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Seize the Atlas, a well-respected useful resource for images tutorials and workshops, lately introduced the successful entries of its Milky Means Photographer of the Yr competitors. The 25 winners of this sixth annual version had been personally chosen by the location’s co-founder, Dan Zafra.
‘Dan Zafra is a good man doing superb issues for the group, and he conjures up me in my very own work and pushes my creativity and explorations past the norm. I have been fortunate to be chosen for the third yr in a row this time, and I am very grateful for that,’ winner Benjamin Barakat tells DPReview.
‘This chance has helped me in some ways in my very own profession and enterprise. I am now internet hosting excursions internationally, and that is one thing I made a decision to pursue full-time solely two years in the past. With out being chosen for the previous three years, I do not know if I might have had the identical publicity or private motivation to be the place I’m right now.’
Barakat’s successful picture wasn’t the one one based mostly in Socotra, an island of Yemen, situated within the Indian Ocean. When requested what was so particular about this distant location, he explains that ‘Socotra gives one of many darkest skies on planet Earth, and the biodiversity of flora and landscapes makes it a photographer’s paradise. In case you did not know, 70% of Socotra’s flora would not exist wherever else on this planet.’
A gallery with all of the successful pictures from the competitors might be seen on the Seize the Atlas web site. Zafra and crew additionally provide up a wide range of useful assets for each newbie {and professional} astrophotographers, in addition to workshops across the globe. Click on on for a number of the finest winners from this yr’s competitors.
‘The Bottle Tree Portal’ by Benjamin Barakat
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Location: Socotra, Yemen
Artist Assertion: Nights on the magical island of Socotra are unforgettable, particularly below the embrace of essentially the most alien-looking and delightful timber I’ve ever seen. Their gnarled and twisted trunks appeared to inform tales of historical instances whereas the blooming pink flowers added a contact of ethereal magnificence.
Nevertheless, what actually took my breath away was the darkness. It was as if somebody had flipped a swap and turned off all of the lights on the earth. The celebs shone so brightly that it felt like I may contact them. The horizon was so darkish that it seemed just like the zenith.
In that second, I felt small and insignificant, however extremely alive, linked to the primal forces of nature that formed this magical place over tens of millions of years.
Setting: Foreground: ISO 6400 | 5x 60 seconds | F2.4 / Sky: ISO 800 | 6 x 90 sec | F2.4
Digital camera Gear:
Canon EOS R Astro-modified
TTArtisan 11mm F2.8
Sunwayfoto T3640CM
iOptron Skyguider Professional
‘Winter’s Airglow’ by Larryn Rae
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Location: Southern Alps, New Zealand
Artist Assertion: This was a number of the craziest airglow I’ve ever seen! Airglow is when atoms get charged and excited within the higher ambiance by the solar and emit this glorious coloration and cloud-like sample.
This picture occurred by pure accident whereas I used to be ready for a good friend to reach at one other location. I assumed whereas ready that I might take some pictures at this lake on the best way, and as quickly as I had the primary picture on the display screen, I knew I used to be about to seize one thing fairly superb! An hour later, after scouting an excellent composition, I had my panorama within the bag. This can be a testomony to anticipating the sudden and to all the time taking a shot, even when it’s not your deliberate vacation spot!
Settings: ISO 6400 | 31 x 20 sec | F2 | picture panorama
Digital camera Gear:
Canon EOS 5D Mk III
Sigma ART 24mm F1.4
‘Cafayate Star Manufacturing facility’ by Gonzalo Javier Santile
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Location: Cafayate Salta, Argentina
Artist Assertion: To seize this shot, I arrived earlier than the blue hour and as quickly as the primary stars appeared, with some mild nonetheless shining on the panorama, I took the pictures for the foreground. After that, when it was utterly darkish, I shot the vertical pictures of the sky.
Because the Milky Means was already very low at the moment of the yr I needed to hurry as I solely had one likelihood to get the pictures of the sky as soon as it acquired darkish. I aligned my tracker and the motion started.
Within the picture, you may see the rock formations and ‘home windows’ of this space of Cafayate Desert often known as Las Ventanas (‘The Home windows’) and the small cacti which are the one vegetation right here. I used to be capable of seize the reddish colours of the nebulae and extra particulars within the night time sky due to the mix of a star tracker and an astro-modified digicam.
Settings: Foreground: 22mm | ISO 100 | 2 sec | F8 / Sky: 22mm | ISO 2500 | 43 sec | F2.8
Digital camera Gear:
Nikon D750 Astro-modified
Tamron 15-30mm F2.8
iOptron SkyGuider Professional
‘The Cactus Valley’ by Pablo Ruiz García
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Location: Atacama, Chile
Artist Assertion: It was my first journey photographing the Milky Means within the Southern Hemisphere. I selected the Atacama Desert, one of many coolest and most mind-blowing locations on the planet to expertise the night time sky.
Among the spots I used to be actually enthusiastic about capturing in my pictures had been the Gum Nebula and the Magellanic Clouds. It was the primary time I may {photograph} them as a result of we will’t see them up north.
The picture I’m sharing with you was taken within the Cactus Valley, a surprising space of the Atacama Desert the place it’s simple to compose pictures with the night time sky. I managed to incorporate each nebulae, together with the long-lasting cacti of the valley.
Settings: Foreground: 14mm| ISO 2500| 90 sec | F2.8 | focus stacking x3 / Sky: 14mm| ISO 1250 | 180 sec | F2.8 | tracked
Digital camera Gear:
Nikon Z6 A
Nikon Z 14-24mm F2.8
Rollei Gamma Mk II
‘The Eyes of the Universe’ by Mihail Minkov
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Location: Bulgaria
Artist Assertion: I’ve all the time questioned what the night time sky would seem like if we may see the 2 Milky Means arches from the winter and summer time aspect by aspect. That is virtually unimaginable, since they’re half of a complete and are seen at totally different instances of the day.
Nevertheless, this 360-degree time-blended panorama reveals us what they might seem like. The 2 arches of the Milky Means characterize one object within the starry sky, with a part of it seen in winter and a part of it in summer time. Subsequently, they’re referred to as the winter and summer time arches. The winter arch contains objects that we will observe from October to March, primarily related to the constellation Orion.
Alternatively, the summer time arch options the Milky Means core, seen from March to September, which is essentially the most attribute and luminous a part of the night time sky, representing the middle of our galaxy.
Settings: Foreground: ISO 3200 | 80 sec | F2.8 | 21 single exposures / Sky: ISO 640 | 180 sec | F2.8 | 9 single-tracked vertical exposures for every of the arcs (18 whole)
Digital camera Gear:
Sony a7 III Astro-modified
Tamron 17-28mm F2.8
iOptron SkyTracker Professional
Benro Tripod
Lens hotter
‘Alien Forest’ by Marcin Zając
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Location: Mono Lake, California
Artist Assertion: These unusual, cream-colored rock towers situated close to Mono Lake are referred to as tufas. They shaped when underwater springs which are wealthy in calcium blended with the waters of the lake, that are wealthy in carbonates. The ensuing response shaped limestone. Over time, the buildup of limestone shaped towers, and when the lake’s water stage dropped, the towers turned uncovered.
Settings: Foreground: ISO 100 | 30 sec | F11 / Sky: ISO 200 | 4 minutes | F1.4 | panorama
Digital camera Gear:
Nikon D810A
Sigma 40mm F1.4 Artwork
iOptron Skytracker Professional
‘Evening below the Baobab Bushes’ by Steffi Lieberman
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Artist Assertion: Astro panorama panorama from Madagascar. Right here you see the whole Milky Means arc over the imposing baobabs.
This picture means loads to me, and I can’t even start to inform you how tough it was to take it. From the highway circumstances to the armed safety guards defending you when you take pictures, all the pieces about it was an journey.
Settings: Foreground: ISO 800 | 20 seconds | F6.0 / Sky: ISO 1600 | 120 seconds | F2.8
Digital camera Gear:
Sony a7R III Astro-modified
Sony FE 12-24mm F2.8 GM
Rollei Lion Rock
‘The Cathedral Gentle Present’ by Roksolyana Hilevych
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Location: Tenerife, Spain
Artist Assertion: Typically it takes a little bit of luck. This was undoubtedly the most effective second I’ve ever had throughout a nighttime session; this solely occurs as soon as in a lifetime. Nevertheless, I actually hope to have the ability to see the fireball once more sometime!
It was the primary and solely time I noticed such a shiny meteor. It lit up all the pieces round it, making it appear to be daytime for just a few seconds. Fortunately, in the mean time it appeared, I used to be photographing the core of the Milky Means.
Proper after I completed capturing the Milky Means with a star tracker, I took a close-up shot of the tajinastes in full bloom. The picture additionally contains this specific mountain within the background that resembles a cathedral.
Settings: Foreground: ISO 1200 throughout Astronomical Twilight | 30 sec | F5.6 | 3 Focus-stacked pictures / Sky: ISO 400 | 200 sec | F2.8
Digital camera Gear: Canon EOS 5D Mark IV
Sigma 14-24mm F2.8 Artwork
Fotopro Sherpa Plus
Omegon Mount MiniTrack LX4
‘Celestial Protect’ by Iván Ferrero
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Location: Ávila, Spain
Artist Assertion: Profiting from a free night time with clear skies, I launched into a two-and-a-half-hour drive to succeed in Mironcillo, dwelling to this fortress perched at 4500 ft. This fortress is steeped in legends of forbidden love and parental restrictions, although its true origin stays unknown. The tough grime highway compelled me to desert my automobile and trek for about thirty minutes.
As soon as it acquired darkish, I captured a panoramic shot of the bottom earlier than monitoring the Milky Means as Orion took its place. Regardless of difficult climate circumstances, with biting chilly and powerful winds, the sky cooperated. I saved the tripod low to stop blurring and guarantee stability.
Modifying the sky concerned individually stacking the 40 panels in Sequator (two pictures per panel + 15 darkish frames), mixing the panorama utilizing PTGui and extracting data with Pix Perception. Lastly, I merged the ensuing sky with the bottom panorama utilizing Photoshop.
Settings: Foreground: ISO 1600 | 76 sec | F2.8 | 9-photo panorama / Sky: ISO 1600 | 30 sec | F2.2 | 4-row panorama
Digital camera Gear:
Sony a7R III
Sony a7S Astro-modified
Samyang 35mm F1.4
Sunwayfoto T3640 CM
Benro Polaris
‘Wind River Nights’ by Brandt Ryder
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Location: Wind River, USA
Artist Assertion: The Wind River Vary, not like the Tetons, is without doubt one of the hidden gems of Wyoming. This location had captured my creativeness for years, however I tended to draw back from it as a result of it’s infamous for having a number of the worst mosquitoes on the earth. No matter this, this previous June I lastly made the trek, and the journey was one I’ll bear in mind for a lifetime, bugs and all.
This picture was taken at a sheltered lake deep within the wilderness the place the reflections had been so pristine that it’s almost unimaginable to separate the sky from the earth. Recollections like this maintain an additional particular place in my coronary heart as I used to be capable of share this spectacular spot with my 7-year-old.
I can nonetheless hear her phrases ringing in my ears: ‘Daddy this should be essentially the most stunning place on earth.’ Sure, baby, it’s, it’s.
Settings: Floor: ISO 100 | 3.2 sec x 4 focus-stacked | F11 Sky and reflection: ISO 2000 | 13 seconds x 12 stacked for noise discount | F1.4
Digital camera Gear:
Sony a7 IV
Sony a7 III Astro-modified
Sony 24mm F1.4 GM
Gitzo Traveler tripod
‘Gigi Hiu Shining In The Darkish’ by Gary Bhaztara
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Location: Sumatra Island, Indonesia
Artist Assertion: The sharp-looking rocks on this seashore make this piece of shoreline one of the distinctive on the earth. Water has formed these rocks for tens of millions of years.
I’ve visited this breathtaking spot greater than 30 instances; now it simply appears like dwelling.
Gigi Hiu Seaside is situated in a rural space, south of Sumatra Island. When taking pictures at this location, I’ve to verify the tide circumstances are excellent as a result of the waves coming from the Indian Ocean might be massive and crash arduous in opposition to the coast, which might be harmful.
I believe this seashore is without doubt one of the most visited locations when photographers around the globe come to Indonesia to discover a darkish zone for night time taking pictures; there isn’t a mild air pollution right here.
Settings: Foreground: 16mm | ISO 100 | 1 sec x 4 frames focus-stacked | F22 Sky : ISO 2000 | 25 sec x 8 pictures stacked| F2.8
Digital camera Gear:
Sony a7R III
Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM
‘The La Palma Astroexperience’ by Jakob Sahner
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Location: La Palma, Spain
Artist Assertion: La Palma and the Canary Islands are perfect for astrophotography because of the commerce wind clouds that sit at round 1000 meters. Being above these clouds makes it clear sufficient for capturing pictures, offered there isn’t a haze or excessive cirrus clouds.
On the primary night time of the journey, I used to be exhausted from an extended journey and no sleep, however I couldn’t resist going out to seize the clear sky, because it was the primary time I’ve skilled this a lot cloud cowl. Nevertheless, I might warning that exploring the terrain at night time might be harmful and may solely be achieved by these aware of it.
Settings: Foreground: 6-panel panorama with 30-second single exposures / Sky: 9-panel panorama with 8×30 seconds per panel in RGB and three further pictures with 15×30 seconds for H-Alpha across the Milky Means core | All pictures had been taken at ISO 2000 and F1.4.
Digital camera Gear:
Sony a7S Astro-modified
Sigma 40mm F1.4 Artwork
SkyWatcher Star Adventurer 2i
Rollei C6i
Distant Shutter Launch
‘Lut Glow’ by Isabella Tabacchi
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Location: Lut Desert, Iran
Artist Assertion: This can be a rock formation within the Lut desert in Iran below the Milky Means. We spent the entire night time, from sundown to dawn, taking pictures of that unbelievable sky. I used to be capable of seize a inexperienced airglow below the Milky Means, behind the spectacular rock formations within the warmest place on Earth.
Settings: Foreground: ISO 3200 | 299 sec | F3.5 | focus-stacked / Sky: ISO 3200| 23 seconds | F3.5
Digital camera Gear:
Hasselblad X1D II
XCD 30 mm
Gitzo Mountaineer S1 tripod
The Surroundings I Needed to See’ by Mitsuhiro Okabe
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Location: Yamagashi Prefecture, Japan
Artist Assertion: Mount Fuji, Japan’s iconic image, dominates the backdrop of this picture, set throughout cherry blossom season. Amidst the panorama, you may see a sacred temple devoted to honoring the spirits of the departed. And there, in opposition to the darkish canvas of the night time sky, the ethereal great thing about the Milky Means got here into view.
Settings: Foreground: 14mm | ISO 2000 | 30 sec x 20 pictures to cut back noise | F7.1 / Sky: 14mm | ISO 500 | 20 sec x 40 pictures | F5
Digital camera Gear:
Sony a7R III
Sigma 14-24mm F2.8 Artwork
Okay&F Idea D255C1
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