Astro

This month’s winner is an astrophotography and landscape photography masterclass. The night sky is beautifully defined and the Milky Way is centred, hanging directly above the lone tree in the foreground. Tractor lines in the wheat field lead the eye directly towards the tree, which stands out as the only foreground object to protrude above the horizon. Truly an image that’s out of this world!

It’s not often Durdle Door plays second fiddle, but the Milky Way core hangs prominently above the natural limestone arch and immediately draws the viewer’s eye. A three-minute exposure was used to capture the foreground, while ten 25-second exposures form the sky. We like how both the foreground and background have been subtly edited to create a natural-looking image.

This image of the Old Man of Storr on the Isle of Skye is quite simply stunning. We like how the Milky Way rises directly between the rocks like a celestial volcano. If you look hard enough you can see a small figure between the rocks, which emphasises the sense of scale.

This photo of the moon was captured using a Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 and a 1.4x teleconvertor. Movement was minimized by securing the camera on a tripod and using mirror-up mode, resulting in a perfectly crisp shot. It was processed in Lightroom, where a graduated filter was used to darken the left side of the frame to produce an attractive black to blue gradient.

Interesting foreground subjects are a great way to make astro images really stand out and this five-shot stack of a derelict bus is a superb example. Permission was obtained to shoot at the location and a star tracker was used to capture the magnificent Milky Way behind. Remarkably, the bus’s windows were painstakingly light painted to create the illusion of an illuminated interior.

This image of the Milky Way arching above the NOEMA observatory on the Pic de Bure is part of a 360x180 panorama, comprising 21 images. Not only was it captured after a 1000m climb up the mountain, but it was a race against time to capture the sequence of images before the antennae rotated. We like how the Milky Way appears to be shooting out from the closest antenna.

This image was photographed in a remote part of Utah, providing a striking unobscured view of the Milky Way. The arching foreground mirrors the arching galaxy and the tiny figure plays a huge role by emphasising the scale of the night sky.

While this image was photographed using a Nikon D810, the church was light painted using a drone. The subject is located within Canada’s Saskatchewan province and is proof that not every astro image needs to include star trails or the Milky Way. The stars are sharp and beautifully defined, but don’t detract from the stunning subject.

Josef dodged rattlesnakes to capture this image of the Milky Way behind a Joshua tree – a long-term photography-related dream. The foreground was captured during the lighter conditions of blue hour and blended seamlessly with a 16-image stack of the night sky in post-production. We love the tasteful colour grading of the night sky and the perfectly-balanced composition.

This incredible photograph is of the Andromeda Galaxy and was captured below the dark skies above Kielder Water & Forest Park. The magnification was achieved by attaching a Nikon D800E to a Skywatcher telescope and a Celestron Advanced VX Equatorial Mount was used to polar align the setup and track the stars to allow for a two-minute exposure. The final image is a combination of 59 shots.

This incredible photo of the Milky Way was taken from a vantage point on Snowdon. We love the inclusion of the cloud inversion and the subtle editing that makes this whole image appear very natural. Remarkably, this was a first attempt at a Milky Way panorama.

This is a great image of the moon that’s beautifully crisp – we’re particularly impressed by the sharpness considering the camera was handheld. The silhouette of a passing plane adds additional interest and is an unusual, fleeting moment captured. A great image!

The northern lights are one of the most popular low-light subjects and Norway’s Lofoten is one of the best places to see them. The glassy reflection of this striking aurora makes it doubly impressive and the sky is crystal clear too!

This mesmerizing spiral of star trails was captured in Jordan’s Wadi Rum. Few photography techniques require more dedication and it took five hours and a whopping 576 images to form this incredible composite. If that wasn’t enough, plane trails were painstakingly removed in post. The rock formation provides a stunning foreground and is subtly illuminated to form a natural aesthetic.

This striking image of a super moon was captured from southern England’s Jurassic Coast. The deep blues from the sea and sky complement the golden satellite and its reflection. This is a unique take on lunar photography and a great image.