Another incredible sky this night! This is Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) over the badlands formations at Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta on July 22-23, 2020, with the Big Dipper above. A very active thunderstorm system moving northeastward this night but well to the west of me lights the horizon. Parallel bands of red and green airglow tint the sky, as does the blue of lingering summer twilight. Even with the bright sky the comet’s blue ion tail can be traced up to and past the Bowl of the Big Dipper. This is an exposure blend, with the landscape from a stack of seven exposures from 2.5 to 3.5 minutes long at f/2.8 and ISO 1600, stacked to smooth noise, blended with a single untracked 30-second exposure for the sky at ISO 6400 at f/2, all with the Sigma 24mm lens and Canon EOS Ra camera. The ground is illuminated by starlight and sky light only; no light painting was used here. Topaz DeNoise AI applied to the sky; Sharpen AI applied to the ground. Some light sculpting applied to the ground with a Dodge and Burn layer and a luminosity mask, to make the foreground less flat in lighting.
Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) reflected in the still waters this night of Crawling Lake in southern Alberta. A dim aurora at right colours the sky magenta. Lingering twilight colours the sky blue. A meteor or more likely a flaring satellite appears at right and is also reflected in the water. Even in this short exposure, the two tails — dust and ion — are visible. This was July 20, 2020. The main image content is a single untracked exposure of 25 seconds at f/2.8 and ISO 3200 with the 35mm Canon lens and Canon 6D MkII. The distant clouds, horizon, and water in the distance and in the immediate foreground without stars is from an average stack of 7 exposures, all at the above settings, to smooth noise. I shot this from Crawling Lake in southern Alberta on a near perfect night, though distant clouds are lit by yellow light pollution.
Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) over the still waters this night of Crawling Lake in southern Alberta. The Big Dipper is at top. Even in this short exposure, the two tails — dust and ion — are visible. This was July 20, 2020. The blue ion tail is extending up into the Bowl of the Big Dipper, for some 20° in length. Very impressive! The main image content is a single untracked exposure of 20 seconds at f/2.2 and ISO 3200 with the 35mm Canon lens and Canon 6D MkII. The distant clouds, horizon, and water in the distance and in the immedate foregound without stars is from an average stack of 6 exposures, all at the above settings, to smooth noise. I shot this from Crawling Lake in southern Alberta on a near perfect night, though distant clouds are lit by yellow light pollution.
