When you're on holiday in Tenerife, it pays to explore outside of the coastal resorts as there are some amazing sights to be seen away from the bright lights.
During our latest stay on the island in February 2025 I made a resolution to do some serious astrophotograhy in one of the best dark skies locations in the world - the Teide National Park.
At an elevation of over 2,000 metres and far away from the coastal light pollution, the night skies above the park have to be seen to be believed.
So just before sunset I set off in the hire car for the hour long drive from our hotel up to one of the iconic views in the national park, taking in the perfect cone of the Mount Teide volcano and the famous Roque Cinchado silhouetted against the darkening sky.
With no moon to lighten the sky this was the perfect time for a long time lapse shoot, featuring the thousands of stars and contellations, all wheeling aound the north star, Polaris, just to the right ofthe volcano.
So I stood there in the cold while my camera clicked away for four hours, staring upwards and marvelling at the enormity of God's creation.
Mind you, just after midnight, at the end of my four hour vigil, I was glad to get back in the car and get the heater on for the drive back down.
Filename - tenerife stars timelapse 01
Camera - Canon EOS6DMK2
Lens - 17-40mm zoom @ 17mm
Exposure (start of sequence) - 15 secs @ f/4, ISO6400
Exposure (end of sequence) - 15 secs @ f/4, ISO6400
Filters - None.
Shooting interval - 15 seconds
Location - Teide National Park, Tenerife, Canary Islands
Music - Allégro - Emmit Fenn
This clip - HD 720p, 30fps (4K and 1080p HD formats also available)
Clip duration - 32 seconds
All content copyright © Howard Litherland 2009-2024 unless otherwise stated.