(Translated from the original article on October 15, 2024)

Hi, this is KA-TSU.

I took some photos of the fall starry sky using the GR III and GR IIIx alternately, depending on the scene. I took these photos in the Norikura Tatamidaira area, the same area where I introduced "Starry Skies Taken with GR IIIx" in October 2022.

In the previous article, I had lined up photos to illustrate how the 40 mm lens captured the starry sky, and some of the compositions weren't really satisfactory as a result. This time, although the constellations and shooting locations for the subjects were almost the same, there were more options for the angle of view, which gave me more freedom in composition. It may be interesting to compare these with the previous ones, as they are more like "starry sky landscapes" this time.

The photos were taken during the night from September 6, 2024 to September 7, 2024. All were taken as single shots. As I always tell you in my starry sky article, don't forget to set AA Filter Simulation to High and Image Stabilization to OFF when shooting starry skies with your GR III GR IIIx!

This photo is different from the others in that it was taken at the border between evening and night. The brightness of the sky changed from moment to moment, so I don't think the settings shown here will be helpful.

I took this photo because the crescent moon setting in the western sky and Venus were close together. The star called Spica was shining in the upper left of the moon and Venus was above the V-shaped ridge in the still bright sky.

The age of the moon that night was almost 3. In Japan, it is called the third-day moon. The moon looked thinner in reality, but the strong light made it look thicker in the photo than it really was. You may notice that the dark part of the moon also shone a little. This is a phenomenon called "earthshine". At this time of night, it can be seen with the naked eye.

It depends on the application, but the 71mm crop of the GR IIIx really works.

I photographed the Big Dipper and the landscape in a similar posture to the October 2022 article in a vertical composition using the 40mm angle of view on the GR IIIx.

I brightened the ground view to a degree close to what it looked like in RAW development. I applied the same process to the following photos. In these cases, the difference between the processed photos and the original is significant.

The rightmost star of the Big Dipper was reflected in the pond with less water. I set the ISO to 6400 because the area north of this point was dark and there were no city lights in the distance. This was a bit tough for the GR III series, but the latest development software can reduce noise well. The exposure time was as long as 25 seconds, but because it was taken in the northern direction, the flow of stars due to diurnal motion was less than in other directions.

Only in this photo, I used a modest soft filter called LEE No1 to emphasize the brightness of the stars. Recently, there are several soft filters for starry skies. Use the one you prefer. I am curious to see how the HDF will work, but I have not tried it yet. I suspect that the HDF might be too strong for starry skies. Let's see when I get a chance to borrow it.

I photographed the Milky Way in a similar posture to the October 2022 article with the 28mm equivalent of the GR III. In comparison, the Milky Way looks more atmospheric with the wide-angle lens, although it all depends on the combination with the foreground and the photographer's intention. At this time, I used a lower ISO setting of 3200. However, since I was shooting in the southern sky, where the movement of the stars is large due to the movement of the day, I regretted that I should have used ISO 6400 and reduced the shutter speed to 15 seconds.

I photographed the Summer Triangle setting in the west in a similar posture to the October 2022 article with the GR III's 28mm equivalent (for an explanation of the Summer Triangle and other constellations, see the October 2022 article). It barely fits in the 40mm horizontal position, but it's too big. Objects with large structures can be better captured with the 28mm lens.

The clouds have played tricks on the sky, highlighting only two of the three stars that make up the Summer Triangle, Vega (upper left of the dome) and Altair (upper right of the dome). I think the real appeal of landscape photography with a starry sky is to capture serendipitous moments like this that occur only for a short time, rather than when the sky is completely clear of clouds.

As an aside, this dome is no longer available for photography, as its demolition began in early October. I was lucky enough to photograph its last precious appearance.

Together with the previous photo, this is the best time of night to enjoy the fall starry sky. When the Great Triangle of Summer and the ground scene are easily combined in the west, Orion and the ground scene are easily combined in the east. The beauty of autumn is that you can photograph both summer and winter constellations at the same time.

In the October 2022 article, I took a light trace photo when Orion was in a good position, but this time I took a single photo. As noted a bit in the description of the above photo, thick clouds were passing and disappearing (weather conditions were not ideal for light-trace photography). This photo was taken when the sky was moderately clear and all of Orion was visible. Because of the remaining thin clouds, the constellation was accentuated even though no soft filter was used. This "natural soft filter" is one of my personal favorites. The remaining thick clouds in the upper left corner of the image also add a good serendipitous accent.

As a side note, about this direction a little later than this time of day, when Orion was getting high in the sky. If you use a lens wider than 28mm, you can capture the ecliptic light and the Milky Way crossing each other, and if you use a super wide-angle or diagonal fisheye lens, you can also capture the structure called the winter diamond. This is worth photographing in the coming seasons.

The combination of the GR III and GR IIIx lenses with different angles of view is quite light. In the fall sky, you may want to capture both the western and eastern views at the same time. For cameras that fit in your pocket, they can do a pretty good job of starry sky photography, so I hope you will consider them as candidates for your addition.

Finally, here is the latest starry sky information that you may be able to observe and photograph from your home!

The Great Comet of 2024 (C/2023 A3; Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) has been visible in the western evening sky since about October 12. I was able to see it from my home in Yokohama at about 6 p.m. on October 13 and captured it handheld with my GR IIIx. On that night, many people were also able to take pictures with their smartphones. (The exposure was set to the brightness of the sky at that time, but I increased the brightness by 1.5 stops in RAW processing. Note that the actual sky looked darker than the photo, with only a hint of afterglow, and the comet was faintly visible).

Here is the information from the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ). Since the comet has already passed its closest approach to Earth, it will become smaller and fainter by the day, but if the western sky is clear in the evening, it will be visible for the rest of the week or so. It will be possible to photograph it until the end of the month. It was to the right of Venus the night I photographed it, but from now on it will move to the upper right each night. This is a great comet that you will rarely see in your lifetime, so please watch the sky.

(KA-TSU)