time in the Rockies: Winter Constellations in the West shortly after sunset as the snow recedes from the valley floor.
I am sure by now you are aware that I have been working with International Dark-Sky Association to bring you Dark Sky week from April 5 – 11 but did you know the entire month of April is Global Astronomy Month? I was fortunate enough to have a small contribution of photographer by pairing up with writer Larry Sessions of North American Skies to bring you the article Globe at Night and Online Classes for Astronomers without Borders. Check the article to see “Wildernest Reflection”.
: My Harvest Moon 2012 photo is currently in Issue #26 in the Inspirations section of the Magazine and it provided me with the gift of a brand new camera bag. This is amazing cause I have been putting off getting a new bag for months now. Thank You Landscape Photography Magazine and Fstopgear.Com
The Website has been updated not only with the new ecommerce page: Shop.DanielMcVey.Com
but also with the Gore Range Monochrome Series slideshow. Please take a minute and check the slideshow out which includes sepia toned photos of Summit County’s Gore Range thoughout the year day and night. I ran the series on Facebook and was met with a lot of positive remarks so I brought in slideshow fashion to the webpage.
Don’t forget that April 5 is First Friday at the Denver Photo Art Gallery.
Earthsky Image of the Day_Summit Daily News Front Page_New Shopping Area
Photo of Pan-STARRS by Daniel McVey on cover of Summit Daily News
What a week! First, my comet Pan-STARRS photo landed on the Front Page of the Summit Daily News, which is the must read if you live in Summit County FREE Newspaper. Thank You Summit Daily News. I’m Honored.
My Dark River of the Milky Way photo ended up being the EarthSky Image of the Day for March 29, 2013. The Image of the Day section also includes excerpts from my blog on this Astro-Photo including info on International Dark-Sky Week starting April 5 that I posted. Thank You Earth-Sky for not only sharing my photo but to help get the message out about IDS Week.
Still more news: Finally, Ive done a soft launch of the new Shopping Page which I created under the Subdomain shop.danielmcvey.com . The Ecommerce plug-in that came with my theme I use for www.danielmcvey.com was trash and very confusing to users. The new site is aimed at simplifying the process and showing an image of what you will receive to help remove some of the guesswork.
20% Coupon: 20dmcvey
Currently I am offering a variety of packages including Print Only, Frame Ready, Antzl Project Canvas Gallery Wraps, and Full Art Gallery Framing Packages. Custom packages are also available for whatever you can dream-up. Many of the options are still being filled out as this was just a soft launch but I hope to have the page up to date in the next 2 weeks.
If you head over to shop.danielmcvey.com during the soft launch you can save 20% by using this coupon code: “20dmcvey” .
First Friday Art Walk is April 5, 2013! Once again I will be hosting my space at the Denver Photo Art Gallery at 833 Sante Fe Dr – in the Denver Art District. I hope to see you there as we welcome, I think I read but could be wrong, Timothy Faust from Breckenridge, Colorado. I have not had the opportunity to meet Timothy before but it is exciting to welcome another Summit County photographer to the Gallery. For more: Info, Sign the Guest List, Ask Questions, etc.
Dark River Milky Way flows into White River National Forest Colorado Airglow
Dark River of the Milky Way with Airglow.WRNF Summit County, Colorado.
Stellar Tuesday 3/26/13
Summit County, Colorado: The Dark River of the Milky Way, complete with Airglow, flows into the White River National Forest. I was editing old photos from last year over the weekend when I stumbled across this Panoramic that I shot but never stitched. If this photo looks somewhat familiar its because it was shot in the same series as the “Great Rift of the Milky Way” last Autumn. This Milky Way series could easily be identified by the distinct Airglow signature.
What is Airglow? When Oxygen particles high in our atmosphere interact with sunlight they become excited or ionized during the day. At night, as the particles return to their normal state, they release visible light and microwaves. The Green Glow is produced by Oxygen atoms about 60 miles high in the atmosphere. The Red Glow is from Oxygen atoms higher than 60 miles in the atmosphere. The effect is likened to placing a glow-in-the-dark sticker under a lamp for several minutes then turning the lamp off to witness the glow from the sticker. Read more about Airglow.
Airglow is a signature of a Dark Sky. As previously mentioned, I will be working with the International Dark-Sky Association to bring you IDS Week April 5 – 12, 2013. Watch Losing the Dark now as a Prelude to #IDS Week to learn more about the effects of light pollution and some simple ways to use light responsibly. Click for the International Dark-Sky Association Public Service Message and Donation Page.
Announcing the IDA Fundraiser. A 24 x 30 Canvas at cost plust a $40 Donation in the Buyers name to International Dark Sky Association now through April 11:
100% of Proceeds to IDA til April 11
Reminder that First Friday is April 5. Once again I will be down at the Denver Photo Art Gallery in the Santa Fe Art District – at 833 Santa Fe Dr hosting my space and answering questions from 6pm – 9pm. Hope to see you there!
Finally, I have been sinking countless hours into creating a “NEW” Shopping Experience to the site. Im hoping this should launch sometime this week, hopefully before Sunday.
Comet Pan-STARRS Summit County Citizens Voice Colorado
Pan-STARRS over Middle Park – Click image for Article on event by Summit County Citizens Voice w/ unseen images.
Capturing Comet Pan-STARRS here in Summit County, Colorado has been a difficult process with many failed attempts before I even saw the comet. Since the comet appears so low on the horizon, finding a vantage point while surrounded by peaks towering 12,000 ft plus proved to be a challenge. Mix that in with overcast nights I was growing frustrated but trying to keep patient. One partly cloudy night I hiked in to my spot only to find clouds forming in the worst possible place and since I was on foot no chance of realigning my angle of view.
The evening I captured my only series to date of PanSTARRS I was unsure what I would get cause I had cloud building in about the area I was expecting to see this cosmic wonder. Im not sure why this happens but sometimes when the temps drop after sunset, clouds seem to vaporize. I was hanging on to this thought as I did my last chance to view the comet but this time it paid off.
Comet in a Nose Dive. Click for Larger Image
The first frame I caught of the comet, I leaped for joy and then started to work vigorously. From the time I saw the comet, I knew I had a short time before it dipped behind the horizon.
Big Thank You to Bob Berwyn of the Summit County Citizens Voice who is a huge supporter of my photography. Bob was kind enough to put together an Article on Comet Pan-STARRS over Summit County, Colorado utilizing my photos and making sense of my wild ramblings sent via email.
Winter Circle Huffington Post and Space.Com
Winter Milky Way with Winter Circle (Capella, Aldebaran, Rigel, Sirius, Procyon, and Castor) Jupiter, and the Pleiades.
Recently I was lucky enough to have my Winter Highlights (pictured above) run in the Huffington Post UK “Image of the Week” – where my photo was next to one of Kate Middleton! – and it was voted as the Fan Favorite!
This same picture ran on Space.Com under the category “Amazing Night Sky Photos” for the month of March. Big Thank You to both for sharing.
If all this sounds familiar but in abbreviated fashion its because these were Lost Blogs in the Great Website Crash of 2013. Thank God, that the rest of the page was recovered by my host: Blue Host. Thank You!
Thanks to Stellar friend, Kim Klodnicki, I now have a Instagram page. Please check it out and if you are an Instagram user, send a friend request!
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