Mars and Uranus
As with any form of photography, getting a good shot is largely about being in the right place at the right time. When it comes to photographing the planets, sometimes that means getting up at a painful hour.
Both Mars and Uranus are nearing “opposition” – the point where they are directly across from Earth as seen from the sun. This is when the appear at their biggest and brightest.
But it’s not just about getting the right time of year, you also need to get the right time of night. You want to shoot them when they are at their highest point in the sky, which right now, means getting up at 3 AM.
And even then, you’re at the mercy of the weather. Not only do you need to find a night without clouds, but you also need a night with a very still atmosphere. Turbulence above makes images of the planets shimmer, making it impossible to see the details on their surface.
But this morning… well, you could say the planets aligned. Pretty happy with the results.
