ANNOUNCING THE WINNERS!

Many thanks to all who have entered the ASTROPHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR 2022 competition.
We’ve had so many entries and the standard has been incredibly high – it’s taken our judge Trevor Jones longer than anticipated to reach his decisions  but finally here they are ready to be announced!

Many congratulations to all our winners.  We will be contacting you over the next few weeks to organise prizes and awards.

The PEOPLE’S CHOICE award will be judged by you – a gallery of photos is available for you to select your favourite photo. This will be open for one month and we’ll announce the winner at the end.

PEOPLE’S CHOICE VOTE

OVERALL WINNER

Amrit Prasad – A Luminous Tarantula Nebula

PRIZE:

– Sky-Watcher ESPRIT 100mm, Valued at $3999 Aud

– Sky-Watcher SWHEQ5PRO-DUAL Mount, Valued at $1999.99

– Trophy of Recognition

OVERALL WINNER

Amrit PrasadAmrit Prasad – A Luminous Tarantula Nebula

Hi I’m Amrit, I work as an IT Project Manager by day and then travel the universe with my telescope at night time. Deep space imaging was something I really wanted to get in to for the longest time and it was only last year that I was finally able to afford my first telescope. I still pinch myself whenever I get to do it. All the way from acquiring to processing and seeing that final result just feels so surreal. 

Image details:

The Luminous Tarantula Nebula, packed full of so many interesting details it is hard not get spaced out appreciating this region. At the time it was my longest exposure commitment and I had no idea what to do with it. After 3 months of constant processing and upskilling, I was finally able to present this version of the image. Difficult for many reasons but a big one was the massive dynamic range between the outer parts and that bright core region where so many new stars are born. A lot of time and attention was put into lifting up details tastefully particularly in the core, adjusting colours while preserving the scientifically correct structures and then putting it together so as a whole it (hopefully) gives viewers the same feeling it gives to me. 

OVERALL WINNER PHOTO

Amrit Prasad A Luminous Tarantula Nebula Overall Winner

NIGHTSCAPE

GOLD AWARD WINNER:

Simon Jarman – Last Light

SILVER AWARD WINNERS:

Clutched – Casey Flynn
Lunar Spectrum – Joel Stafford
The Universe is Yours – Joel Stafford
Lighthouse Aurora – Larryn

BRONZE AWARD WINNERS:

Uluru Dreaming – Marley Butler
Spinning – Alex Raccanello
Look Up – Alex Raccanello
Glenroy Gazing – John Rutter
Guide me home – John Rutter
Taranaki Rising – Larryn Rae
Taranaki Milkyway – Larryn Rae
Matheson Milkyway – Larryn Rae
The Rock Pool- Mark Gee
Three Worlds – Mark Gee
Pac- Jack Burden
Panorama – Kavan Chay
Mantra – Paul Wilson
Moon Halo – Paul Wilson
S.T.E.V.E – Paul Wilson

PRIZES:

GOLD WINNER x 1

– EQ35 Goto Mount With Steel Tripod, Valued At $1399
– Trophy of Recognition

Trevor’s Comments

The Milky Way core and beautiful landscape below create a dreamlike (yet natural looking) scene.
The inclusion of the evening star (Venus) and setting Moon help remind the viewer that this passing view exists from our vantage point within the solar system.

NIGHTSCAPE WINNER PHOTO

Simon Jarman - Last Light
Simon Jarman - Last Light
Simon Jarman - Last Light
Joel Stafford - Lunar Spectrum
Joel Stafford - Lunar Spectrum
Casey Flynn - Clutched
Casey Flynn - Clutched
Joel Stafford - The Universe Is Yours
Joel Stafford - The Universe Is Yours
Larryn Rae Lighthouse Aurora
Larryn Rae Lighthouse Aurora

Simon Jarman – Last Night

I’m a amateur nightscape/ astro bro based in Auckland, NZ I try to get away from the city lights as often as I can to capture the stars. Something about being out alone under the stars in the middle of nowhere that I find so calming. 

Image details:

The last chance to catch the Milky Way last year. The sun set, followed shortly by the moon and then the Milky Way and Venus.

SOLAR SYSTEM

GOLD AWARD WINNER:

Kyle Van Zyl – Comet leonard

SILVER AWARD WINNERS:

Saturn – Kyle van Zyl
Earths Moon – Kyle van Zyl
Jupiter – Russell Smith
Sun – David Gray

BRONZE AWARD WINNERS:

Moon – Logan D Carpenter
C/2021 A1 Leonard – Chi Chan
Jupiter – Peter Patonai
Saturn – Peter Patonai
Partial Eclipse – Phil Hart
Moon – Matthew Williams
The Moon – Amrit Prasad
Lunar Eclipse – Kristian Parrott
Full Moon – Kristian Parrott
Total Lunar Eclipse – Mike White
Mars – David Gray
Venus – David Gray
Jupiter – David Gray
Venus – David Gray
ISS & Moon – Rohan

PRIZES:

GOLD WINNER

–  150/1800 Maksutov Cassegrain, Valued at $1299
– Trophy of Recognition

Trevor’s Comments

Comet’s are extremely exciting. Although many of them are relatively easy to photograph, capturing an image of this detail and clarity is not.
The comet’s tail is captured in breathtaking detail against a beautiful background of stars. This is the type of image that inspires the world to look up.

SOLAR SYSTEM WINNER PHOTO

Kyle Van Zyl - Comet Leonard
Kyle Van Zyl - Comet Leonard
Kyle Van Zyl - Comet Leonard
Kyle Van Zyl - Saturn
Kyle Van Zyl - Saturn
Kyle Van Zyl - Earths Moon
Kyle Van Zyl - Earths Moon
Russell Smith - Jupiter
Russell Smith - Jupiter

Kyle van Zyl

Kyle Van Zyl – Comet Leonard

My name is Kyle Van zyl, I am a 19 year old astrophotographer based in Brisbane Australia. I’ve been doing astrophotography for 3 years now and can’t get enough of it, nothing beats being able to photograph distant Galaxies, Bright Nebulae, and the beautiful planets of our solar system. 

Image details:

I was fortunate enough to capture 4 images of comet leonard during it’s flyby of Earth in December of 2021, this image happens to be the 3rd one I captured. I imaged the commet for almost 40 minutes with my Skywatcher Quattro 250 and ZWO ASI2600MC Pro, the image was calibrated, stacked, and editied in Pixinsight.

DEEP SPACE

GOLD AWARD WINNER:

Amrit Prasad – A Luminous Tarantula Nebula

SILVER AWARD WINNERS:

Sculptor Galaxy – Kyle Van Zyl
Rosette Nebula in SHO – Jacob Heppell
NGC1365 – David Moulton
HorseHead and Flame – Amrit Prasad

BRONZE AWARD WINNERS:

The Running Man – Katherine Miller
The Fighting Dragon of Ara – Caleb Kam
SH2-278 – Anne-Maree McComb
Dolphin in Deep Space – Carlos Taylor
Deep Space Quill – Carlos Taylor
Dark Sky Jewel – Carlos Taylor
NGC3576 – Benjamin Marks
NGC6188 Fighting Dragons and their Egg – Benjamin Marks
M16 – Benjamin Marks
The Soaring Gull – Logan Carpenter
NGC2018 – David Moulton
IC2948 – The Running Chicken Nebula – Shaun Robertson
Beautiful Rose – Andy Latta
Horse and Flame – David Moulton
Vela Supernova Remnant – Logan Carpenter

PRIZES:

GOLD WINNER x 1

– 250/1000 F4 Imaging Reflector Valued at $1299
– Trophy of Recognition

Trevor’s Comments

I have never seen this intense nebula region captured in such delicate, careful detail before.
The spectrum of light values were expertly preserved, creating unimaginable depth and clarity. An absolute masterpiece.

DEEP SPACE WINNER PHOTOS

Amrit Prasad - A Luminous Tarantula Nebula
Amrit Prasad - A Luminous Tarantula Nebula
Amrit Prasad - A Luminous Tarantula Nebula
Kyle Van Zyl - NGC 253 the Sculptor Galaxy
Kyle Van Zyl - NGC 253 the Sculptor Galaxy
Amrit Prasad - Horsehead Nebula and the Flaming Sword
Amrit Prasad - Horsehead Nebula and the Flaming Sword
Jacob Heppell NGC2238 Rosette Nebula in SHO
Jacob Heppell NGC2238 Rosette Nebula in SHO
Amrit Prasad - Horsehead Nebula and the Flaming Sword
Amrit Prasad - Horsehead Nebula and the Flaming Sword

Amrit PrasadAmrit Prasad – A Luminous Tarantula Nebula

Hi I’m Amrit, I work as an IT Project Manager by day and then travel the universe with my telescope at night time. Deep space imaging was something I really wanted to get in to for the longest time and it was only last year that I was finally able to afford my first telescope. I still pinch myself whenever I get to do it. All the way from acquiring to processing and seeing that final result just feels so surreal. 

Image details:

The Luminous Tarantula Nebula, packed full of so many interesting details it is hard not get spaced out appreciating this region. At the time it was my longest exposure commitment and I had no idea what to do with it. After 3 months of constant processing and upskilling, I was finally able to present this version of the image. Difficult for many reasons but a big one was the massive dynamic range between the outer parts and that bright core region where so many new stars are born. A lot of time and attention was put into lifting up details tastefully particularly in the core, adjusting colours while preserving the scientifically correct structures and then putting it together so as a whole it (hopefully) gives viewers the same feeling it gives to me. 

THANKS TO OUR JUDGE!

Many thanks to world renowned Astrophotographer and blogger Trevor Jones for judging our Astrophotographer of the Year 2021 competition.  Trevor, from AstroBackyard undertook the challenging task of determining a shortlist of finalists and he commented on how difficult it was to select so few images from such a large number of high level photographs.

Trevor has developed a big following from his website and through social media because of his thoughtful articles and informative videos, and because of his genuine enthusiasm for astronomy and imaging.

Visit his website at:  astrobackyard.com

And follow Trevor on social media:

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