David Kingham's 'NightScape' eBook

An eBook Review: "Nightscape - A Complete Guide to Photographing Under the Night Sky" by David Kingham, published by Craft and Vision, 120 pages in electronic format. $12.00

Unique and Narrow Scope. At last, someone got it right! This was my first impression, after a quick review of David's "Nightscape" ebook. Although there are multiple definitions of the word "nightcape", David and I share many similar feelings about this term. This is the first book to adequately cover the style of starry night photography that many of my peers and I are currently doing.

In my opinion, the sub-title, "A Complete Guide to Photographing Under the Night Sky" is a bit misleading. This is not a broad guide to all types of night photography, but it is the best guide to a unique type of astro-landscape photography that is rapidly becoming very popular.

Preparation is the key. David and I also share a basic approach to nightscape photography, and that is that preparation is paramount to one's success in this type of nocturnal photography. Much of his book is devoted to familiarizing you with the cycles of the night sky, scouting techniques, and selecting the proper gear, before illustrating the how-to of actual shooting.

Guiding Principles. Nightscape is not just a book of pretty pictures. David is not trying to showcase his photography, nor is his goal to to help you make pretty pictures. His goal is to "inspire you, to reconnect you to the world around you and the sky above, so that ...your day-to-day worries and fears disappear, and you stop thinking about the past and the future, and you are one with the present." David's approach is to teach just enough of the technical aspects of night photography in order for you "…to reach the point where your camera does not get in the way of realizing your vision. Once you do not think about the technical aspects, you can truly focus on your vision."

Pg. 37: Light painted Double Arch and Milky Way ~ © David Kingham / Craft & Vision
(Out of 120 pages, I counted only 27 that were just "pretty pictures" —and these
still had purpose, because they were used to illustrate a technique in that section.)

Pg. 70: Milky Way over Oxbox Bend - Grand Teton N.P. (9-image panorama)
© David Kingham / Craft & Vision

Table of Contents. Nightscape is divided into six main sections:

1. Understanding the Night Sky (20 pages) - i.e., the Milky Way, Meteor Showers, Moon Phases, Constellations, Galaxies, Comets, and the Aurora
2. Scouting (19 pages) - i.e., The Milky Way’s Cycle, Meteor Showers, Finding Dark Skies, Finding A Foreground Subject, and [predicting the] Weather
3. Gear (9 pages) - i.e., Selecting A Camera, Selecting A Lens, Panoramic Gear, Intervalometer, Lighting, and Tracking Mount
4. In the Field (7 pages) - i.e., [dealing with] Fear, Cold, Darkness, and Composing In The Dark
5. Shooting Techniques (26 pages) - Basic and Advanced
6. Post Processing (33 pages) - Lightroom Effects and Special Effects

Sample Pages from each section:

Pg. 22: Describing "Airglow" in the Understanding the Night Sky section
of Nightscape ~ © David Kingham / Craft & Vision

Pg. 26: Charting the Milky Way's cycles from the Scouting section of Nightscape ~ © Craft & Vision

Pg. 48: Sample page from the Gear section of Nightscape ~ © Craft & Vision

Pg. 58: Sample page (cropped) from the In the Field section of Nightscape
© David Kingham / Craft & Vision

Pg. 75: Illustrating how to lower noise in the foreground exposure, from the Shooting Techniques
section of Nightscape ~ © David Kingham / Craft & Vision

Pg. 96: Before & after Lightroom adjustment examples, from from the Post Processing
section of Nightscape ~ © David Kingham / Craft & Vision

Resources Page. Nightscape ends with an excellent Resources page that includes 51 hot links to charts, tools, software, and workshops.

Conclusion. Pros: No other ebook currently comes close to providing the depth and focus that Nightscape provides for the starry night astro-landscape photographer. The book is well organized, and beautifully designed, which is typical of Craft and Vision books. Cons: Although the Lightroom post processing techniques are plentiful and well illustrated, there are no Photoshop techniques in the book. The light painting equipment discussion is adequate, but is lacking in how-to examples.

Availability: As of May 19, Nightscape is available for online purchase directly from Craft and Vision for $12.00, and includes a download link to 22 of David's Lightroom presets. Special Discount: This ebook will be on sale (20% off) for $9.60 through May 26.

COMPARISON to other night photography ebooks: Last November I did a review on the Shooting Stars ebook. Although I recommend both of these books, they are quite different in their scope. Shooting Stars covers a broader range of night photography, whereas Kingham's Nightscape has a narrower focus, with a greater depth of information in his area of expertise.

Royce's 2014 Workshop, Lecture & Video Conference Schedule: NightScapeEvents.com

David Kingham: Driven into the Night

"Snowy Range Perseids" - 22 meteorites captured in a Wyoming sky ~ © David Kingham (click image for how-to info)

Colorado landscape photographer, David Kingham, is passionate about night photography. "Creating stunning nightscapes is what drives me," says David. It could be the milky way, a meteor show, or just starry skies.

The "Snowy Range Perseids" shot was the accumulation of all the things Kingham had learned over the years. "It put all my skills to the test and I came away with more than I imagined," said David. "Everything from scouting the perfect location, creating a great composition in total darkness, shooting for an entire night, to the challenge of post processing to create an incredible composite with the meteors coming from the correct radiant point."

Creating unique imagery: As a landscape photographer, David enjoys capturing beautiful scenery. "But it often feels like it's all been done before," laments Kingham. "When I'm standing on the shore of Maroon Bells or Oxbow Bend with hundreds of other photographers I feel disenchanted. When I stand under a star filled sky, I know I'm one of very few that are taking in this beauty, and unless I'm with friends I know that what I'm photographing is exceptionally unique, not just a different composition, but something that nobody has ever seen."

David's night work often involves selecting a unique foreground element and pairing it with a feature in the night sky. He prefers to work with moonlight to illuminate his foreground subjects, but when there is a new moon he will also employ light painting.

Getting started: Growing up in the mountains of Colorado, Kingham had always been able to clearly see the stars at night—which few in our modern society get to experience, due to light pollution. When he started in photography he had no idea that our cameras were capable of capturing the night sky. It was a Flickr friend, Michael Menefee, and his nightscapes that inspired David. The thankful Kingham worked hard to learn as much as possible under Michael's willingness to share his techniques.

"Glacier Gorge Milky Way" - a nightscape panorama ~ © David Kingham (click for a larger view)

This was his first attempt at shooting a nightscape panorama. "I had no idea if it would work with the star movement," says David. The amazing software available today makes this possible. He now shoots night panoramas on a regular basis!

"Cupid Mountain Milky Way Panorama" ~ © David Kingham (click image for a larger view)

"This shot was a physical and mental test for me, says Kingham. "Climbing a 13,000 ft mountain in the dead of winter, at 2:00 A.M. stretched my boundaries. It has made me mentally tougher to take on anything in life."

Night photography challenges: Long, cold nights, and a lack of sleep are typical for night photographers. But David admits that driving for several hours into the mountains, and hiking in the middle of the night in freezing conditions is worth the effort. "It's those moments that remind you how amazing a warm bed feels, [and] forcing yourself to leave it takes a special devotion," reports David.

"No Wind on the Prairie" ~ © David Kingham (click image for a larger view)

"This was my first successful light painted shot," says David. " I barely knew what I was doing at the time. It was an experiment where everything went right and gave me the itch to never stop learning and playing with new ideas."

Favorite tools and equipment: Rokinon lenses are a favorite. David has discovered that they are cheap, fast, and free of coma—more so than some of the Canon and Nikon lenses, costing over $2,000!  David shoots a lot of panoramas, so a leveling base on his tripod makes life much easier. An intervalometer is also a necessity. And a custom made external battery has allowed him to extend his battery life by 7 hours!

On the software side, David uses Starry Night Pro on the his PC, and Star Walk on the iPhone—both are such amazing planetarium applications that he can't imagine doing night photography without them. Nik Color Efex is his secret weapon for bringing out the detail in the milky way, and Microsoft ICE has become invaluable for stitching night panoramas.

Workshops: Recently, David has began teaching night photography workshops. Giving others the gift of knowledge to create their own nightscapes is deeply rewarding to him.

More of David's work can be found at his website.

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