For a couple weeks now, the National Park Service has been sending out press releases about new stamps featuring national parks around the country.
I’ve admired all of the stamps, but mostly I’ve been impatiently waiting for one to feature a park in Washington.
Well, they finally sent one. A really spectacular one, too. The photo featured on the stamp is of Mount Rainier at night, with a sweeping star trail and the colors of the northern lights.
The image was created by merging 200 images, all taken by Matt Dieterich of Pittsburgh. Dieterich worked at Mount Rainier as an intern to educate the public on dramatic views of the stars and the effect of light pollution near highly populated areas.
Here’s what Dieterich said in the NPS press release:
“This night was one I will never forget. After working with visitors at the Mount Rainier astronomy program on June 22, 2015, I noticed there was an aurora, so I drove down to Reflection Lake to capture it.
“The location was perfect as it contained a view of Mount Rainier and water for reflections,” he said. “To create this star trails image I took 200 photos in a two-hour window between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. with my Nikon D750 and 24mm lens set at F/1.4 and ISO 5000. Since the Earth is rotating, each 8-sec. exposure shows stars at slightly different locations. When the photos are combined into one image the stars create a circular pattern around the North Star, which is just out of view at the top of the image. The pink aurora spread throughout the background sky. Mountaineers can be seen with their white headlamps climbing Mount Rainier on the right side of the volcano.”
“To capture star trails photos just like this,” he said, “all you need is a digital single lens reflex camera, a wide angle lens, tripod and shutter release cable. So what are you waiting for? Grab your gear and get out under the stars!”
The staff at Mount Rainier National Park are working on an event June 2 to celebrate the release of the stamp.
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