Astrophotography Workshop Dorset 2016

Welcome to 2016 Astrophotography Workshop in Dorset.

Weather dependant, the first window is on Friday 26th August 2016 from 10:30 pm. Two hours session.

Location:  Isle of Purbeck or Studland (TBC on the day).  You must have your own transport.  Precise location will be released on the day.

To book your place only complete the form with subject : Astrophotography WS.

Looking forward to see you there !

 

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Update:

New window Monday 29th August 2016

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Poole Harbour Starry Nights 

Poole Harbour Milky Way Dorset

The largest natural harbour in the United Kingdom.  It is the estuary of 4 rivers, the largest being the Frome.  It has an approximate area of 36km2 (14 sq mi) and it is very shallow (average depth is 48cm) .  The area has a long history of human settlement pre-Roman times.  The harbour was used by the Romans as an invasion port.

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View of the Sandbanks chain ferry jetty. Sirius and the Milky Way, Sandbanks, Poole, England
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Milky Way above Parkstone Yacht Club and Poole Quay, from Whitecliff Harbourside Park, Poole, England

Poole is the main town.  It became a wealthy city in the 17th century as it was a trading hub, and by the 18th century it was the main British port trading with North America.

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Milky Way view above Poole Park, Dorset, England

 

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Hamworthy Lake Pier,  Sirius and the Milky Way, Poole, England.

The harbour is an area of international importance for wildlife conservation, and borders three natural reserves.

 

 

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View of the Milky Way above the harbour from Evening Hill, Poole, England

Poole Harbour has a special charm, and is well known for the most beautiful sunsets in Dorset.  This post is about a face little known, Poole Harbour under the starry nights

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Milky Way above Sandbanks bay, next to the sailing club. Poole, England.

Durlston Country Park: where inspiration is born

Views of the Milky Way from Durlston Country Park, Dorset, England.

Durlston Country Park is a 1.13 square kilometre (280-acre) country park and nature reserve stretching along the coast of the Isle of Purbeck at Durlston near Swanage in Dorset, England.  The Park, which is part of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site, has been owned by Dorset County Council since the early 1970s and is mostly open access.

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View points across the park with descriptions

In 1887 George Burt, local constructor and business man who used to own Durlston estate, built a small ‘castle’ at Durlston Head, on the hill above Durlston Bay and the town of Swanage. The Durlston Castle was never a real castle, but was purpose-built to be used as a restaurant for his estate.

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Durlston Castle

Burt also commissioned a 40-ton limestone Globe, three metres in diameter, engraved with an 1880s world map. The footpaths around the Castle and Globe are lined with cast iron London bollards which were left in Swanage having been used as ballast by the ships transporting stone to London. Other ornaments include plaques carved with quotations from Shakespeare and the Bible, maps showing the English Channel and the United Kingdom, and facts about the natural world.

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The Globe, a 40-ton, 3 meter diamete sphere.
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The globe is engraved with an 1880 world map

In the 19th and 20th centuries Purbeck was quarried for its high-quality limestone. There were few open-cast quarries, and none in Durlston, but there are many mine shafts across the landscape, notably Tilly Whim Caves in a dry glacial meltwater valley.

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View of the Tilly Whim Caves

Most of the Park is designated Site of Special Scientific Interest and since 1997, a Special Area of Conservation. The majority is also designated as a Site of Nature Conservation Importance.

Durlston Country Park is one of the most inspiring places for photography in Dorset.

Branksome Beach Love

Astrophotography in Poole, Bournemouth, Dorset, England. Canon 6D. Love inspiration. Milky Way

Branksome beach in Poole, Dorset-UK, is not a place where you would think to photograph the night sky…surrounded by light pollution from Bournemouth and Poole, using the right exposure the Milky Way can be captured.  This time I did it with the help of two couples and showed them the beauty of the night sky…

IMG_2326-Edit-2I was lucky to have a clear sky with a low tide at the same time…it was also a good opportunity to experiment some techniques using a flash and snoot to lighten up the subjects…

IMG_2211-EditAnd also to combine some techniques derived from the photography of deep sky objects (like galaxies, nebulas, etc)…For the image below,  I have taken one photo with the couple and then 24 more without moving the camera or changing the settings….It was about 6 minutes of info in total…Using Deep Sky Stacker (DSS) I have stacked the 24 images and then combined in photoshop with the very first image of the couple…the result is a detailed view of the galactic centre…

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Galactic Centre from Branksome Beach, Poole Dorset, England. Canon 6D, 25Exposures 15sec iso8000 F4, 24 of them stacked with DSS.