Ewen Bell 📸
Was one of those nights last night. 5 hours of shooting. Hard drives are full. Left knee is killing me.

Totally worth it.

#EwenInNorway #Nordlys #Photography #Auroras #NorthernLights #CaptureOne #Lumix
Feb 24 at 8:19amWeb
Show threadEwen Bell 📸Feb 24
Arctic style disco lights, and the moon turned into a star.

Captured with the TT Artisan 14mm F2.8. Very compact little lens. Plenty of optical blemishes, but at this price who cares. Fun and compact. Good companion for the Lumix S9.

#EwenInNorway #Nordlys #Photography #Auroras #NorthernLights #LumixS9
Show threadEwen Bell 📸Feb 25
Here's a little "behind the scenes" from the other night. I needed one or two pictures of myself to help promote the workshop. It's so weird posing for a camera, I do my best work behind the lens instead of in front of it :)

#EwenInNorway #Nordlys #Photography #Selfie #WorkshopWithEwen
Show threadFish in the PercolatorMar 8
@ewen lovely shot, must have been a beautiful night!
Show threadEwen Bell 📸Mar 8
@imrehg

Was a lot prettier when I wasn't standing in the shot :)

https://social.ewenbell.com/notice/B3iLAufRlhjyhHB1TU
Ewen Bell 📸 (@[email protected])

How it started, and how it finished! This is the same scene off the same camera, and captured with the same settings. The only thing changed is the moon and the aurora's mood. Cameras only see lig...

Show threadFish in the PercolatorMar 8

@ewen really cool shots! I definitely couldn't get my Aurora this pretty! Probably not using the right lens, old school camera too long exposure, and really bad at setting the focus :) But it is something...
Canon EOS 550D, f/3.5, ISO1600, 30s(?)

Silly willy question, how does one set the focus right, when it is so damn dark? (and I wear glasses so it is rough on a good day as well)

Show threadEwen Bell 📸Mar 8
@imrehg

Focus is easier on the mirrorless cameras :) They give you focus peaking so you manually roll through the range and when you see the stars get a little buzz from the peaking, you know they're sharp.

But sometimes you want the scenery to be sharp instead of the stars. Just takes practice. I also shoot very very wide, with 14mm. Your photo looked like maybe a 24mm with the crop sensor, so really closer to 36mm. You get more latitude with the wider perspective.

What I used to do when I had the Canon 5D was take a series of shots, and slightly nudge my lens focus each time. Then step back through the shots and look to see if the stars get puffy, or get tighter. Puffy means you're stepping away from focus. It was tricky.

Having a nice manual focus lens helps. That 14mm F2.8 by TT Artisan for example is very affordable, and very lovely.
Show threadCiaraFeb 24
@ewen Wow
Show threadLisaHFeb 24
@ewen This is so fantastic!! 👏
Show threadEwen Bell 📸Feb 25
@3x10to8mps

Thankyou! Just a marvellous evening on a marvellous planet :)
Show threadGritGernhardtFeb 24
@ewen woooooow! 🤩
Show threadNorbert 📷Feb 24
@ewen That's an absolutely awesome photo!
Show threadEwen Bell 📸Feb 25
@norberteder

I usually avoid starbursts, but this one kinda feels like it belongs :)
Show threadBob TregilusFeb 24
@ewen Very nice!
Show threadChris LeboeFeb 25
@ewen @Anja2 Beautiful
Show threadMountain MindsetFeb 25
@ewen Thats an amazing capture! I do appreciate the moon burst, adds a special feel.
Show threadEwen Bell 📸Feb 25
@mountainmindset

Thanks!

I have a few friends who talk about hiking up to the top of that mountain in summer. A little over 1000m I think. Not much room when you get to the top either.
Show threadMountain MindsetFeb 27
@ewen Doesnt look like the easiest hike, but Id love to see the view from above!
Show threadS★m V★rm★Feb 25

@ewen Just epic. Should this become available as a high res download id be very interested 👀

The star shape on the moon is extra special

Show threadNYSlothMar 13
Fantastic!
Show threadAndiFeb 24
A couple of weeks ago we had some northernlights down here in the south of Bavaria as well, but what you experience up there in the North is very special. Thanks a lot for your effort and for sharing these spectecular moments
Show threadEwen Bell 📸Feb 24
@[email protected]

I think it was Jan 19+20 when the big ones rolled through? KP9 or something crazy! I missed the first night, but caught the second after landing back in the north.

I'm so lucky to have a chance to capture these moments through the winter. I feel that each time I get to hang out with the Nordlys I get to them a little better.

Thanks for dropping a note today, I feel encouraged to keep sharing :)
pixelfed

The original Pixelfed instance, operated by the main developer @dansup

pixelfed
Show threadsix_grandfathers_mountainFeb 24

@Bild.Reise @ewen
RE
#Bavaria #AuroraBorealis #Auroras
#NorthernLights

yea, we thank you Mr. Bell for your effort and for sharing these spectecular moments

but, this kinda adds some scarry info, that the Sun is one wild beast and it's doing it's thing, big time #solarflares #solarflare

Show threadEwen Bell 📸Feb 24
@six_grandfathers_mountain @[email protected]

If not for the magnetosphere surrounding our planet, we would be crispy morsels of atomised carbon! Instead, we get disco lights in the Arctic!

What an amazing planet we live on.
pixelfed

The original Pixelfed instance, operated by the main developer @dansup

pixelfed
Show threadsix_grandfathers_mountainFeb 24

@ewen
RE
What an amazing planet we live on

And the idea (evidence coming later) of other just as amazing #exoplanets 😀

#ClearVivid (podcast) Feb 23 2024
#AlanAlda interviewing #AdamFrank (U of Rochester NY)

About the other amazing planets, the exoplants
(get past the first 5min on UFOs)

AUDIO 37min
https://stitcher.simplecastaudio.com/54514573-5d85-4a1e-b9d0-0933fea667ab/episodes/8a53cadd-03af-497e-84a7-cce93ed41e09/audio/128/default.mp3

Show threadAndiFeb 24
That's how it looked like, taken on 19th of January, 23:04
Show threadEwen Bell 📸Feb 24
@[email protected]

Great location to shoot! I love it.
pixelfed

The original Pixelfed instance, operated by the main developer @dansup

pixelfed
Show threadAndiFeb 24
Show threadMike HindleFeb 24

@ewen "Hard drives are full. Left knee is killing me. Totally worth it."

What a legend 🙌🏻 Well worth it by the looks of things 🤩

Show threadGritGernhardtFeb 24
@ewen 🤩🤩🤩
Show threadsanpanMar 10
@ewen I feel sorry for your knee but totally envy your eyes. What a sight this must have been!
Show threadEwen Bell 📸Mar 10
@sanpan

Sometimes I look back on these images, while sitting in my little apartment on the other side of the world, and it all feels so surreal. It's so wonderful having the photos to keep the memory of it alive.
Show threadsanpanMar 10
@ewen I‘ve travelled all over the world and never took pictures because I thought memory is enough. What an idiot my younger self was…
Show threadEwen Bell 📸Mar 10
@sanpan

That's being a bit harsh on yourself. It's just a different way to experience and a different way to remember. I most value photography because it gets me out into the world in the first place. Otherwise my life would exist mostly on the keyboard :)

In some ways the photos taint my memory, creating a stronger anchor that replace those original memories. The photo becomes the memory if you will. Sometimes that is good, but may not be good always.

So my strongest memories are mostly of those things I captured with the camera. I still have other "photos" in my mind of course. And younger me didn't take so many photos either.

But my brain is a visual machine, and when I capture things with a camera it feels like an extension of my hands. We work together, like a dancer moving to the music.
Show threadsanpanMar 10
@ewen The camera as an extension of yourself is a level of professionalism that only comes with a lot of dedication (and talent). I lacked the time and knowledge to make the camera produce photos that looked the way I wanted and instead joined the ranks of those taking photos a their cats. 😊
edit: which isn‘t to say that this doesn‘t also produce beautiful photos and requires talent. I sure do love looking at all those cats of mastodon!
Show threadEwen Bell 📸Mar 10
@sanpan

It's fascinating to think about how mobile phones have changed how everyday people remember their lives. How one great picture on that phone can preserve the moment. We didn't have that option when I was a young fella :)

I would also take photos of my cats, even on film! I haven't had a cat for a while, but one day I hope to again.

https://ewster.blogspot.com/2012/01/farewell-to-my-best-friend.html
Farewell to my best friend

It's wrong to have favourites but truth is we always do. Twyzle was a rescue cat from the RSPCA and it was girlfriends idea at the time t...

Show threadsanpanMar 10
@ewen Phones and near unlimited disk-space! It´s so hard to select which photo to keep. 😃
You had two beautiful cats! I dread the time, when our two girls won´t be around anymore. I hope you find another cat/soulmate when the time is right.