My photo club intended to have an outing to photograph the Milky Way in September, and I signed up right away. Unfortunately, for COVID-related reasons that I won't go into here, it could not take place. But one of my friends suggested that some of us could go ahead anyway, and do it as a personal outing. So, that's what happened. Astrophotography is one of those types of photography that I've always admired. It's long been in the back of my mind as something I'd like to try for myself. Those who are very serious about it buy specialized equipment and travel to far away places. But for more modest ambitions it can be done locally using ordinary gear. Photographing the Milky Way is a good first step. Photographing star trails or capturing close-up shots of astronautical bodies are other possibilities. In the end, three of us went. Pakenham had been scouted for the club outing, and we chose to go there. That venue had the advantage of being within an hour's drive of Ottawa. It also featured a nice flat rock extending into the Mississippi river where we could set up. The rock was very large and we had lots of room so that we could socially distance. My main goal for the outing was to come away with one good photograph of the Milky Way, and I think I did that. Actually, I have a few decent shots. My other goal was to experiment with technique, and I did that too. Having done it once, I would definitely go again. My appetite for this type of photography has been whetted.
