Living in Southern California, I am lucky enough to be able to drive a short distance to find dark skies. Now, in California, a short drive is a matter of perspective. From where I live, it is a short three hours to get to Joshua Tree National Park. Now, eighty percent of the drive is on the freeway, and if timed right, you can make decent speed.
Joshua Tree National Park is a special place. It has two distinct desert ecosystems, where the Mojave and the Colorado join. A variety of plants and animals can be found, but what draws me to the park is the dark skies. From April to September, during a New Moon weekend, you will find Milky Way photographers scattered all over the park.
This photo was taken on the second night of chasing the Milky Way across the night sky. We knew that there was a storm on the horizon, but every app we had told us that we had a few more hours of shooting before the storm ever got close enough to shut down our night of photography. Since we had captured Skull Rock and Arch Rock the night before, we looked for a foreground that reflected the landscape—a classic Joshua Tree scene: rocks, desert sand, and a few Joshua trees.
Around 2am, we set up next to Cap Rock, hoping to capture the Milky Way as it drifted across the night sky, with all the rocks, boulders, and Joshua trees in the foreground. After taking a few photos to make sure I liked the composition of my shot, I noticed to my north a few lightning strikes, but in the darkness, you don’t notice the path of the storm.
After taking this long exposure, I did a quick check to see what I had captured and saw the approaching storm was a lot closer than we thought. We grabbed our camera gear and ran for our vehicles. A few seconds later, the rain unleashed, and our night was done. Well, we still had to make it back to the campground and our tents. What a night—but I just love this image, with the remnants of a lightning strike lighting up the night sky.
