Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2018 Exhibition

On Sunday 5th May I visited the National Maritime Museum to see the Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year exhibition. I was in London for a gig and thought it would be a good Sunday morning activity. I almost didn’t make it; nursing a hangover, morning quickly became afternoon but a restorative bacon roll in the Astronomy Cafe at the Royal Observatory Greenwich set me back on an even keel.

The exhibition is actually down the hill from the ROG at the National Maritime Museum and costs £10 entry for adults. The images are arranged in the different categories and include a few ‘best ofs’ from previous years. It’s an impressive show with high resolution illuminated images with explanations and notes on the equipment. There is a a scrolling video display and some interactive exhibits.

Being a deep sky fan, my favourite images was the winner in the Galaxy section; NGC 3521 by Steven Mohr. It was so good it leapt of the screen like it was in 3D with the main galaxy surrounded by further tiny galaxies. It is the kind of image you could look at again and again.

So for those looking for an award winning entry, what’s going to make your image stand out from the crowd? In truth they’ll always be someone with a bigger scope to eclipse your images of M33 or M51 - so avoid the obvious. I think the greatest area for originality is in the nightscapes and wide field category where any great foreground (building, canyon, rock formation) can make for an exciting astronomy image, whether with single exposures, star trails or the Milky Way. Otherwise find a unique way to illustrate a part of the sky that others may also be imaging. The exhibition showed great originality in both the content and composition of the entries. One day I hope to have an entry worthy for consideration.