During the recent year I've been taking photos over Östersund on a regular basis from the exact same location. This is my biggest and longest project so far. My plan was to take an image every week to get a smooth animation but I didn't quite manage that. The animation consists of 36 photos. During some periods the landscape didn't change much so I've excluded some images to get a better flow of the changes in the landscape. Hope you like it.
Music - "Virtues Inherited Vices Passed On" by Chris Zabriskie
On my blog I share my passion for astrophotography and just about everything else that goes on in the sky, both day and night.
Thursday, August 20, 2015
Wednesday, August 19, 2015
Solar Eiffel Tower
My latest photo of the Sun with a big prominence looking like the Eiffel Tower got some nice attention around the world. Here are some of the articles covering the story
Popular Science
http://www.popsci.com/sun-briefly-built-eiffel-tower-larger-our-planet
Discovery News
http://news.discovery.com/space/astronomy/eiffel-tower-prominence-towers-over-the-sun-150817.htm
Dail Mail
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3202391/Is-Eiffel-Tower-sticking-SUN-Enormous-arc-gas-solar-surface-resembles-famous-French-landmark.html
Space.com
http://www.space.com/30289-eiffel-tower-prominence-towers-over-the-sun.html
Gizmodo
http://gizmodo.com/look-how-massive-this-eiffel-tower-shape-on-the-sun-is-1724908641
Would you like to buy this photo as a print? Contact me on info@astrofotografen.se
Popular Science
http://www.popsci.com/sun-briefly-built-eiffel-tower-larger-our-planet
Discovery News
http://news.discovery.com/space/astronomy/eiffel-tower-prominence-towers-over-the-sun-150817.htm
Dail Mail
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3202391/Is-Eiffel-Tower-sticking-SUN-Enormous-arc-gas-solar-surface-resembles-famous-French-landmark.html
Space.com
http://www.space.com/30289-eiffel-tower-prominence-towers-over-the-sun.html
Gizmodo
http://gizmodo.com/look-how-massive-this-eiffel-tower-shape-on-the-sun-is-1724908641
Would you like to buy this photo as a print? Contact me on info@astrofotografen.se
Monday, August 17, 2015
The Aurora season has arrived
Finally the dark nights are back and it's a joy to once again be able to enjoy the night sky. The last few nights we have had some really nice aurora displays. The sky is still a bit to bright but for every day its rapidly getting darker.
This photo was taken last night and shows a beautiful aurora arc with some nice curtains to the left. There's also some purple colors in there but they aren't that prominent when the sky is still pretty blue and not black.
I hope we'll get another great aurora season but the number of aurora displays are expected to drop. It's the Sun's activity (sunspots, flares and coronal mass ejections) that causes aurora.
The Sun's activity has a periodic solar cycle of nearly 11 years and in 2014 we passed the latest solar maximum so the solar activity and therefore aurora is expected to drop over the years to come.
This photo was taken last night and shows a beautiful aurora arc with some nice curtains to the left. There's also some purple colors in there but they aren't that prominent when the sky is still pretty blue and not black.
I hope we'll get another great aurora season but the number of aurora displays are expected to drop. It's the Sun's activity (sunspots, flares and coronal mass ejections) that causes aurora.
The Sun's activity has a periodic solar cycle of nearly 11 years and in 2014 we passed the latest solar maximum so the solar activity and therefore aurora is expected to drop over the years to come.
Thursday, August 13, 2015
Aurora, NLC and a Perseid/Bolide
Me and a couple of friends went out to watch the yearly Perseid meteor shower. After 01:00 Swedish summer time we started to see some faint aurora above some really nice NLC. This is the first aurora I've seen for this season and a new record for me seeing an aurora as early as 13th of August.
In the shot you can also see some Noctilucent clouds and a bright Perseid.
Here's a collection of Perseids I captured last night.
After a while watching the aurora I started filming the beautiful sky, I turned around and headed back to our campfire and kept filming. Suddenly I saw how the sky turned green in the corner of my eye and I got to see one of the biggest bolide I ever seen and to my luck I got it on this film.
Sorry for the wind noise in the beginning and the bad language in the end :-)
Follow my work
http://www.facebook.com/fotografgoranstrand
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http://twitter.com/Astrofotografen
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| A bright Perseid over some aurora and Noctilucent clouds |
Here's a collection of Perseids I captured last night.
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| Several bright Perseids in this composite image |
After a while watching the aurora I started filming the beautiful sky, I turned around and headed back to our campfire and kept filming. Suddenly I saw how the sky turned green in the corner of my eye and I got to see one of the biggest bolide I ever seen and to my luck I got it on this film.
Sorry for the wind noise in the beginning and the bad language in the end :-)
Follow my work
http://www.facebook.com/fotografgoranstrand
http://instagram.com/astrofotografen
http://twitter.com/Astrofotografen
Tuesday, August 11, 2015
Perseid meteor shower 2015
Tomorrow it's time for one of the best yearly meteor showers, the Perseid meteor shower. The best time to view the Perseids is when the sky is the darkest and it's best to look at the darkest area of the sky. Another tip is to lay on you back so you can comfortable can see the entire sky. Bring a sleeping pad and warm clothes.
Since the moon is new on August 14, it's perfect conditions for watching the meteor shower with a really dark sky. The Perseid meteor shower has a zenith hourly rate (ZHR) of around 100, that's 100 meteors per hour.
Here's a shot from 2013 showing a bright Perseid.As you can see, lying on the ground is a great way to spot meteors.
Since the moon is new on August 14, it's perfect conditions for watching the meteor shower with a really dark sky. The Perseid meteor shower has a zenith hourly rate (ZHR) of around 100, that's 100 meteors per hour.
Here's a shot from 2013 showing a bright Perseid.As you can see, lying on the ground is a great way to spot meteors.
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
Planning and shooting a sunset
I never get tired of watching a sunrise, sunset, moonrise or moonset. All these events are always beautiful to watch and it's also very exciting because you never know what might happen regarding light and atmospheric phenomena.
Last Sunday the weather was looking good for the evening and I had looked up a location that would give me a nice foreground, in this case a large building. I think planning your shot is half the fun and that's something I really enjoy doing. When planning my shot I usually use Google Maps and tools like The Photographer's Ephemeris. Other useful tools are planetarium software like Stellarium
Always be careful when shooting the Sun since its so bright, you could damage your eyes. Never look straight into the Sun through your camera. Regarding filters, this sunset was quite cloudy so I didn't need any filters, otherwise you could use a ND-filter to dim the Sun.
As soon as I arrive on the location I've planned, I start by checking the surroundings to see what I can work with regarding foregrounds etc. I also double check that I'm in a spot where the Sun or the Moon will pass behind the planed distant object. Then I usually start off by taking some wide angle shots while the Sun is above the horizon and I got some really nice a warm light.
Here's a shot showing lake Storsjön and you can see the building to the right of the Sun. Above the Sun you can see a faint Sun pillar.
As the Sun gets closer to the horizon I switch to a longer focal length to really get up close with the Sun. In this case I was shooting at a focal length of 1,200 mm. Quite extreme but in that way you get a much more dramatic scene. The building was located 13 km away from me at the time.
In the shot above you can see two sunspots on the solar disc. Both these sunspots are about the same size as the Earth's diameter. As you can see the clouds can sometimes work with you adding a lot of drama to the scene. The sky above the Sun looks much better with this thin layer of clouds that it would have done without them. But I would have preferred not having the lower thicker clouds to get a cleaner solar disc, but they also adds a bit of drama.
Later on the Sun passed behind the building as planned.
The image above is a panoramic image of three shots. I did that to get the reflections of the Sun in the water. You should always be alert to whats happening in the scene regarding light, reflections or shadows. For just a brief moment there could be something that you don't want to miss.
So, how close will you get with a focal length of 1,200 mm? Here's a 100% crop from a photo I took later on.
As you can see a really long focal length can create some dramatic shots but it's also really hard to get sharp shots. When you enlarge a scene using a longer focal length, you also enlarge all the errors. So if you have lots of turbulence in the air you will have a hard time getting a sharp image. In this case I was shooting over water and that usually gives a much sharper image due to stable air.
So, keep shooting those sunsets, it's not cliche, it's so much fun and excitement.
Follow my work on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook.
Last Sunday the weather was looking good for the evening and I had looked up a location that would give me a nice foreground, in this case a large building. I think planning your shot is half the fun and that's something I really enjoy doing. When planning my shot I usually use Google Maps and tools like The Photographer's Ephemeris. Other useful tools are planetarium software like Stellarium
Always be careful when shooting the Sun since its so bright, you could damage your eyes. Never look straight into the Sun through your camera. Regarding filters, this sunset was quite cloudy so I didn't need any filters, otherwise you could use a ND-filter to dim the Sun.
As soon as I arrive on the location I've planned, I start by checking the surroundings to see what I can work with regarding foregrounds etc. I also double check that I'm in a spot where the Sun or the Moon will pass behind the planed distant object. Then I usually start off by taking some wide angle shots while the Sun is above the horizon and I got some really nice a warm light.
Here's a shot showing lake Storsjön and you can see the building to the right of the Sun. Above the Sun you can see a faint Sun pillar.
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| Nikon D810A, 1/250 sec. ISO 200, 70 mm f/8 |
As the Sun gets closer to the horizon I switch to a longer focal length to really get up close with the Sun. In this case I was shooting at a focal length of 1,200 mm. Quite extreme but in that way you get a much more dramatic scene. The building was located 13 km away from me at the time.
 |
| Nikon D810A, 1/2000 sec. ISO 400, 1200 mm f/11 |
In the shot above you can see two sunspots on the solar disc. Both these sunspots are about the same size as the Earth's diameter. As you can see the clouds can sometimes work with you adding a lot of drama to the scene. The sky above the Sun looks much better with this thin layer of clouds that it would have done without them. But I would have preferred not having the lower thicker clouds to get a cleaner solar disc, but they also adds a bit of drama.
Later on the Sun passed behind the building as planned.
 |
| Nikon D810A, 1/500 sec. ISO 400, 1200 mm f/11 |
The image above is a panoramic image of three shots. I did that to get the reflections of the Sun in the water. You should always be alert to whats happening in the scene regarding light, reflections or shadows. For just a brief moment there could be something that you don't want to miss.
So, how close will you get with a focal length of 1,200 mm? Here's a 100% crop from a photo I took later on.
 |
| Nikon D810A, 1/500 sec. ISO 400, 1200 mm f/8 |
As you can see a really long focal length can create some dramatic shots but it's also really hard to get sharp shots. When you enlarge a scene using a longer focal length, you also enlarge all the errors. So if you have lots of turbulence in the air you will have a hard time getting a sharp image. In this case I was shooting over water and that usually gives a much sharper image due to stable air.
So, keep shooting those sunsets, it's not cliche, it's so much fun and excitement.
Follow my work on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook.
Monday, July 13, 2015
Back in northern Sweden
I've been traveling in the south of Sweden for almost 4 weeks and now I'm finally back in Östersund. I had a great time and got to see some starry night skies again. Here in the north we still can't see any stars but it won't be long now. Here are a couple of images from my trip.
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| Sunset in Blekinge |
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| Night in the forest in Småland |
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| Sunset in Malmö |
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| Moonset in Malmö |
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| Jupiter and Venus conjunction in Denmark |
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| Moonrise over Gothenburg |
Saturday, June 13, 2015
Star Wars X-Wing miniatures game
This weekend it's time for the Northern Sweden X-Wing Regional Championship in the Star Wars X-Wing miniatures game. My contribution to this contest was to deliver background images for the game boards, a mix of photos I've taken over the years. As a boardgamer and space geek my selves it was a perfect match to deliver these background images to this contest.
May the force be with you!
May the force be with you!
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