The Astronomical Society of Penang’s Astrophotography contest 2024 has closed on Sunday 13 October 2024. The contest was sponsored by Svbony, Perseid Telescopes and MT Studio. This year, we received a total of 75 submissions from 28 participants, of which 66 entries are shortlisted for judging.
Thirteen best images were decided by a panel of three judges for the First Prize, Second Prize, Third Prize, and ten Consolation Prizes, and will be featured in the coming desk calendar of the year 2025 to be published by the Astronomical Society of Penang. Please stay tuned!
Results of the contest was announced on Sunday 20 October 2024, at 8:00 p.m. on our YouTube channel. Congratulations to all our winners!
You can check out the winning photos below!
First Prize
SH2-308 Dolphin Head Nebula by Alfred Terrence
Date & Location 30 January 2024, empty land near Johor Premium Outlet, Johor.
Description SH2-308 is a large cosmic bubble blown from a huge Wolf-Rayet star in the center of the dolphin which is likely to go supernova in the future. The star has ejected material which creates the very faint ionized oxygen blue green bubble.
Equipment TS Optics Photoline 115 @ 802mm f/7 telescope.
Camera Settings 44 x 200 s (Askar C1 Ha + OIII filter) + 105 x 300 s (Optolong L-eNhance filter).
Post Processing PixInsight & Photoshop
Second Prize
Project Sunrise by Muhammad Fadzli bin Sidi Omar
Date & Location 15 December 2023, Parit Buntar, Perak.
Description Positions of the Sun during sunrise for each month throughout the year of 2023.
Equipment Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 smartphone.
Camera Settings 13mm, f/2.2, ISO 100, 1/500 s.
Post Processing Enhanced contrast & exposure in Snapseed. Created a collage in Photo Grid.
Third Prize
Angel Nebula by Ngan Joon Ren
Date & Location 13 January 2024, Bukit Awan, Kampung Pagi, Pahang.
Description The Angel Nebula is a reflection + dark nebulae complex comprising of NGC2170, VdB68-69 and LBN993/995/999. Other minor reflection & dark nebulae are also visible around the Angel. The area is filled with background dust which is typical of the Orion and Monoceros regions.
Equipment Askar FRA400 telescope, Sky-Watcher EQ6R mount, ZWO ASI2600MC Pro camera, ASI120MM Mini guide camera, ASIAIR Plus controller and OAG-L.
Camera Settings 180 s exposure, 0 Gain, -5°C.
Post Processing Stacked (with darks/flats/bias) and processed via PixInsight.
Ten Consolation Prizes
The Flame and The Tadpoles by Ravinder Krishnan
Date & Location 14 January 2024, Ipoh, Perak.
Description IC405, The Flaming Star Nebula (bottom and IC410, The Tadpole Nebula, in the constellation of Auriga. At the heart of the Flaming Star Nebula is the bright hot O-class star, AE Aurigae. This star illuminates the the surrounding dust and also causes the hydrogen rich area to glow red. Hence, this is both an emission and reflection nebula. IC410 contains two “tadpoles” swimming in the cosmic pond. The “tadpoles” are actually dense condensing gas which is beginning to radiate forming stars.
Equipment Sharpstar EDPH61 II telescope, 0.80x reducer, Sky-Watcher HEQ5 Pro mount, ASI2600MC Pro camera, Svbony SV220 dual band filter.
Camera Settings Gain 100, cooling 0°C, 160 x 120 s (5 h 20 m) integration.
Post Processing PixInsight
Seagull and Thor’s Helmet by Md Zaki Kosrin
Date & Location 30 January 2024, Kuala Kubu Bharu, Selangor.
Description Nicknamed for its shape, the Seagull Nebula is a very large emission nebula spanning an angle over 5x the diameter of full moon. Like a floating astronaut, the NGC 2359 also called the Thor’s Helmet Nebula located lower right on the image.
Equipment ZWO 2600MM Pro camera, Canon EF 200mm F2 L IS lens, ZWO AM5 mount, Antlia Ha, OIII, SII Narrowband filters.
Camera Settings Ha – 21 x 300 s. OIII – 24 x 300 s. SII – 24 x 300 s.
Post Processing PixInsight, Photoshop.
Carinae Nebula by William Tay
Date & Location 11 February 2024, Kuala Kubu Bharu, Selangor.
Description Carinae Nebula.
Equipment DIY harmonic tracker, Nikon D5100 mod cooling camera, Skyrover 90 APO Pro (540mm f/6 telescope, Antlia triband filter.
Camera Settings -5°C, 42 x 180 s, ISO 1600.
Post Processing Stacked with DeepSkyStacker, processed with PixInsight.
That Viral Boat by Chan Mun Chung
Date & Location 7 June 2024, Endau, Johor.
Description According to locals, this boat ran ashore some time ago & it has been stranded there ever since because of low tides. They say the owners are waiting for high tide season to tow it back out to sea as it will be a much cheaper & simple operation when the boat is afloat. This sleepy seaside village has been attracting lots of photographers & casual tourists for that social media checkbox tick. This has resulted in booming business for local hotels, homestays & eateries during the weekends. This weekend was our turn to try to grab some images. We reached the location to super clear skies & the Scorpius Constellation was out in its full glory. As the tide was high, we had to place our gear quite a distance away in case it got wet. I pretty much had to wade out to almost knee length water to get this shot while I had time before the Milky Way rose too high. Best part was….as the tides were crashing up around me, I had to push down & hold on to my tripod tightly & keep it firm because the waves were crashing onto the tripod & shaking it.
Equipment Nikon D810a camera, Nikon 50mm lens.
Camera Settings Sky – 30 s, f/2.2, ISO 1600. Foreground – 5 s, f/1.8, ISO 6400.
Post Processing Stacked in Sequator, stitched in PTGui, blending & editing in Photoshop.
Gas Giants Combo by Tee Ching Hong
Date & Location 16 September 2024, Jementah, Johor.
Description When Jupiter and Saturn both close to their opposition – Jupiter on 3-Dec-2023, a month after its opposition; Saturn was obtained recently on 16-Sep-2024.
Equipment GSO 8″ Classical Cassegrain telescope, Sky-Watcher AZ-EQ5 mount, ZWO ASI462MC camera, Siebert Optics 1.5x Barlow.
Camera Settings Jupiter – 16 ms, gain 256. Saturn – 30 ms, gain 345.
Post Processing PIPP, AutoStakkert, AstroSurface, Winjupos, Photoshop
Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks by Farid Hamidi bin Ibrahim
Date & Location 9 April 2024, Kota Bharu Observatory, Kota Bharu, Kelantan.
Description 12P/Pons-Brooks is a Halley-type short-period comet with an orbital period of 71 years. The comet was officially discovered in July 1812 by a French astronomer Jean-Louis Pons. Then it was accidentally re-discovered in 1883 by an American astronomer William Brooks, which led to its combined name.
Equipment Sharpstar SCA260 telescope, FLI CCD camera, Sky-Watcher EQ8 Pro mount.
Camera Settings 15 s per frame.
Post Processing Maxim DL 6, Adobe Photoshop (11 frames stacked).
Crescent Nebula by Amri Karim
Date & Location 1 August 2024, Subang, Selangor.
Description The Crescent Nebula, an emission nebula formed by the fast stellar wind from a Wolf-Rayet star colliding with and energizing the slower-moving wind ejected by the star when it became a red giant around 250,000 years ago. It’s located 5000 light-years away in the constellation Cygnus. Image captured from home in Subang, 11 hours exposure, 13 nights.
Equipment Sky-Watcher Quattro 8″ Newtonian telescope, Optolong L-Ultimate filter, ZWO ASI585MC Pro camera, ASIAIR Plus controller, ZWO off-axis-guider, ZWO ASI290MM mini guide camera, ZWO AM5 mount.
Camera Settings 0°C, gain 252.
Post Processing PixInsight, Photoshop.
Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS and Penang Bridge by Lee Chee Keong
Date & Location 2 October 2024, Penand Bridge Coastline, Penang.
Description A unique opportunity to witness a comet alongside the Penang Bridge in the foreground. I feel incredibly lucky to have captured this rare moment.
Equipment Canon 5D Mark III camera, Canon 70-20 mm f/2.8 lens.
Camera Settings f/5, ISO 800, 2.5 s + 13 s.
Post Processing HDR foreground and comet.
Milky Way Over the Illuminated Cave by Wong Pok Ying
Date & Location 3 August 2024, Gerbang Laut Pulau Mawar, Johor.
Description This photo captures the breathtaking beauty of the Milky Way galaxy as it arcs across the night sky, filled with countless stars. Below, is the rugged rock formation illuminated by soft light, revealing intricate textures and shapes of the sea gate in Pulau Mawar, also known as the “Heaven’s Gate”. The contrast between the vast, starry expanse and the earthy, detailed foreground showcases the harmony between the celestial and terrestrial worlds in this peaceful and remote location.
Equipment Sony A7M4 camera, Tamron 17-28mm lens.
Camera Settings ISO 4000, 15 s, f/2.8, focal length 18mm.
Post Processing Mobile Lightroom and Snapseed.
