Orion and his Dog Stars, Sirius (bottom) and Procyon (left), in Canis Major and Canis Minor. Many red nebulas are also visible in this area of the northern winter Milky Way, as well as star clusters such as M41 below Sirius, and M50 at far left. The Orion Nebula, M42, is below the Belt of Orion in Orion’s Sword. Betelgeuse, Procyon and Sirius form the “Winter Triangle.” This is a stack of 5 x 5 minute exposures at f/2.8 and ISO 800 with the 35mm lens and filter-modified Canon 5D MkII, plus 2 x 2.5-minute exposures at ISO 1600 with the Kenko Softon filter for added star glows. However, haze this night added natural star glows. Taken from Quailway Cottage near Portal, Arizona, December 5, 2015.
Orion and Sirius rising into a moonlit winter sky, on a chilly (-20°C) winter night on January 28, 2023. Below Orion is Sirius in Canis Major. The red giant Betelgeuse and the blue giant Rigel stand out nicely above and below the Belt. Light from the first quarter Moon off frame illuminates the landscape. This serves as a good illustration of how the Belt stars in Orion point down to Sirius. The minor constellation of Lepus the Hare is below Orion. And the "Pi" stars that form the arc of the shield of Orion show up to the right of Orion. This is a stack of 4 x 30-second exposures for the sky with the camera tracking the sky, blended with a stack of 4 x 30-second untracked exposures for the ground. All with the Canon RF28-70mm lens at 33mm and f/2.8 and Canon R5 at ISO 200. A tracked exposure through the Alyn Wallace/Kase StarGlow filter added the star glows, and for artistic effect I also added diffraction spikes on the stars with the AstronomyTools actions. A mild Orton glow added with Luminar Neo.
Orion and his foe, Taurus, with the star clusters the Hyades, and Pleiades. Many red nebulas are also visible in this area of the northern winter Milky Way, such as the Rosette Nebula at left. The Orion Nebula, M42, is below the Belt of Orion in Orion’s Sword. This is a stack of 4 x 5 minute exposures at f/2.8 and ISO 800 with the 35mm lens and filter-modified Canon 5D MkII, plus 2 x 2.5-minute exposures at ISO 1600 with the Kenko Softon filter for added star glows. However, haze this night added natural star glows. Taken from Quailway Cottage near Portal, Arizona, December 5, 2015.
