Nightscapes and Astrophotography

Taken on Christmas Day I am sure it is the beginnings of an aurora in the background. When I left the island that night people were lined up along the causeway with cameras on tripods, and that is what they were trying to capture.

The moon entering its last quarter phase. The title of the image is of course inspired by the famous speech made by Neil Armstrong as he first stepped onto the surface of the moon in 1969.

The moon in its waning crescent phase.

Trying to beat the tide I managed to get some shots of the milky way on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne

Taken from my favorite view in Northumberland, Corbys Crags. This is an image I have had in mind for a long while. I didn’t realise that there would be so much light pollution.

I was very conscious that I had very little time photographing on the island with the tide on its way in. This is one of three images I made that night.

Taken with my widest lens and lying on the ground. This is the section of the milky way that stretched over my head, a truly awesome sight indeed

Set just down from the Golf Club at Bamburgh this Lighthouse always looks as if it has been surprised.

What a sight, Mars, the Milky Way and the Andromeda or M31 Galaxy all above Lindisfarne Castle.

For me Lindisfarne is one of the best locations in the North East for Astrophotography having very little light pollution.

Lindisfarne Island is steeped in history and the staithes in the foreground were for the piers where lime was loaded onto boats. The old lime kilns are located just beyond the castle.

The moon in its Waxing Crescent Phase

The moon passing through its waning crescent phase. Again the title is taken from Neil Armstrongs famous speech

A Snow Moon is the traditional name for the full moon of February. Taking this picture presented some serious problems as it was taken during Storm Dudley and 60+ winds.

A full moon over Lindisfarne creates some amazing lighting and extremely strong shadows.

Not a great night for astrophotography due to the strong moonlight, but in this case, it creates a strong nightscape image where only the brightest stars (in this case Orion) can be seen.

With the moon casting a strong light on the landscape only the brightest constellations were visible and rather fortuitously Orion was positioned over the top of the ruin of Dunstanburgh Castle.

Blowing a gale and just before moonrise, I took this shot of Alnmouth illuminated under a starry sky.

A view taken from the Victorian Bathing House at Howick. Looking down at what is known as the rumbling Kern (named because of the noise it makes when waves hit it). The orange glow on the horizon is light pollution from Alnmouth and Longhoughton.

The iconic boat sheds of Lindisfarne under starry skies. The orange glow is Bamburgh Castle in the Distance.

Just to the south of the Scottish Border lies the ancient stone circle of the Duddo five stones. Fantastic views of the Cheviots and the Lammermuir hills as well as the milky way. The yellow glow on the horizon is Wooler on the left and Coldstream on the right.

Taken during the perseids meteor shower and I was super happy to catch one..

What once was a bathing house attached to Howick Hall is now a cottage that can be rented out. It provides a perfect foil to the beautiful night skies dominated by the Great Bear constellation.

Taken from the mouth of the burn on Enbleton Beach. I used the massive piece of driftwood as foreground interest and as it was January had the constellation of Orion above the castle distant.

The burn that snakes past the golf club at Embleton was silted up and as such was completely full and still giving mirror-like reflections of the stars.

The tree made famous by Robin Hood Prince of Thieves. Sitting in a natural depression in the whinsill rock it makes a striking composition especially when the tree is nestled under the handle of the plough.

Fun Fact, did you know that there are between 100 - 400 billion stars in the Milky Way alone. It is estimated that there are two trillion galaxies in the universe which means there are. . . . . hang on I cant do that kind of maths, but it makes your mind boggle just thinking about it.

Four for the price of one. From the top of the image, the Flame Nebula and the Horse Head Nebula next to it, further down you have Trapezium, and finally the Great Orion Nebula which lies a mere 1500 light years from us. When you look at the constellation of Orion and its belt the Great Orion Nebula appears as just a faint smudge but with a telephoto lens, telescope or even binoculars you can see it in all its glory.