Monday, September 13, 2021
Beyond the astronomical photography
NOTE. Vision series artworks are soon to be sold as NFT @SuperRare
I’m an astrophotographer but first of all I’m a visual artist, as an artist, I’m dazzled by all the forms I’m able to capture in my photos of cosmic objects, nebulae, supernova remnants, galaxies, etc. Colors from ionized elements are connected to the shapes and textures, they form a physical reality around us.
I’m telling a story with my photos, and many times my artworks are also personal notes. The Vision series of photos are forming visual notes about shapes, structures, textures, and colors I have seen and captured during my couple of decades-long journey as an astronomical nature photographer.
Every single element in Vision series photos are from my original astronomical photos. I have been using the Overlapping Lightning Method (Multi Exposure Method) to create my Vision series photographs. By this method the forms and structures in astronomical object get multiplied, they are now forming a new visual dimension beyond our physical universe.
The photographic method I'm using was fashionable back in the 1920s among avant-gardists and surrealistic photographers. At the time the work was done in a darkroom, I’m using about the same technique but instead of a darkroom, I’m using digital image processing.
The original photo is rotated, moved, and/or mirrored as I like, and then multiple layers stacked back together so that the original brightness is maintained. For this task, I use Photoshop and various astronomical stacking methods and applications.
Few samples of my Vision Series, the original astronomical photo I used to create them at end of the page.
Visions of Veil
Please, click for a large image
Visions of Veil series is based on my original photo
Image info can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2015/09/pickerings-triangle-my-first-light-for.html
Friday, August 27, 2021
Visions of Veil
This is an experimental test with a 3D-conversion of my astronomical image. Only real elements from the original image are used, there is nothing added but the estimated volumetric information!
NOTE. This is a personal vision about shapes and volumes, based on some scientific data, deduction and an artistic impression.NFT of this video is for sale @SuperRare
Visions of Veil
Original 2D Image, NASA APOD 2015
Click for a large image
How is the volume added to my photos?
Importantly, for as long as I have captured images of celestial objects, I have always seen them in three dimensions in the theatre of my mind. I did develop a unique process to create scientifically accurate 3D volumetric images of 'my' nebulas. The final 3D volumetric image is always an appraised simulation of reality based on known scientific data, deduction, and some artistic creativity.
After I have collected all the necessary scientific information about my target, I start my 3-D conversion using the stars in the image. Usually there is a recognizable star cluster which is responsible for ionizing the nebula. We don’t need to know its absolute location since we know its relative location. Stars ionizing the nebula have to be very close to the nebula structure itself. I usually divide up the rest of the stars by their apparent brightness, which can then be used as an indicator of their distances, brighter being closer. If true star distances are available, I use them, but most of the time my rule of thumb is sufficient. By using a scientific estimate of the distance of the Milky Way object, I can then locate the correct number of stars in front of it and behind it.
Emission nebulae are not lit up directly by starlight; they are usually way too large for that. Rather, stellar radiation ionizes elements within the gas cloud. So, it’s the nebula itself that is glowing. (The principle is very much the same as in fluorescent tubes.) The thickness of the nebula can be estimated from its brightness, since the whole volume of gas is glowing, brighter means thicker. Nebulae are also more or less transparent, so we can see both sides of it at the same time, and this makes model-making a little easier since not much is hidden.
The local stellar wind, from the star cluster inside the nebula, shapes the nebula by blowing away the gas around the star cluster. The stellar wind usually forms a kind of cavity in the nebulosity. The collapsing gas can resist the stellar wind and produces pillar like formations which must point to a cluster.
Oxygen needs a lot energy to ionize it, this can only be achieved relatively close to the star cluster in the nebula. I use this information to position the O-III area (the bluish glow) at the correct distance relative to the heart of the nebula.
Many other small indicators can be found by carefully studying the image itself. For example, if there is a dark nebula in the image, it must be located in front of the emission nebula, otherwise we can’t see it.
Explosions in space are more or less symmetrical, due to that, most of the supernova remnants and planetary nebulae mainly has a ball like appearance.
Using the known data in this way I build a kind of skeleton model of the nebula. Then the artistic part is mixed with the scientific and logical elements, and after that the rest is very much like creating a sculpture on a cosmic scale.
Tuesday, August 17, 2021
A starless Pickering's Triange
As far as I know, I was the first who published starless nebula images back in 2007. At the time the feedback was less than positive.
The reason to publish such a unorthodox images was that the starless version is a part of my processing workflow and it can sometimes show more than the actual image.
I have used this technique ever since and published some starless images now and then.
Starless images are very powerful, when I want to dig out some really dim objects in a very dense starfield. It makes processing so much easier, I don't need to be careful not to blow up the stars.
Normally all the stars are placed back with a zero data lost after processing is done.
Starless images are also a great help to see the actual structure in the nebula since human brains has a tendency to form a quasi logical shapes out of the random cloud of dots, like stars are.
A Starless Pickering's Triangle
Please, click for a large image, it's worth it!
Please, click for a large image, it's worth it!
Part of Veil Nebula supernova remnant, the Pickering's Triangle.Colors are from the ionized elements, Hydrogen, Sulfur and Oxygen. S-II = Red, H-alpha = Green and O-III = Blue. This is one of the most detailed image of the Pickering's Triangle I have ever seen.A wide field photo of the Veil Nebula supernova remnant
The Pickering's Triangle can be see at one o'clock position.
My blog post about the wide field shot can be seen HERE.Technical details:
https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2015/09/pickerings-triangle-my-first-light-for.html
https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2015/09/pickerings-triangle-my-first-light-for.html
Monday, August 9, 2021
Pickering's Triangle reprocessed with some new data
I originally shot this image at September 2015 and it was selected as a NASA APOD (Astronomy Picture of the Day) at same month.
After the 2015 I have learned a lot and also shot lots of new data. The data I have shot is taken with much shorter focal length than original data but it was much deeper. I connected some dim background and color data from wide field image to this new version of Pickering's Triangle by using my new yet unpublished imaging method the VARES (variable Resolution imaging)
I kind of like the result, colors are more vivid and background has deeper shades.
I kind of like the result, colors are more vivid and background has deeper shades.
Pickering's Triangle
Please, click for a large image, it's worth it!
Please, click for a large image, it's worth it!
Part of the two frame mosaic of the Veil Nebula supernova remnant, the Pickering's Triangle.
Colors are from the ionized elements, Hydrogen, Sulfur and Oxygen.
S-II = Red, H-alpha = Green and O-III = Blue.
Colors are from the ionized elements, Hydrogen, Sulfur and Oxygen.
S-II = Red, H-alpha = Green and O-III = Blue.
A wide field photo of the Veil Nebula supernova remnant
The Pickering's Triangle can be see at one o'clock position.
My blog post about the wide field shot can be seen HERE.Technical details and more images:
https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2015/09/pickerings-triangle-my-first-light-for.html
Sunday, August 1, 2021
A new photo, Monkey Head Nebula, Lower's nebula, Jelly Fish nebula and Messier 35
I shot material for this mosaic image at end of the spring season 2021. I haven't got time to finalize it until now. I kind of like this image, it's very deep and shows the very dim background mist and a very dense starfield of the galaxy plane. Total exposure time with Tokina AT-x 300mm f2,8 camera lens, Apogee u16 Astro camera and Astrodon narrowband filters is around 6 hours, the exposure time with Celestron Edge telescope is around 30 hours.
An other interesting feature in this imaging project is that I did use my VARES-processing method to this.
(Variable Resolution imaging) I have shot the nebulae in this wide field image with a long focal length instrument, the Celestron Edge 11" few years ago. I use this high res material to boost details in the wide field image. But that's not all!
I used the VARES technique to add deepness to my older long focal length images. I added the very dim background nebula data from wide filled images to long focal length images. The result was very good. Now all detailed features in the image, like stars, brighter nebula details and dark nebulae are form high res image data. The dim and relatively featureless data is taken from the wide field image. At the end the both datasets are combined by VARES-processing method to a one very deep and detailed image.
Monkey Head nebula. Messier 35 and the Jellyfish Nebula
Click for a large image!
Click for a large image!
Mapped colors from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen.
Wider mosaic, from Lower's Nebula to Jellyfish Nebula
Click for a large image! (2500 x 1100 pixels)
Labeled
Click for a large image!
Long focal length images boosted with a very deep wide field data.
Monkey Head nebula, NGC 2175
Click for a large image
The wide field data boosted long focal length image, original photo and details can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2015/03/ngc-2174-monkey-head-nebula-project.html
I think, this was a first image in the World showing the extremely dim lower part, "Teil of the Monkey", of the nebula.
Monkey Head nebula, NGC 2175
Click for a large image
I think, this was a first image in the World showing the extremely dim lower part, "Teil of the Monkey", of the nebula.
Lower's Nebula, Sh2-261
Click for a large image
Click for a large image
The wide field data boosted long focal length image, original photo and details can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/01/lowers-nebula.html
Jellyfish Nebula, the supernova remnant IC433
Click for a large image
Click for a large image
The wide field data boosted long focal length image, original photo and details can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2015/01/jellyfish-nebula-ic-443-supernova.html
Monday, July 19, 2021
Voices of Apollo 11
@FORBES
"The Ultimate Tribute To The Fallen Heroes Who Took Us To Moon"
"Metsavainio has created a ‘voices of Apollo 11’ artistic masterpiece to immortalize the mission and its target forever."
The Voices of Apollo 11
are now part of the Moon forever
Click for the larger version of 2500 x 2500 pixels.
Image shows the full Moon made entirely out the text of the transcript of the onboard voice conversations of the Apollo 11 mission. There is nothing else in this photo-based image. Just letters.
The Voices
I downloaded NASA's original full transcript of Apollo 11's onboard voice conversations. The idea was to turn this text into an image of the Moon. After a few weeks of intense work at a feverish pace my tribute was ready. Now the Moon is made up entirely of Apollo 11 voice transcription letters.
This is also a tribute to the entire Apollo 11 team: Commander Neil A. Armstrong, Command Module Pilot Michael Collins, and Lunar Module Pilot Edwin E. Aldrin Jr.
This is also a tribute to the entire Apollo 11 team: Commander Neil A. Armstrong, Command Module Pilot Michael Collins, and Lunar Module Pilot Edwin E. Aldrin Jr.
WHY?
I was most gratified and deeply moved when Michael Collins —the Apollo 11 & Gemini 10 astronaut, author, explorer and artist— tweeted following kind words about my work on April 19th, 2021: https://twitter.com/AstroMCollins/status/1384194949009211393
The news of his passing, just nine days later, hit me all the harder — a very emotional moment for me. Out of the blue, I got inspired to create this artwork. I absolutely had to do it right away, which I did.
Michael Collins was affectionately referred to as “the loneliest man in history” for being the command module pilot who flew solo in space behind the Moon and without radio contact with anyone while his colleagues, Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong, set foot on the Moon for the first time in history. Michael was also an artist. His iconic photos made from Moon orbit are true art and part of mankind's greatest cultural heritage treasure.
A similar solitude gripped me while I was creating this tribute image. For being an astronomical photographer and a visual artist often is a very lonely job. Especially this time as I was deeply emotional throughout my creative process for this artwork. Even though I never met him personally, the end of his Earthly mission meant more to me than I was prepared for. I needed to make this photo-based artwork to process the inner storm of my thoughts and feelings.
The Apollo 11 landing site is marked by two red letters.
4K VIDEO
1-minute 4K video about the "Voices of Apollo 11" artwork. Please watch in full screen for the best viewing experience.
The music "Fly me to the Moon"
Frank Sinatra's 1964 recording of "Fly Me to the Moon" became closely associated with NASA's Apollo space program. A copy of the song was played on a Sony TC-50 portable cassette player on the Apollo 10 mission which orbited the Moon,[44] and also on Apollo 11 before the first landing on the Moon.[45] Source Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fly_Me_to_the_Moon
Material used for the artwork
Apollo 11 onboard voice transcription
Click to download the PDF-document, 5.5 MB
My photo of a Full Moon
Click for a larger image.
Click for a larger image.
I used my twenty-year-old photo of the Full Moon to create this text based artwork.
Wednesday, June 23, 2021
Photo number 8, The Chinese Dragon
Chinese Dragon,
This is the only image in the World showing the constellation Cygnus so deep and detailed
Image is reduced to size of 2600 x 4200 pixels from the original 30.000 x 17.000 pixels. Click for a large image, it's worth it! Mosaic image was shot between September 2010 and December 2020
NEW, a Zoomable image
Location in the Great Mosaic of the Milky Way
Click for a large image, area of interest ids marked as white rectangle
The Dragon, 4K-MOVIE
Duration ~one minute
Duration ~one minute
About this photo
This photo means a lot to me personally. Not only due to large amount of work and time I spent with this area of sky, it also has a deeper meaning for me.When you spent a decade working with a one photo to get it ready, it's like a long marriage. The passionate love is slowly turning to a deeper connection and at the end you'll grow together and can't live without the others company. As in marriage, during the years I have had friction in the relationship, even hate. But after desperate times the love always wins.
I'm a perfectionist, when dealing with my photography. This feature is essential for a great results but it also can cause problems in relationship. There have been times when I almost get a divorce and started looking for another, easier target since I couldn't get out all of the extreme dim and difficult details I wanted to see and show. I didn't even know, if they are there since there wasn't any references to compare. I didn't give up and finally after long nights and hundreds of exposure hours I get what I was after. Now we can grow old together and I know for sure, I will always find something new and existing from my love one, the Chinese Dragon..
Total exposure time is way over 600 hours, they are shot between 2010 and 2020. Some areas of this mosaic panorama required more exposure time than others. There are two very diffused supernova remnants in this mosaic. Both are large and extremely dim. I have used about 170 hours of exposures for them alone! There aren't any deep and large enough photos around showing them well.
I have started this imaging project back at 2010. My aim was to make a high resolution mosaic covering the whole constellation Cygnus. Work like that takes time and patience, especially since I have worked so, that many of the individual sub mosaics or frames can be published as an individual artworks. Here is a poster format presentation about all of the longer focal length images used for this mosaic beside longer focal length panels.
(3300 x 5500 pixels)
A location for each photo is marked at the older version of the mosaic image of the constellation Cygnus at center.
As a result I have now a huge 95 panel mosaic panorama covering 28 x 18 degrees of sky. I have collected photons way over 600 hours during past ten years for this photo. The full size mosaic image has a size of about 25.000 x 15.000 pixels.
Two + one supernova remnants, two Wolf Rayet stars and a black hole
There are two large supernova remnants visible in this photo, first the Cygnus Shell W63 , bluish ring at upper left quarter, secondly the large SNR G65.3+5.7 at utmost right.
Just outside of the field of view lays the famous Veil Nebula SNR at bottom middle.
Just outside of the field of view lays the famous Veil Nebula SNR at bottom middle.
Beside two supernova remnants there are two Wolf Rayet stars with outer shell formations. NGC 6888, the Crescent Nebula at center of the image and the WR 134, it can be seen as a blue arch just right from the Crescent Nebula, near the Tulip nebula.
Next to the Tulip Nebula lays a Black hole Cygnus X-1.
Constellation Cygnus is an endless source of celestial wonders, both scientifically and aesthetically. For me, as an visual artist, this area of night sky is very inspiring There are endless amount of amazing shapes and structures, I can spend rest of my life just shooting images from this treasury.
Please, click the image for full resolution
Note. The third supernova remnant is marked at this image, it's just outside of the actual field of view. I left it out on purpose due to compositional reasons.
Technical details
Original resolution in pixels, 25.000 x 15.000
The NASA astronomer wrote about this image:
A version of this photo was selected as an Astronomical Picture Of the Day by NASA
Original resolution in pixels, 25.000 x 15.000
The NASA astronomer wrote about this image:
In brush strokes of interstellar dust and glowing gas, this beautiful skyscape is painted across the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy near the northern end of the Great Rift and the constellation Cygnus the Swan. Composed over a decade with 400 hours of image data, the broad mosaic spans an impressive 28x18 degrees across the sky. Alpha star of Cygnus, bright, hot, supergiant Deneb lies at the left. Crowded with stars and luminous gas clouds Cygnus is also home to the dark, obscuring Northern Coal Sack Nebula and the star forming emission regions NGC 7000, the North America Nebula and IC 5070, the Pelican Nebula, just left and a little below Deneb. Many other nebulae and star clusters are identifiable throughout the cosmic scene. Of course, Deneb itself is also known to northern hemisphere skygazers for its place in two asterisms, marking a vertex of the Summer Triangle, the top of the Northern Cross.
This is a large area of sky! (28 x 18 degrees) The mosaic photo is in mapped colours, from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulphur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen. Image has over five million stars visible in it.
I have used several optical configurations for this mosaic image during the years. Up to 2014 I was using an old Meade LX200 GPS 12" scope, QHY9 astrocam, Canon EF 200mm f1.8 camera optics and baader narrowband filter set.
After 2014 I have had 10-micron 1000 equatorial mount, Apogee Alta U16 astro camera, Tokina AT-x 200mm f2.8 camera lens and the Astrodon 50mm square narrowband filter set.
I have shot many details with a longer focal length, before 2014 by using Meade 12" scope with reducer and after 2014 Celestron EDGE 11" and reducer. Quider camera has been Lodestar and Lodestar II.
I have used several optical configurations for this mosaic image during the years. Up to 2014 I was using an old Meade LX200 GPS 12" scope, QHY9 astrocam, Canon EF 200mm f1.8 camera optics and baader narrowband filter set.
After 2014 I have had 10-micron 1000 equatorial mount, Apogee Alta U16 astro camera, Tokina AT-x 200mm f2.8 camera lens and the Astrodon 50mm square narrowband filter set.
I have shot many details with a longer focal length, before 2014 by using Meade 12" scope with reducer and after 2014 Celestron EDGE 11" and reducer. Quider camera has been Lodestar and Lodestar II.
A version of this photo was selected as an Astronomical Picture Of the Day by NASA
Mosaic panels in chronological order
Here is an image about individual panels shot for this large mosaic image.
There are 37 base panels with shorter focal length tools (200mm f2.8 Tokina and 200mm f1.8 Canon) There is also 59 sub-panels used, they are shot with my old 12" Meade and 11" Celestron Edge scopes.
Here is a poster format presentation and a list all of longer focal length images used for this mosaic beside the actual panels, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2018/11/treasures-of-swan.html
Here is a poster format presentation and a list all of longer focal length images used for this mosaic beside the actual panels, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2018/11/treasures-of-swan.html
Evolution of the mosaic between 2010 and 2020
Click for a large image
Click for a large image
More info
Friday, May 7, 2021
All my photos from the Spring season 2021
All my photos from the Spring season 2021
Click for a large image
Click for a large image
- "The Space Between Us" https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/03/space-between-cygnus-and-cepheus.html
- The Constellation cassiopeia
- From Cassiopeia to Cygnus, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/02/this-gigapixel-mosaic-has-over-900.html
- "Cirrus of Cygnus", https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/12/cirrus-of-cygnus-and-supernova-remnant.html
- SNR G65.5+5.7, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/11/g65357-large-supernova-remnant-in_22.html
- Sharpless 132, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/02/sharpless-132-sh2-132-with-new-data.html
- Lower's Nebula, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/01/lowers-nebula.html
- From Taurus to Perseus, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/02/a-new-mosaic-image-from-taurus-to.html
- From Cassiopeia to Cepheus, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/01/mosaic-image-gets-large-400-hours-and.html
- From Cassiopeia to Cepheus, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/01/mosaic-image-gets-large-400-hours-and.html
- The Grand Mosaic of the Milky Way, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/03/gigapixel-mosaic-of-milky-way-1250.html
All my photos from the year 2020
Click for a full size poster (2000 x 2800 pixels)
NOTE, images are not in scale to each other. ore info about the year 2020 can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/12/all-my-photos-from-year-2020.html
I have a new logo now
Thursday, May 6, 2021
4K videos about the Grand Mosaic of the Milky Way
The only photo in the World showing the Northern Milky Way in this accuracy and depth.
ABOUT THE 4K-VIDEOS
Original photo has so high resolution, that's impossible to show over the web, I made those videos to bring out even some of the accuracy of the original photo.
Please, use a 4K-display or the TV-set to watch the video, if possible.
It does play nicely in normal HD-display but you'll get much more out of this by using the 4K-display.
4K-VIDEO 1
4K-VIDEO 2
Panoramic photo of the Northern Milky Way
Monday, March 22, 2021
A temporary WEB SHOP OPENED
This is a very temporary Web Shop and I'll shut it down in near future!
You can now buy my photos as a photographic prints
Please, have a look, https://astroanarchy.zenfolio.com/
The reason for the Temporary Web Shop is that my picture of the Great Mosaic of Milky Way, went viral. I can't reply personally to all, who wants to have a photo from my collection.
I'm a professional visual artist and my photos are always a very limited series. In this case, the limitation is done by limiting the sales time. I will inform a day or two ahead, when I'll close this Web Shop permanently.
Thank you,
Astronomical Nature photographer J-P Metsavainio, Finland
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