#7: Astrophotography
I want to highlight astrophotography for this week’s post because I have a deep admiration for people that are able to take photos at night, and especially those of space!
Astrophotography is a phenomenal style of photography that focuses on the stars, space, and other astronomical subject matter. I have a deep love for the aesthetic of space, as well as my heartfelt respect as a photographer myself for the people who specialize in this subject.
To get these images of space, you need the right equipment to be able to not only work in extremely low lighting, but also to keep the camera absolutely stable while capturing the light that does exist.
A quick and important disclosure on how cameras work: Cameras make images by capturing light. Cameras do this by capturing light through their lens, which then registers via the image sensor of the body, and thus creates the image data that will be stored in your camera’s memory.
This is a drastically simplified version of how a digital camera works, but I hope it was able to clarify how important light is when capturing images.
Simply put: No Light = No Photo!
Naturally, the more light that is available to illuminate the detail of the subject, the easier it will be for your camera to capture these details through its digital light receptors, whereas less light means your camera will capture less details.
Even with my upcoming ‘Motion Commotion’ Series, in which I’m purposefully implement movement to get abstract light designs, there’s still techniques and camera calibrations that need to be properly set up to register the correct details for capturing information in lower light settings.
An example of this technique - which can be varyingly complex. I don’t have a set ‘technique’ or ‘method’ that I follow, but I generally try to take multiple dozens of photos in varying movements and styles to get a variety of colors, shapes, movements, styles, dynamics, compositions, etc. It’s truly a shot in the dark (pun intended~) because I never really know what images I will get out of these shots.
So to take clear and detailed images of the stars, you can imagine that technique and movement - or lack thereof - are key for capturing their light in detail. To have a talent in astrophotography, one must have - in my eyes, at least - an admirable dedication to want to capture the subject matter (both in equipment and diligence).
All photography is admirable for me because there’s a beauty in perspectives over a variety of subjects.
But astrophotography? This was something I wanted to focus on because the art - and commitment to the theme of space - is more difficult than “Point & Click.”
Similar to how nature photography is more than just taking pretty pictures of flowers, or street photography is more than pictures of concrete, there’s a technique that makes the chosen subject flourish.
Titled "Hiyashinsu ("Hyacinth" in Japanese)” (2023). This style of photography is something I’ve been exploring in my upcoming “Motion Commotion” Collection, where I combine movement and activity with photographing lights at night. It’s the closest I’ve been able to get to Astrophotography, which is an entirely different realm of photography (deepest respect~)