April Astrophotography Adventures in Dorset 2024
On my only night adventure of April, I enjoyed an all-night shoot along the coast of Kimmeridge Bay in Dorset. My first image of this night was this star trail composition while awaiting the tide to drop and allow access to the waterfall, which was my main target for the night.
Once the tide had dropped, I was able to reach this striking waterfall location on the far side of Kimmeridge Bay, and felt it was well worth the wait. I really enjoyed capturing this composition, showcasing the rarely photographed constellation of Leo as it dropped down onto the western horizon. This image was captured with a vertical panorama of two images, then stitched together to create the foreground at ISO 6400, 60 seconds, f/2.8. Additionally, a second duplicate exposure was taken for the sky detail at ISO 6400, 20 seconds, f/2.8. I also applied the star glow filter to enhance the constellation of Leo.
For my final composition, I searched along the foreshore for any interesting foreground features and found this intriguing dark rock with bright white stripes, which caught my eye. You can just about see the Milky Way peeking and the constellation of Scorpius poking over the headland. The bay is truly picturesque and might warrant a revisit for a Milky Way-focused shoot when it is visible at a more reasonable time. The settings for this image were typical for me - the sky was captured at ISO 6400, f/2.8, 20 seconds at 24mm, while the foreground was captured with the same settings but with an exposure of 1 minute.
I have also just published a YouTube video from that night, which you can view here: https://youtu.be/gWmY_r4r8LE
An Astrophotography Adventure at Ladram Bay, Devon
My final shoot of March involved taking a local trip to Ladram Bay. My plan was to capture star trails, capture some northerly composition and generally make the most of a rare clear sky condition that fell on a work night with these fantastic rock stacks. A few of my favourite captures from the shoot.
Chasing Aurora: Adventures in Astrophotography on Bodmin Moor
My second astrophotography trip of 2024 was an early March adventure to Bodmin Moor. It proved to be a night of frustration in part. There was a forecast of heightened Aurora activity, with cloud cover expected to clear as darkness fell. My chosen location on Bodmin was the Cheesewrings - a part of the moors I know well and have many fond memories of. I arrived as night fell, but the clouds didn't dissipate as forecasted, despite the aurora apps on my phone pinging with alerts. I could see hints of red aurora through the breaks in the clouds, teasing about what could have been. Eventually, the clouds did clear, allowing for some compositions of the Cheesewrings and the general moorland, but unfortunately, the aurora had faded away. Nonetheless, it's always a treat to be under the stars, so even though the weather didn't cooperate as hoped, I was still pleased to have ventured out!
Aurora peaking through the clouds.
Orion above the Cheeswrings.
First Astrophotography Trip of 2024
My first shoot of 2024 took place at Budleigh Salterton on the south Devon coast. It was an after-work January dash to make the most of the few hours of clear skies and take advantage of the dark evening. I captured two compositions featuring the constellation of Orion and the picture-perfect nature reserve of Budleigh. This is my favourite from the night. A great way to start the working week!
A tribute to Alyn Wallace
This March witnessed the sorrowful passing of astrophotographer Alyn Wallace. I initially connected with Alyn in 2018 via Instagram, and since then, I've cherished staying in touch through social media and following his YouTube channel for inspiration and motivation in my own photography journey. His monthly series, "What's in the Night Skies," became a cornerstone of my astro planning routine, and Alyn's YouTube channel was both entertaining with his astro adventures and educational on a personal level.
His dedication to connecting with people and supporting the astro community through his products and educational content was truly inspiring. Although I wasn't closely acquainted with Alyn, his passing has had a profound impact on me, as it has on many others. While I find it difficult to find the words to pay a fitting tribute to Alyn, I simply want to express my gratitude to him for the inspiration and positive energy he shared.
Below, I've included some of my favorite images captured by Alyn, along with links to his websites for those interested in learning more about this remarkable individual.
Youtube Channel
Instagram
Website
Last Astrophotography Trip of 2023
The latter part of the year afforded me only one chance for astrophotography, but what an incredible trip it turned out to be! Venturing into North Devon, I was treated to moonless skies, a spectacular moonrise, and even a display of the Northern Lights, alongside a wonderful catch-up with a photography friend.
My initial composition of the night captured this viewpoint overlooking Broardsand Bay, which I had scouted weeks earlier during a day trip to this coastal area. The moon was expected to rise, giving me a brief window of moonless, dark skies. I aimed to photograph this scene with Orion ascending to the top right. Although the alignment wasn't perfect, I'm still pleased with the outcome of this image.
Moments later, a bank of cloud began to roll over the scene. Just on cue, the moon rose, creating this beautiful moonlit scene.
I then wandered to the car and took the short drive to Sandy Cove. By the time I arrived, the moon was climbing high and casting beautiful light over the scene. I decided to attempt a star trail capture while waiting to see if any Northern Lights activity would occur.
The clouds ebbed and flowed throughout the night, adding intriguing and varied conditions. This image is actually a still from a timelapse I was running simultaneously.
At last, the clouds parted, and the Aurora graced us with its presence! The moon's intensity subdued some of the sky's details, yet I find the subtlety of the aurora and the beautiful sidelight on the scene rather captivating.
The concluding image of the night captured in my lens showcased a delicate blend of a faint Aurora alongside Ursa Major, creating a starry background. It served as a fitting farewell to 2023!
September Astrophotography 2023
Traditionally, September is the busiest time of the year for me relating to my maths teaching. So, photography often takes a back foot. However, this month, I managed two exciting trips.
The first shoot involved camping for the first time on Dartmoor with my brother Ryan. I have spent many nights enjoying Dartmoor but have never slept on Dartmoor previously. We hiked from Meldon Reservoir to one of the remotest tors on Dartmoor - Fur Tor. After setting up camp, I took a few images. The moon was bright, casting some light on the scene. I took a star trail and a composition featuring Ursa Major.
Fur Tor - Dartmoor
Fur Tor - Dartmoor
My second shoot of September was a real adventure and one of my favourite trips of the year. I left home at 1 a.m. to explore the coastline between Sidmouth & Ladram Bay on the South Coast of Devon. This part of the coast is only accessible at low tide, and the rocky terrain made for an exciting scramble along the coast. It was worth it to discover some fantastic rock stacks, caves and rocky bays to feature in my photographs.
August Astrophotography 2023
I didn’t venture on any shoots through June & July, but August involved an exciting trip to Peru and Dartmoor. I spent two weeks exploring Peru with Cait; four of those days involved walking the Inca trail and two days in the Amazon Jungle, where we experienced the clear skies of the southern hemisphere. Here are a few of my favourite astro pictures from Peru.
Camp location for night one of the Inca Trail.
Camp location for the second night of the Inca trail.
Overhead Milkyway Core.
Amazon Jungle.
Eco Lodge - Amazon Jungle
Eco Lodge Amazon Jungle.
A few days after Peru, I decided to spend a few hours on Dartmoor around the Belston Area to ease the holiday blues. Skies were clear, with the Milky Way looking good to the south. I visited a stone circle and explored a few compositions around the Rocky Tors.
Belstone Stone Circle
Belstone Stone Circle.
Belstone tor
Belstone Tor
Belstone Tor
May Astrophotography 2023
I experienced a magical shoot in mid-May at Cox/Staple Tor. I drove down at dusk and was initially concerned about the mist that appeared to be lingering around the country lanes as I headed to the car park. Once I had walked up to the Tor and my shooting location, the mist had dropped into the dip between Cox and Staple Tor, forming the most amazing cloud inversion.
I knew the conditions could change rapidly, so despite it not being fully dark, I captured my first composition featuring the inversion, myself, and the brightest stars fighting the dwindling twilight.
Cox Tor looking over towards Great Mist Tor.
Shortly after I took this image, thick fog engulfed the tor, and I wondered if that was the end of the night shoot. Thankfully it settled down again, and I visited my second location as the darkness of night arrived. This view looks towards Bodmin, and you can see Brent Tor pocking out from the fog. Venus shined brilliantly bright, making a striking feature to the image.
Venus & Brent Tor as seen from Cox Tor.
Person in the scape to add perspective.
Conditions like this, don’t happen often on Dartmoor so I was determined to create as many compositions as possible. So I walked across to Great Staple Tor and created these three additional composition before calling it a night.
May continued to deliver some stunning dark, clear skies. My location for this shoot took me to Dartmoor's Bowen's Nose. This night's forecast hinted at a chance of Aurora, so I made a few north-facing compositions to try my luck. The Aurora didn't pay a visit, but it was a pleasant night.
My final May shoot took me to Bude, where I met up with a few other astrophotographers to capture some coastal scenes. The moon was up for part of the night, splashing wonderful light over the landscape. I did some star trails and worked to feature the coastal flowers scattered across the coastline. It was a fantastic night to end my May astrophotography adventures!
April Astrophotography 2023
The months of February and March were bleak for my astrophotography. They were opportunities, but commitments prevented me from making the most of them!
However, April provided fresh motivation, starting with an Exeter Quay trip. Now when I say a trip, I am talking about a 3-minute walk from where I live in Exeter to this riverside location. I knew being in the city, light pollution would be a challenge, but with a big moon splashing plenty of lovely light over the scene, I saw an opportunity for an interesting star trail image.
Star trails over boats at Exeter Quay.
A few days later, my second shot of April saw me travel to Dartmoor to photograph around Cox Tor and embrace the full moon. My first idea was to shoot the full moon rising over Great Staple Tor. I used my 100-400mm lens to squeeze the perspective with support from the PhotoPills app to position myself in the correct alignment.
While awaiting the moon to rise, a stubborn bank of cloud lingered overhead, threatening to obscure the horizon and moonrise. Thankfully it didn't and instead provided some atmospheric conditions to the scene.
Moonrise over Great Staple Tor.
With astro shoots being more sparse this year, I wanted to make the most of the clear conditions despite full moon star photography not being my favorite type. So I walked to Great Staple Tor to see what images I could make. Interestingly Orion, Mars, and the constellation of Taurus all aligned nicely with this part of the tor, making my final image of this night.
Great Staple Tor in Moonlight.
January Astrophotography 2023
Hi everyone, I hope we are all doing well! Life for me has been busy since I last posted. Mainly through teaching mathematics at Cornwall College, I haven’t been able to update my blog as often as I would have liked. I have been keeping up to date with my social media, so if you are interested in my astrophotography from last year, please take a look by clicking the social media symbols at the bottom of the page.
For now, I will start a new blog for 2023, starting with January astrophotography!
Beer Beach - Devon
My only shoot of January was a visit to Beer Beach and Pounds Pool Beach on the south Devon coast. This shoot was a year in the planning as the tides and conditions had to be just right.
Cliffs between Beer and Pound Beach.
Being a big low tide allowed me to explore the impressive cliffs. Lots of photo opportunities with Orion positioned nicely to the southwest.
Cave at Pound Pools Beach.
One of the things that drew me to Pound Pools Beach is the dramatic caves on the beach's north side. This was one of my favourite images from the night. I love how a cave can frame a scene!
Pounds Pool Beach.
I was also impressed with how dramatic the foreshore was and got down low to this interesting rock for a foreground to compliment the sky and overall scene.
Pounds Pool Beach.
My final image of this night was this scene where I included a foreground cliff to add some balance and depth. A fantastic night on the south Devon coast to sign of January.
June Astrophotography 2021
May was a lacklustre month for astrophotography for me, so I was eager to make up for that with plenty of Astro trips through June. The first of which was a trip to the north coast of Cornwall to explore the coast around Duckpool. The first feature that grabbed my attention where these wonderful satellite dishes.
I then hiked to the water’s edge and found this small stream curving through the peddles to the ocean. The Milkyway was in a nice position, this late in the night, and provided a nice background element top with this peaceful scene.
Duckpool.
Later in the month, I ventured close to home to a familiar beach close to Downderry. An interesting feature of this location is this might sea stack which I thought looked fantastic with a Milkyway backdrop.
After a few hours at the beach, the glow of dawn was slowly illuminating the northeastern skies, so I took a short journey to Mountedgcombe. This ruined is a well well-known landmark here and looked fantastic with the backdrop of Plymouth and some Nortulencent Cloud.
April Astrophotography 2021
April involved four Astro shoots (which was much less than I would have liked). Sometimes you have to make compromises with your time. However, some of the photographs I took, were my favourite of the year.
My first location was west Cornwall’s Kynance cove. I have visited this beach many times and never get tired of this wonderful location. The winter sky was the prominent feature this night and despite shooting the Milkyway core here before, this was my first time shooting the winter sky. I remember arriving in Blue Hour and making a timelapse as the sky darken and stars began to show. I didn’t have much of a plan regarding compositions but knew I wanted to shoot in the westerly direct to feature the setting winter sky and the Zodiacal lights.
Winter sky and Zodiacal Light over Kynance Cove.
After my first composition, a dash to the other side of the cover to capture this view along the cliffs.
My second shoot of April was at Hound Tor, on Dartmoor. This was an after work dash to my favourite Dartmoor Tor. The rocks are impressively rugged, weathered and stand dark and tall over the area. There are endless compositions too, depending on the time of year. This particular view is high on an opposing stack looking northeast. I remember clambering up carefully to this viewpoint only to be greeted by the cold northerly wind howling face on. I stayed long enough to capture this composition before retreating.
Hound Tor - Dartmoor
A stone throws away from Hound Tor is this most recognisable Dartmoor Tor, Bowen’s Nose. A unique weathered stack of rocks unlike any of others on Dartmoor. This was my third trip through April, the second trip (which was also to Bowen’s Nose) was a disaster. I misjudge a lay-by and stranded my car when attempting a three-point turn. To cut a long story short I needed to arrange a 4 by 4 to recover my car the following day. So it was nice to re-visit this location without any drama. In my opinion, the best composition faces northerly, so I opted for this star trail capture. Was also fortunate to capture a car trail, adding a bit more interest to the scene.
Bowen’s Nose - Dartmoor
For my fourth trip, I fancied visiting the coast. With a low tide and moonless sky, I thought it a good opportunity to attempt a new location, Holywell Bay. This wonderful beach has plenty of striking features. The first feature I stumbled across was this amazing cave framing the pair of small islands. Just looked fantastic under the starry sky.
Hollywell Bay - Cornwall
My second composition from the night was looking down this rocky stream.
Hollywell Bay - Cornwall
My final shoot of April was a fantastic all night affair down West Cornwall. My first location of the night was at Gurnard’s Head. The moon was still up at this stage of the night, casting a wonderful light over the landscape and headland. I found this group of flowers, which I got low down to wish my wide-angle lens to create this composition.
My second location this night took me west to Porthgwarra. A quaint little cove nestled amount rugged granite headlands. Met up with fellow photographer Jen Rogers for this part of the shoot. My first time glancing at the Milkyway Core this year, and what an amazing dark sky location to watch it. We spend the rest of the night making a few different compositions around the cove until the light of dawn arrived.
March Astrophotography 2021
March proved to be a fantastic month for clear skies and provided a variety of moorland and coastal opportunities for pictures. My first location of the month was Brent Tor. A stunning tor on Dartmoor which has a church on the top. I have visited here a few times previously, and always feel humbled shooting at this location.
Brent Tor - Dartmoor
My second trip took me back onto Dartmoor. I explored the northern part of the moor this night around Taw Marsh. I couldn’t believe my luck to stumble upon this striking U-bend in the river which complimented the sweeping views of the moors I thought.
Taw Marsh - Dartmoor
Not wanting to miss out on the favourable conditions, I then drove north to Millook Heaven. A peddle beach not too far from Crackington Haven. I gained familiarity of this stretch off the coast from my surfing days. This quirky old boat made an interesting focal point I thought to this wonderful view looking north up to Bude.
My next location was closer to home. This local beach is on the South Coast of Cornwall. The winter sky was looking incredible this night and I love these types of beaches that are just full of mood and character.
From the same shoot, I decided to add some scale by jumping into the scene. I can easily let my imagination get lost in the sea stars.
My final composition of March featured this beautiful coastal waterfall in the most peaceful corner of South Cornwall. It is so rewarding to experience places like this. Hidden Cornish gems.
February Astrophotography 2021
Astrophotography through February was again still a bit sparse for me. I embarked on four trips. The first being Rame Head featuring the winter sky. Been here many times and also enjoy visiting.
Rame Head - Cornwall
A few days later, I journeyed to the coast by Downderry to rock stack which again looked fantastic with the swirling swell and hint of air glow.
Downderry - Cornwall
The following day I journeyed to the small harbour of Portwrinkle. Only being a 20 minute drive, this was an ideal place to visit while feeling astro hungover from the previous night. I searched around the harbour for a focal point and came across this interesting foreground rock with a few lines of quartz cutting through. The winter sky as a backdrop really added to the scene too.
One of my favourite shoots of February, and possibility of the year thus far, was a full moon lit hike to Rocky Valley by Bossiney. It’s tragic to say that I have never hiked the coast under a full moon before and it was a spectacular experience. The atmosphere and mood of the landscape under the light of the moon was magical and complimented this cascading waterfall deep within the valley.
January Astrophotography 2021
My first outing of 2021 saw me visiting a familiar location, the Cheesewrings. A wonderful area on Bodmin Moor packed with rocky stacks, quarries and character. This particular night was plagued with cloud but the early part of the night had some great starry skies.
December Astrophotography 2020
Through December, I embarked on three astro shoots. The first was a visit to south Dartmoor, the second a trip to the South Devon coast, with the final venture to Exmoor National part. Sitting here typing this blog post, there is a feeling of frustration for Decembers photography, as many clear nights where missed due to work commitments but each of my December shoots where unique, dramatic and without a doubt, worth while ventures!
So the first shoot in early December, involved my friend Lee and I travelling to Leather Tor for a night of shooting the winter sky over Sharpitor and Leather Tor. The conditions were clear as nightfall fell, but the wind was howling and clouds where occasionally rolling over. The elements were certainly testing our resilience. I had scouted a few possible locations around Sharpitor a few days previously, so had a good idea of a few compositions from the top of Sharpitor looking down towards Leather Tor. For this photo, I remember huddling against a rock sheltering from the cold howling northerlies. It was bitterly cold but I think the trip was worth it as I was really happy with this composition!
Sharpitor - Dartmoor
The following night, myself and my girlfriend Cait travelled down to Ladram Bay to enjoy a few hours of moonless clear skies. The conditions where perfect and after a few hundred meters of walking we arrived at our shooting location at the beach. The bay is well know for it’s dramatic rocky stacks and steep peddled beach. The coastal features here looked fantastic against the winter skies. I took a few different compositions featuring the stacks and delighted with how they came out. The photos where a bonus as it was one of those magical nights where time seemed to stand still and it you wouldn’t have noticed the whole night drifting by while enjoying the stars!
Ladram Bay - Devon
Ladram Bay - Devon
My final shoot of 2020 was on Christmas Eve. Keeping with tradition, I was eager to venture somewhere and with an opportunity of clear skies I took a journey to the Valley of the Rocks on Exmoor. This is a stunning stretch of rugged coast with tall cliffs and rocky hills tops. When I arrived the moon was setting, so I opted to make that the feature of my first picture and with some high level cloud, moonset was very dramatic visually.
Once the moon had set, I took another picture with myself in the frame with a flash. Shortly after this, cloud rolled over and the stars disappeared. I spent the next hour exploring the cliffs and found a few more awesome locations I can’t wait to shoot again next time. A great way to sign of a fantastic year of astrophotography! Thank you all for the support this year!
Valley of the Rocks - Exmoor National Park
Valley of the Rocks - Exmoor National Park
November Astrophotography 2020
I didn’t manage to get a single shoot done in October, but I did get opportunities through November to venture out twice. On the first night, I opted to sneak out to Dartmoor’s Hound Tor, after work, to make the most of the darker winter evenings. There was only a short window of opportunity this mild, humid night, with moonrise due an hour after the arrival of night. There was cloud bubbling about, but it cleared for long enough for me to capture this composition as the first rays of moonlight kissed the tor as the Milkyway core dipped below the horizon.
Hound Tor in Moonlight.
Looking over my shoulder, the moonrise looked striking so for my second composition from this location, I spun the camera 180 degrees around to capture this moonlit view.
Moonrise over Hound Tor.
Keeping with the Dartmoor theme, my second and final shoot of November took me to Haytor. The forecast this night suggested a chance of a cloud inversion, and the opportunity to capture this under a starry sky was a strong motivation to give this location a try. The cloud invention wasn’t as intense as I had hoped but still added an interesting element to the composition, and the stars looked fantastic!
Haytor - Dartmoor.
September Astrophotography 2020
I didn’t manage to do a single shoot through October but the start of September I decided to travel locally to Rame Head and managed to capture this image of the headland chapel and Milkyway core covered in the moonlight. My initial plan was to travel locally to try out a new Star Glow filter although unfortunately I was initially given a dud filter. However, it was nice to get an improved composition of this iconic Southeast Cornwall location.
Rame Head with a hint of moonlight.
For my second shoot of September, I journeyed to East Prawle. A striking part of the south Devon coast. I have previously explored the coastal path towards Start Point but haven’t been in the other direction. It was particularly nice to wander the coast under such crisp clear skies. This was my first composition from Gammon Head. This cove nestled within the cliffs, jumped out to me immediately once I had approached it from the coastal path. A few lucky campers were enjoying the stars from the beach, so I opted to get this elevated composition from the coastal path with the Milkyway, Jupiter and Saturn acting as a splendid backdrop.
Gammon Head.
While venturing around for my astrophotography, I am always keeping an eye open for interesting foregrounds. While walking back to the car this night, I struck gold and stumbled across these interesting Parasol mushrooms. I committed the last few hours of the night making them a focal point for a few more compositions before heading home content on a good nights work.
Parasole Mushrooms - South Devon
The spell of good astro conditions continued with another coastal trip to Ayrmer Cove. This is an interesting Devon beach which has this shark fin like rock to the west side of the bay. The Milkyway was looking great this night so I got low to the ground to use these foreground rocks as a leading line into the prominent rock stack and milky way.
Ayrmer Cove - Devon
My final shoot of September took me to Bodmin for a mild all-night shoot around Kilmer and Sharp Tor. I had no real expectation from this shoot aside from taking a good night walk and seeing what grabbed my eye. This composition was my first taken on the night and features an outcrop on Sharp Tor looking towards the Milkyway. I decided to position myself in the composition to add scale to this Tor. What sticks in my mind about this trip is how still and quiet everything was. I could even hear the flapping of bats wings as they flew around me hunted insects.
Sharp Tor - Bodmin Moor
My walk then took me a mile west to Kilmer Tor, which is unique in the sense that it is a long narrow ridge with steep rocky sides. Along this ridge is this interesting rock stack that appears to be defying gravity leaning over to one side. I thought this view of the stack would look great with a Milkyway backdrop.
Kilmar Tor - Bodmin
My third and final location this nigh took me to this water-filled quarry. I like to achieve three compositions on a night shoot and this composition was one of my targets after a day scout a few days previous. It was nice to get a shot of the northern skies too and to sign off a great month off astrophotography.
Minions Quarry - Bodmin