Milky Way Over Fins, Venice, Florida

I don't usually photograph in the middle of the night to do astrophotography, but it was on my bucket list. I just had to try it. So in March 2021 I... more

by Liesl Walsh

Title

Milky Way Over Fins, Venice, Florida

Artist

Liesl Walsh

Medium

Photograph - Digital Photograph

Description

I don't usually photograph in the middle of the night to do astrophotography, but it was on my bucket list. I just had to try it. So in March 2021 I used an app to find out when I would see the Milky Way in the sky, on the darkest night of the month. My husband Mike and I went to the Venice Fishing Pier and Venice Beach at 3:30 am to find it. We started at the pier first and it was so DARK! Kinda creepy and scary to be on the beach in complete darkness until our eyes got used to it. We could hear the waves coming to the shore which was nice. But it is a totally different feeling being out there in the dark than during the day. I was waiting for the boogie man or a critter to come out of the darkness, but we had our flashlights and Mike was right there with me. We got used to it and we found the Milky Way in the southwest area of the sky (Mike found it first!) It was right over Fins and Sharky's!

I figured out very special camera settings to photograph in such darkness and still get a sharp photo. Mike tried it, too. We both have cameras and tripods. I got some photos at the pier and then we got some at Venice Beach. This image was created by layering 3 different photos of different exposures taken at the same time.

We were really tired after being out in the middle of the night for a few hours, so a good long nap really helped after getting home. I am open to doing this adventure again, but this is not my normal thing. I think this first try was a success!

This is at the Venice Fishing Pier in downtown Venice, Florida. You can see 2 restaurants silhouetted against the night sky: Fins at Sharky's and Sharky's at the Pier. You can even see the shark fins on top of the roof. This is on the Gulf of Mexico on the west coast of Florida. Venice is a historical town built in the 1920's with Mediterranean architecture and a quaint charming downtown. Venice is known for their love of the arts, and is the shark tooth capital of the world. Fossilized sharks' teeth can be found on the beaches here. Venice is south of Sarasota and north of Englewood.

SOLD:
16 x 12 print to buyer in Pickerington, Ohio on 4-9-2021. Thank you!

Featured in the following FAA Groups:
Just Perfect 2-15-2021
The Coastal Areas of the Gulf of Mexico 3-15-2021
Mind-Blowing Photography 3-16-2021
Fine Art America Professionals 3-16-2021
USA Photographers Only 3-16-2021
Shadows Silhouettes and Reflections Outdoors 3-28-2021

Uploaded

March 15th, 2021