Archive for year: 2014
M31, an old friend of mine
This is the M31 galaxy in the Andromeda Constellation. The picture is “technically poor”, but in 1990, with a Canon AE1 camera piggy-back mounted on a Meade 2080 telescope, a 135 mm lens and a Scotch Chrome 800-3200 film, it took me a 15 minutes exposure and a ski suit to obtain a picture like this. Thus, the film got stuck into the camera the morning after and when i opened it sunlight burnt all the pictures exposed.
Yesterday evening, from a garden in the Beigua GeoPark, with my D810 and a 300mm f4 lens, it took me 3 seconds @10.000 ISO to shoot this one while i was playing with my father’s dog (astrophotographers will be indulgent).
M31 (Andromeda Galaxy)
f4 / 3,0 seconds exposure / ISO 10.000
Right ascension 00h 42m 44.3s Declination +41° 16′ 9″ Redshift z = -0.001001 Helio radial velocity −301 ± 1 km/s Distance 2.54 ± 0.11 Mly (778 ± 33 kpc) Type SA(s)b Mass ~1×1012[2][7] M☉size (ly) ~100kly diameter Number of stars 1 trillion (1012) Apparent dimensions (V) 190′ × 60′ Apparent magnitude (V) 3.44 Absolute magnitude (V) −21.5
Republiek van Namibië
It’s all about dust: intro (may 30, 31 and June 1, 2014)
Namib Naukluft Park
First comes the Great Wide Open. Shining, Trascendently Splendiferous, ripping apart your mind and blowing it as a thunderstorm. Then enters dust. Anywhere, anytime. On lenses, in your eyes, into your throat. On clothes and bags. Covering your European way of thinking, being, talking, taking pictures. 12 days. 3300 pictures (to be selected), 4100 km, 12 peoples and a guide, Philip Conradie, who’s the right guy you want aside on a travel like this. This is a short travel reportage related to my trip to Namibia with Nature Photographers Emanuele Biggi and Francesco Tomasinelli. Read more →