David Schmidt Photography

David Schmidt Photography Forum for sharing my photographic adventures

Fall colors in the Mount Hood National Forest...
12/19/2025

Fall colors in the Mount Hood National Forest...

Once in a while, everyone should take a break from social media. For me, that turned into the past three months—but it f...
12/17/2025

Once in a while, everyone should take a break from social media. For me, that turned into the past three months—but it felt like a good time to check back in.

This was my last Milky Way shoot of the year: an incredibly calm, peaceful night in the Mount Hood National Forest, shared with two former Tektronix coworkers, Jose Navarro and Rocky. Clear skies, no wind, and ideal conditions to wrap up the season.

While driving with my sister a few days ago, we stopped at a spot where veins of quartz cut through otherwise ordinary r...
09/09/2025

While driving with my sister a few days ago, we stopped at a spot where veins of quartz cut through otherwise ordinary rock. As late-afternoon thunderstorms gathered over Mount Hood, I noticed a striking composition: two forms of electrical energy—human, in the high-voltage transmission lines, and divine, in the building storm. I found this monochrome edit more compelling than the original color image.

Rather than another Milky Way image, this month I focused on star trails over Mount Hood from the White River area. This...
08/27/2025

Rather than another Milky Way image, this month I focused on star trails over Mount Hood from the White River area. This composite combines 106 frames taken over about 38 minutes, merged in StarStax to reveal the circular paths of the stars around Polaris, the North Star.

The effect comes from Earth’s rotation—Polaris sits nearly above the North Pole, so as the planet spins, the rest of the stars appear to revolve around it.

A blue hour foreground was blended in Photoshop to complete the final image.

Another sunset shot from my evening at Oregon's Seal Rock State Recreation Site...
08/15/2025

Another sunset shot from my evening at Oregon's Seal Rock State Recreation Site...

Instead of my typical wide-angle night shot with an interesting foreground landscape, I decided to go for a tight shot o...
08/12/2025

Instead of my typical wide-angle night shot with an interesting foreground landscape, I decided to go for a tight shot of the densest part of our Milky Way galaxy.

One of the most intriguing aspects of this shot is the two very dense star regions, separated by what appears to be a dark, nearly starless band between them. This dark band is known as The Great Rift, and it’s caused by interstellar clouds of cosmic dust that significantly obscure the center and most radial sectors of the Milky Way galaxy from Earth's perspective. In reality, we on Earth cannot even see a large portion of the Milky Way’s dense galactic center.

Another fascinating feature—though you’ll need to use your imagination to spot it (just right of center)—is The Dark Horse Nebula. This large dark nebula obscures part of the upper central bulge of the Milky Way and, from Earth’s perspective, resembles the side silhouette of a horse. It appears dark compared to the background glow of stars and star clouds.

If you find the night sky as fascinating as I do, I hope these two details spark your interest!

Sunset at Oregon's Seal Rock State Recreation Site...
08/08/2025

Sunset at Oregon's Seal Rock State Recreation Site...

Last light on Mount Hood, from Trillium Lake...
08/05/2025

Last light on Mount Hood, from Trillium Lake...

Late afternoon shadows over the Grand Canyon...
07/29/2025

Late afternoon shadows over the Grand Canyon...

Lake Powell (Arizona), from the Wahweap Overlook.
07/23/2025

Lake Powell (Arizona), from the Wahweap Overlook.

Another image from my Bandon Beach trip last May. That evening, most of the photographers from a nearby workshop had the...
07/17/2025

Another image from my Bandon Beach trip last May. That evening, most of the photographers from a nearby workshop had their lenses trained on Wizard’s Hat. I wandered just a bit farther and found a quieter vantage point, where the sun was setting over these lesser-known sea stacks.

During our Northern Arizona trip in May, we spent two days exploring the South Rim of the Grand Canyon—from Desert View ...
07/15/2025

During our Northern Arizona trip in May, we spent two days exploring the South Rim of the Grand Canyon—from Desert View in the east to Hermit’s Rest in the west. This black-and-white photo was taken on our first day, as storm clouds rolled over the canyon near the Desert View Watchtower.

Tragically, this week a wildfire on the North Rim has destroyed dozens of structures, including the historic Grand Canyon Lodge and a vital water treatment facility. The North Rim is now closed and likely won’t reopen anytime soon.

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