Cleveland National Forest is just a short drive east from San Diego, California.  That short drive gets you into some amazing dark night skies and is a great place to see a shooting star.  Read more to see how the image happened.

Cleveland National Forest

Cleveland National Forest is just about an hour’s drive East of San Diego, CA up in the mountains.  It is an awesome place for the adventurer wanting to escape the city and enjoy some nature.  It was designated in 1908 and named after former President Grover Cleveland.  This forest is also home to the Mount Laguna Observatory.  Therefore, it is a protected dark skies area and is great for star photography.  You can see another behind the scenes from Cleveland National Forest at  Night Sky 5.

Behind The Scenes

This image, titled “Shooting Star” was taken in the summer of 2017.  In late afternoon, these shadows were just dancing across the concrete walk way.  Composing a shot can be very difficult at night given the lack of light, but due to the light pollution in the back ground it was easy to see these three trees lined up by themselves.  Therefore it seemed like a great start.

Night photography generally requires long exposures with the camera due to the lack of light.  Therefore, the camera was attached to the tripod and made it easy to make small adjustments.  Then I was ready for take a shot.

During the exposure, I saw the the shooting star across the sky, and could not believe it.  I was very excited for the exposure to complete and check to see if it was captured in the camera.  You can imagine my joy when I saw the image and realized it was definitely caught in the image.

Thank you for visiting my site, and I hope you enjoy the image.

This photograph is in my shop HERE.

Shooting star in sky at night landscape photograph

This photograph contains the only shooting star I’ve ever photographed. It was taken in Cleveland National Forest facing almost due west looking toward San Diego, CA. It was a great night for shooting stars since nearby San Diego was covered with the marine layer and dampened the light pollution.

The Trip

It’s hard to imagine that this was anything other than an amazing adventure.  Being able to get out into the dark skies in Cleveland Forest is always exciting.  Capturing a shooting star in the process was just something that I will never forget. 

Things to think about before taking trips to see the stars at night. 

  • Remember, it is really dark and you have to be very careful with where you step.
  • Temperatures can drop significantly at night, so always be prepared.
  • Also take snacks and water, in case you get turned around.  It’s easy to have happen in the dark.
  • It’s a smart idea to travel with a friend and tell someone where you are going and when you are planing to return.
  • Stay Safe!

If night shots of the milky way are more exciting for you, then don’t miss my whole portfolio of night photography called Night Skies.

More Fine Art Photographs

Don’t forget to look at the images on my site in the galleries starting at: https://mjvphoto.com/the-art/.  Hopefully you find some of them inspirational for your own photography adventures, or maybe you find an image you want to call your own.