Trying to capture the Milky Way over Mt Rainier from Reflection lake is a frustrating task to say the least. Timing is half the battle; the other half, pure luck. Standing on the freezing bank in layer upon layer of clothing, hour after hour awake, the fleeting moment of morning's astrological twilight begins and fog starts to rise from the lake’s surface. The shutter opened for what felt like an eternity and captured a single moment along the timeline of the cosmos.

The goal of this composition was to inspire a feeling of human significance in the universe albeit infinitesimally small, by juxtaposing the massive difference in size between a tuft of grass, Mount Rainier, and the entire Milky Way galaxy by framing each to occupy an equal amount of space and proportion in the frame.

This is a single exposure. Color and exposure balanced in Photoshop, sharpening and noise reduction done with Google Nik "Dfine" and "Sharpener Pro".

Nikon D7100
Tokina AT-X 116 PRO DX II 11-16mm F2.8
11mm
F/2.8
ISO 1600
20 seconds