Travel photography website Capture the Atlas has revealed the winners of its seventh annual Milky Way Photographer of the Year collection. 

Editor-in-chief at Capture the Atlas, Dan Zafra, chose 25 winning photographs out of 5,000 entries. The winners range from 15 countries across the world including the US, Chile, Argentina, Australia, Oman and Jordan. 

The Milky Way is 50,000 light years across and is an enormous collection of over one billion stars, dust and gas. It’s called a spiral galaxy because if you were to view it from the top or bottom, it would look like a spinning pinwheel. 

At one end of the galaxy is the Sun, which is about 25,000 light years away from the center of the Milky Way. The speed of light is 300,000 kilometers (186,000 miles) per second, it would still take 25,000 years to reach the middle of the Milky Way. 

Our main image at the top was taken by Lorenzo Ranieri in the Atacama Desert in Chile. The photograph is a panorama consisting of several shots… The sky portion is composed of images taken with a Sony 35mm lens with exposures of 30s @ f/2, ISO 6400; the images have been tracked and stacked for noise reduction. 

The foreground is a panorama taken with a Sony 14mm lens with a 25s at f/2.2, ISO 8000, exposure focus stacked and stacked for noise reduction.   

Ranieri said: 

“Spending the night there was admittedly a bit nerve-wracking, but the opportunity to photograph such beauty made it worthwhile. The Milky Way’s arch, in all its splendor, rises above the pristine landscape, creating a truly mesmerizing scene.”

Here are some of my other favorite winners from the Milky Way Photographer of the Year awards… 

“Mother Juniper” was taken by Benjamin Barakat at the impressive Jebel Shams mountain, Oman. The foreground was shot using a Sony A7 IV, with an exposure os 120secs at f/3.2 ISO 400, with the sky being shot with shot using a Sony 12-24mm f/2.8.

Barakat said:

“I found myself beneath the juniper’s boughs, gazing up at the cosmic dance above, capturing its essence in the stillness of the night.”

“Atmospheric Fireworks” was taken by Julien Looten in Dordogne, France.

The stunning image of a chateau under the Milky Way consists of 40 images across a 180 degree panorama showcasing the galactic arc, with 13 seconds per exposure.

Capturing the image took an hour of exposure time using a specially-modified Canon 6D Astrodon and a Sigma 28mm f/1.4 lens.

Looten said:

Last winter, I ventured to the foot of a medieval castle in France to capture the Milky Way’s “winter” arc. Alongside the stunning celestial vault, an exceptional airglow illuminated the sky, resembling multicolored clouds. This natural phenomenon occurs due to a chemical reaction in the upper atmosphere, emitting a faint light known as chemiluminescence.

“The Celestial Symphony Above a High Desert Lagoon” by Kerry-Ann Lecky Hepburn was also taken in the Atacama Desert, Chile.

Kerry-Anne Lecky Hepburn managed to capture this beautiful image in a single 25-second exposure taken with her modified Canon R6 at ISO 6400, using her Sigma 15mm f/2.8 fisheye lens.  

She said: 

“One night, we embarked on an eerie 40-minute trek in the dark along a salt trail to photograph the Milky Way and one of several lagoons in the high elevations of the Atacama Desert. At 15,000 feet, it was easy to get out of breath while walking across this rugged terrain with camera gear. Originally planned for daylight hours, we postponed the hike due to fierce winds. During the day, the lagoons typically appear bright blue with the sun shining high in the sky. To replicate this effect at night, we used a flashlight to cast a beam across the tranquil waters during a long exposure, resulting in a surreal and mesmerizing scene.”

Check out our guide to the best cameras for astrophotography, and the best lenses to capture the Milky Way.

We’ve also got all the information you need about the best low light cameras in 2024. 

Leaning out the open door of a helicopter, 75-year-old photographer Donn Delson shows no fear as he clicks away on his camera capturing the buildings below.

Taking up aerial photography in his 60s, the LA-based entrepreneur has since sold nearly £1m worth of artwork since switching careers.

Delson has flown more than 300 hours in countries including Japan, the Netherlands, Hawaii and Israel but London, he tells Sky News, is his “favourite city”.

Before photography, Delson founded the world’s fourth-largest entertainment merchandising company, working with stars including Rihanna, Billy Joel and Alanis Morisette. He sold the company to AEG Live in 2007.

Strapped into a helicopter at heights of up to 12,000ft, Delson captures his artwork at a perspective and range that would be unachievable by drones due to height restrictions in urban areas.

He explains: “I need to be connected to what I am taking pictures of. When I don’t have a door and I can lean out and look down, I am able to have that emotional and spiritual connection.”

The artist likes to find “patterns” and “colours” in the scene but admits he doesn’t always find the right shot on every flight.

It’s his aerial perspective which makes his large-scale artwork unique and while many of his peers are long since retired, he retains a youth and exuberance for life and his art.

When shooting, Delson likes to “look for things that may not be what they seem to be at first glance.”

Here he shows the vivid turquoise dome of London’s British Museum – a feature unseen from below.

The Crown Jewel, British Museum, Donn Delson

Delson doesn’t only focus on the abstract, this photo London Lights is from his Points Of Light collection. He calls London a “special” place.

London Lights, Donn Delson

In Xylophones, Delson depicts rows of shipping containers at a port in Los Angeles.

He says: “At first glance, most people think it’s either bookshelves or a xylophone. Then they notice the truck, and sometimes it takes them a few seconds to study the image and to realise what it truly is.

Xylophones, Donn Delson

The famous cherry blossom season in Japan is usually admired from ground level but Delson captured it from an aerial perspective, east of Kyoto.

Cascade, Donn Delson

Another shot from outside Kyoto, this photo shows symmetrical rows of cherry trees which had been purposely planted.

Abacus, Donn Delson

Delson was commissioned to create Headdress for $45,000 (£35,000). It was taken above a marina in San Francisco.

Headdress, Donn Delson

Feathered was captured on another trip to London where he was flying down the River Thames towards O2 and spotted some containers.

Naming it, he said it looked like the features on the shaft of an arrow.

Feathered, Donn Delson

Taken over the Dead Sea in Israel, Tree of Life is part of Delson’s Holy Land collection.

Tree of Life, Donn Delson

Paul Bowen has spent his life behind the camera taking pictures of aircraft … from other aircraft.

He said he first started taking pictures at the beach of surfers and sunbathers in his native California. He originally came to Wichita in the early 1970s to direct a halfway house for a church but eventually found a job assisting a commercial photographer.

“So for $1.75 an hour, I learned what a commercial photographer was by carrying his cameras around, loading the film and keeping my eyes and ears open,” Bowen recalled. “Because if you’re a commercial photographer in Wichita, you eventually will take a picture of an airplane.”

Bowen was taking pictures of sleeping bags for Coleman in Wichita one week … the next week, he was shooting airplanes in California.

“And I came back [from California] and told my wife, ‘I’ll be a much happier person, a better husband, and we’ll have more fun if I simply concentrate on aviation.’ ”

He’d eventually photograph all of the major players in Wichita aviation and around the world. But that came after he established himself first with Beechcraft.

His initial airplane pictures were taken on the ground. His first time shooting photos out of an airplane, though, did not go as planned.

“They took me up in the air, and I promptly got air sick,” said Bowen, a member of the Kansas Aviation Hall of Fame. “It’s very odd looking through a lens as you’re doing maneuvers. And so I got airsick on my first flight.

“Unfortunately, my camera bag was the target of my issues in the air. And afterwards, I was able to get what I needed shot.”

Bowen only has a handful of flight training hours in the cockpit, but he’s logged thousands of hours tethered into the rear gunner position of a World War II B-25 bomber. That’s where he takes the pictures he’s best known for: an airplane just above the clouds, highlighting an effect caused by air flowing over an aircraft’s wings that is only visible when there is a layer of clouds.

“The vortices was really a happy accident,” Bowen said.

“We usually shoot at sunrise and sunset because of the better lighting. And we were out in California, and we were slightly inland. But we knew that there was a marine layer of fog … off the coast that was coming up to the coastal range of mountains there in California. And part of the briefing was that we were wanting to get out over the marine layer.

“And as we did, and got just slightly above it, gravity revealed the vortices effect as we scooted along, just off the coast of California.”

Bowen published those pictures, and more, in a series of books called “Air To Air.”

Throughout his career, he’s seen technology go from physical film to digital photography. In 2001, the first digital camera came out, and he took it as a backup camera to a shoot in South Africa.

“The quality, quite frankly, wasn’t there at that time,” Bowen said. “It was at that point the light came on, and I realized how wonderful digital [photography] would be. And within a few years, when the technology got better, we switched entirely to digital.”

One of the many life lessons he’s learned while amassing thousands of magazine covers and accolades is to treat people the way he wants to be treated.

“Attention to detail, integrity, building relationships,” he said. “Someone I worked with… five years ago is now working for another company, and they remember working with me and that I was fairly easy to work with.

“And so all of those just very practical experiences like that have brought that home.”

Bowen is semi-retired and lives with his wife outside of Augusta. He keeps a surfboard in Hawaii so he can surf during their frequent visits there.

“I think it’s safe to say that I have the best job in aviation,” Bowen said. “I’ve had the opportunity to work with amazing pilots, to travel the world, to see beautiful airplanes in flight, to become friends with astronauts, with World War II heroes.

“And, again, I’m just kind of a kid with a camera, and I’ve had the opportunity to live a life that I could never have imagined. You know, at one point, I wanted to be a dentist. And so, thankfully, that didn’t happen.

“It’s a little bit like Garth Brooks, saying, ‘I thank God for unanswered prayers.’ So I have the best job in aviation.”

Sculpture at The Mount opens on Sunday, June 2nd

Lenox— The Mount, Edith Wharton’s Home, is pleased to announce that the annual outdoor sculpture exhibition produced in the Berkshires for the past twenty-five years officially opens on Sunday, June 2nd. Visitors can experience the exhibition for free every day of the week, from dawn until dusk, through October 20th. 

The popular annual exhibition features 24 large-scale outdoor works by emerging and established artists in many sizes and media thoughtfully situated throughout The Mount’s lush gardens and grounds.

Executive director of The Mount Susan Wissler said “There is great synergy between Wharton’s literary legacy and the compelling narratives expressed through contemporary sculpture. The exhibition encourages visitors to explore the intersection of literature, sculpture, and nature.”

The exhibit runs from June 2nd through October 20th at The Mount on Plunkett Street in Lenox. There is a “Meet the Artists” event on Sunday June 23, at 3 p.m. at which the 24 artists will share their stories and visions next to their pieces. Artist-led tours will also be available monthly. Registration and more information can be found online. 

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The Springfield Museums proudly present ‘Frida Kahlo, Her Photos,’ an exhibition that offers an intimate glimpse of the renowned Mexican artist

Springfield— From June 1st through September 8th, the Springfield Museums proudly present “Frida Kahlo, Her Photos,” a collection of images from a secret archive hidden at her residence, La Casa Azul (now Museo Frida Kahlo.)

Frida Kahlo (1907-1954) is recognized for her self-portraits that blend realism with fantasy. Her distinctive naïve folk-art style explores themes of identity, postcolonialism, gender, class, and race in Mexican society.  Although Kahlo remained relatively unknown until the late 1970s, her work has been rediscovered by art historians and political activists, making her a symbol of Mexican national and Indigenous traditions, as well as a powerful voice for the female experience.

Curated by Mexican photographer and photo historian, Pablo Ortiz Monasterio, the exhibition features more than 200 images that illuminate Kahlo’s artistry, her life, and her deep connection to Mexico.

“The life and artwork of Frida Kahlo continue to inspire and captivate audiences worldwide,” says Heather Haskell-Burns, Vice President and Director of the art museums. “We are thrilled to host this collection of previously unseen images, offering our visitors a deeper insight into Kahlo through her photographic documentation of her personal and artistic journey.”

The exhibit runs from June 1st through September 8th at the Michele and Donald D’Amour Museum of Fine Arts at 21 Edwards Street in Springfield. Tickets and more information can be found online. 

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Norfolk Library presents ‘Embers & Flames: 50 Years of Lights & Lenses,’ the photographs of Jeffery Kay

Norfolk, C.T.— Through the month of June, the Norfolk Library presents ‘Embers & Flames: 50 Years of Lights & Lenses,’ the photographs of Jeffery Kay.

Kay is a photographer from New York City who tells visual stories through rare and unusual vintage lenses. This exhibition of fine art prints showcases his decades-long exploration of visual storytelling, bokeh experimentation, and painterly abstraction in landscape and portraiture, in both black and white and color palettes.

The exhibit runs through the month of June at The Norfolk Library at 9 Greenwoods Road East in Norfolk, C.T. There is an opening reception on Sunday, June 2nd from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at which poet Sarah Kay will join her father for a performance of spoken word poetry. More information can be found online.   

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Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center presents Keb’ Mo’

Great Barrington— On Saturday, June 15th at 8 p.m., the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center presents Keb’ Mo’.

Keb’ Mo’s musical journey began nearly half a century ago, when he landed his first major gig in Papa John Creach’s band at the age of 21. Over the course of the next 20 years, Keb’ would go on to establish himself as a respected guitarist, songwriter, and arranger, and though he recorded a one-off album in 1980 under his birth name, Kevin Moore, it wasn’t until 1994 that he would introduce the world to Keb’ Mo’ with the release of his widely acclaimed self-titled debut. 

Critics were quick to take note of Keb’s modern, genre-bending take on old school sounds, and two years later, he garnered his first GRAMMY Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album. In the decades to come, Keb’ would take home five more GRAMMY Awards; top the Billboard Blues Chart seven times; perform everywhere from Carnegie Hall to The White House; collaborate with many including Taj Mahal, Willie Nelson, Bonnie Raitt, The Chicks, and Lyle Lovett; have compositions recorded and sampled by artists as diverse as B.B. King, Zac Brown, and BTS; release signature guitars with both Gibson and Martin; appear in and compose music for films and TV shows, and earn the Americana Music Association’s 2021 award for Lifetime Achievement in Performance.

The concert is on Saturday, June 15th at 8 p.m. at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center at 14 Castle Street in Great Barrington. Phillip-Michael Scales is the opening act. Tickets are $45 to $95, with limited availability. Tickets and more information can be found online. 

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Bottomless Bricks and Berkshire Pride present ‘Adult Build Night: Pride Edition!’

Pittsfield— On Tuesday, June 4th at 6 p.m., Bottomless Bricks and Berkshire Pride present “Adult Build Night: Pride Edition!,” a creative evening perfect for adults looking to express their pride through building and imagination.

Think of this unique and colorful celebration as a Paint & Sip but with LEGO® elements. Come together with fellow community members to help build a stunning Pride Flag for Berkshire Pride using an array of LEGO® parts and pieces. All necessary parts and instructions will be provided, and no experience is necessary.

There is also an option to craft your own rainbow bowties. This wearable accessory can be built and purchased to take home for $10.

The 21+ event is on Tuesday, June 4th at 6 p.m. at Bottomless Bricks at 163 South Street in Pittsfield. BYOB. Registration is required. Registration and more information can be found online. 

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Online auction to benefit The Triplex Cinema

Great Barrington— From June 2nd through June 10th, there is an online auction to benefit The Triplex Cinema.

Have you ever wanted to eat dinner with a famous politician, lunch at a renowned estate with a celebrity, own an original drawing by a well-known artist, or acquire memorabilia from one of the most iconic films ever made? If so, you can bid on all of that and so much more at the Triplex Spring 2024 Online Auction.

Some of the items to be auctioned are:

•   A private dinner for 10 at the Red Lion Inn with former Governor Deval Patrick and First Lady Diane Patrick.

•   “Indiana Jones” vintage memorabilia from Karen Allen.

•   Lunch and garden tour at Blue Stone Manor with Dorinda Medley of the “Real Housewives of New York.”

•   A week at Jayne Atkinson and Michel Gill’s fabulous Michigan Lake house.

•   Dinner at The Elm with “Super-Agent” to the stars, Bart Walker.

•   An original signed drawing and book collection by artist Walton Ford.

•   Lauren Ambrose’s “Yellowjackets” bomber jacket from her hit series on Showtime.

•   Lunch at Zinc with Producer/director Matt Penn. Plus, a working copy of the screenplay “Alice’s Restaurant” with Arthur Penn’s handwritten notes.

•   Vacation for one week at the beautiful Casa Miel in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.

•   James Hamilton (photographer to the stars) original signed photos.

•   A Spa Day for two at Canyon Ranch, and much much more.

The bidding will start on June 2nd at 9 a.m. and end on June 10th at 9 p.m. The auction can be viewed online.