Show Notes for the Billy Newman Photo Podcast

 

Episode Summary

Billy shares reflections on creative workflows in photography, discusses Comet NEOWISE and stargazing in rural Oregon, recounts recent outdoor camping and photo expeditions, and dives into technical thoughts on camera equipment and the creative process. He also touches on issues like light pollution, the evolving nature of digital cameras, and the unique challenges of capturing stunning night sky photography.

Chapter Guide

Timestamp
Chapter Title
Segment Highlights




00:00
Opening & Creative Reflections
Creative challenge in photography, blending business and creative growth, brief show intro with music.


01:30
Website & Book Plugs
Directing listeners to BillyNewmanPhoto.com and his photo books on Amazon; themes — film, desert, surrealism.


02:30
Camping & Comet NEOWISE
Recounts July camping in Eastern Oregon seeking views and photographs of NEOWISE; context of earlier “great comets.”


06:30
Childhood Astronomy Memories
Reminiscing about viewing comets Hale-Bopp and Hyakutake in the 1990s; missing Halley’s comet and thoughts on astronomical cycles.


08:30
NEOWISE Observing Details
Discusses best locations, challenges of light pollution and haze near sea level, and the difference clear mountain skies make.


10:30
Field Photography and Stargazing
Describes equipment and techniques: using binoculars, manual focus, and camera settings, plus tips for night sky shots in the John Day River valley.


15:00
Outdoor Adventure Recap
Details on the travel route, dispersed camping, Oregon terrain, rivers, geology, and solitude near the John Day River.


19:00
More on NEOWISE and Night Shots
Observing NEOWISE in prime conditions, handling photography challenges, recording images till late night, astronomical observation techniques.


22:30
Tech Talk: Cameras & Workflow
Reflections on camera gear — Sony a7R, its quirks, “chimping,” differences with older cameras, and latest high-speed image technology.


27:00
Outro & Calls to Action
Directs to BillyNewmanPhoto.com and Patreon, thanks listeners, previews new content, and encourages support.





 

Support the Podcast

If you enjoyed this episode, visit billynewmanphoto.com/support or patreon.com/billynewmanphoto to participate in the value-for-value model and find ways to help keep the podcast going. Check out new blog posts, photo books, and more behind-the-scenes content.

 

View links at wnp.app

Explore outdoor photography, technical media projects, stories from backcountry expeditions, and insights from the creative process with Billy Newman—photographer, author, and podcast producer. Connect, learn, and follow along.

Quick Links:Portfolio: billynewmanphoto.com/photographsStudio: wphoto.coPosts: billynewmanphoto.com/postsPhoto Books: billynewmanphoto.com/booksAmazon Author: amazon.com/author/billynewman

Podcast Episodes:Billy Newman Photo Podcast: Listen hereRelax with Rain: Listen hereNight Sky Podcast: Listen here

Connect With Billy Newman:Email: billy@billynewmanphoto.comInstagram: @billynewmanLinkedIn: billynewmanphotoX (Twitter): @billynewman

Recommended Books:Landscape Portfolio (PDF): DownloadBlack and White Photography (PDF): DownloadWorking With Film (PDF): DownloadWestern Overland Excursion (PDF): Download

Support the Podcast & Photography Projects:Make a sustaining financial donation: Visit Support Page

Podcast Forward:The Billy Newman Photo Podcast blends real-world outdoor adventure, technical insight, and practical photography tips.

[MUSIC] Hello and thank you very much for listening to this episode of the Billy Newman photo podcast. I hear different industries kind of talk about what a good day of work is or how that is to kind of get out and get what you need done. And just as like a creative system, it's sort of tough in photography. There's a lot of the entrepreneurial and sort of business related stuff of how do you get paid and how do you operate in a business, how do you function as a photographer sort of a thing. But still outside of that you need to do something nourishing in the system of creativity where you're kind of gaining new ideas and putting new materials together and sort of figuring out a way to make a union of something new with media and with something visual, especially as fast as technology is moving forward. It's definitely an interesting vector kind of using the progression of technology and artistic creativity to try and make new pieces of media to put out. And that's what I really like about new media as it goes. So it's kind of interesting. I'm kind of thinking about the way of making pieces of media and new media elements and working with photographs and stuff. But it's something that I've been really interested for a long time. [MUSIC] You can see more of my work at BillyNewmanPhoto.com. You can check out some of my photo books on Amazon. I think you can look up Billy Newman under the authors section there and see some of the photo books on film, on the desert, on surrealism, on camping. Some cool stuff over there. And I wanted to jump into a couple of the things I've been doing through the month of July and some of the outdoor camping and travel stuff I've been up to. I was going to run down some of that in this podcast today. I wanted to talk about a trip I did out toward Eastern Oregon, I think like last, or what was a week before last is when I was out in this area. And I was trying to get some good observations in for Comet NeoWise. I'm not sure if any of you guys got to check that out while it was in its prime viewing section there. I think that was why we had the new moon before it switched over to being a gibbous moon or a nearly full moon like it's been the last week or so. But I think, what was it, around the 15th through the 25th or so of July, there were some pretty good observations to be made of Comet NeoWise. I guess after reading about it a little bit, it's not considered a great comet, like HaleBopp was, or I think it was Hayataki in 1996. We haven't had a great comet in a long time. I've ever seen those when I was a kid though, and that was pretty cool. Watching HaleBopp come through for, it seemed like three months or something. You were just looking at that in the low corners of the Northwestern and Western skies. It was cruising across the skyline there. I remember that still from third, fourth grade when it was coming through. And I also remember the year before that, when straight up in the sky at night, for it was only a week or so. I was a kid, but I remember for that week, you could see a real bright two-tailed comet that was going through. I think, I can't remember how to pronounce it, I think it's Hayataki or, I think it's some Japanese name, I'm pretty sure. But that was a really cool one. That one I still remember really clearly. I was only like, I don't know, seven or something when that, when that comet came through, but I really appreciate getting to make some observations. So that one, when I was a kid, I missed Haley's comet though, back in what, '87, I think was the last one it came through. And I probably will be the few years or that, that decade or two of age range that doesn't get to see Haley's comet in their lifetime. So I think I was born in '88, of course. So if I make it past a hundred, maybe I'll see it. What is it? Maybe like 80 something years. So it's probably not going to come back around until, I think it's like the 2070s or 2080s that I'd have to make it to, for to see Haley's comet again. It'd be fun, but I don't know, maybe we'll see how future, how the, you know, the future is at that time. But it was really cool to get to see comet Neowise. It was just a little below what would be the legs and feet of Ursa Major, the Big Dipper or like the Big Bear as it would kind of be observed. But if you kind of look at the Dipper part that we're all mostly familiar with, if you kind of consider Ursa Major, the larger bear constellation that it's structured on, if you kind of look down below the Dipper is where I was able to make my observations, the comet Neowise. And over