Michael Menefee Photography

  • Home
  • Galleries
  • Work Requests and Stock
  • Search
  • Bio
  • Contact

Popular Favorites

Some of my more popular photographs are featured in this set.
Read More
Merrit Dam Reservoir Dipper Trails
26 / 324

Merrit Dam Reservoir Dipper Trails

The Big Dipper reflects in the waters of Merrit Dam Reservoir in north-central Nebraska. The interesting distorted trails on the lake were caused by differing wind conditions. When the wind really picks up it pretty much kills star reflections on a lake. Oh and just to restate the obvious, light pollution in much of Nebraska is very low-- a great place for astro-viewing!

The different colors for star trails are a product of how hot the underlying stars are, with blue the hottest and red cooler. You can also see how the apparent length of the trails increases as you move away from the N. Star.

Shot Notes: 115 stacked exposures of 25 seconds at F/3.2, 3200 ISO, at 16mm (yes you can use the Tokina 11-16 at 16 mm in full-frame mode for a small edge penalty). It all adds up to a total of around 47 minutes of star trails. Oh yeah, this makes me crave a fisheye. Big time. ;-)))

NightSkyNightscapeStar TrailsMerrit DamNENebraskaLandscapeSkyscapeStarsStarBig DipperAstronomyAstrophotographyNatureScienceReflectionLakeReservoirReflectingNikonD700Tokina 1116Portfolio

  • Front Range Leviathan
  • Energy Transfer
  • The Electric Rainbow Acid Test
  • Atmospheric Parallelism
  • A Wind-Stoked High Park Fire Plume Rises Above Pleasant Valley
  • Merrit Dam Reservoir Dipper Trails
  • Listening to Stars Under Moonlight on the Plains of San Agustin
  • The Sun Sets on the 2012 Transit of Venus
  • The Setting of the Annular Solar Eclipse of 2012, May 20
  • Annular Visions: the 2012 Solar Eclipse
  • Autumnal Crescendo
  • Air Brakes
  • Untitled photo
  • Iridium Flare Over Lake Dillon
  • Early Perseids Over the White Pine Range
  • Anti-crepuscular Rays on Colorado Plains
  • A Parallel Sunset in the East
  • Blue Berry Blizzard
  • Whirled Whipple Observatory
  • Rising Thunderbird on Jackson
  • No Comments

All Images Copyright © Michael Menefee | All Rights Reserved

  • Photo Sharing
  • About SmugMug
  • Browse Photos
  • Prints & Gifts
  • Terms
  • Privacy
  • Contact
  • Owner Log In
© 2023 SmugMug, Inc.