If you know your South Australian photographers, then you surely know @blntpenciland his mesmerising nightscapes. He likes to capture what the naked eye cannot see with long night exposures.
This opens up a new world for people who are unfamiliar with night photography, or for those who prefer to be tucked up in bed!
I personally love the milky way shots over abandoned houses and the storm photos taken from the middle of the road, but there is surely something for everyone in blntpencil’s work. Enjoy!
1) You have an obvious passion for astrophotography – I wondered about how you got into that genre. Did someone inspire you, perhaps you have a love of astronomy?
Yes! One day someone special came into my life and told me to get a camera. From that day on everything changed. I love astrophotography because it allows us to see what the naked eye can not.
I was inspired by Derek Culver who lives in Arizona and also a deep space photographer called George Papanicolaou from Adelaide.
In general, I love long exposure photography and have not taken anything but in the last few years. It gives every scene a dynamic and surreal look to it.
2) Is there a message that you want people to come away with when they look at your images?
Not really, I just want to create art that touches people on an emotional level. If they take some kind of message from my work it is a bonus!
3) Do you have any stories about random people/animal encounters while out shooting at night?
To find dark skies you need to travel a while so a lot of the time it is where there are no humans within a 5 kilometre radius.
I swear I have seen some UFO’s but no one would believe me!
4) What is your favourite location/image and why?
My favourite location would have to be Kangaroo Island as it is an untouched landscape! I don’t have a favourite, I like them all equally.
I always find there are parts or ways in which I can improve them though!
5) If I was going to get into astrophotography, what would be the most important bit of equipment and why?
The most important piece of equipment would be a wide-angle lens that is able to open up, as it enables you to capture the sky and also the foreground in one shot.
Also, Photopills is essential as it allows you to pre-plan your shots so you don’t have to spend hours waiting around.
However, an open mind can help you capture an even better composition than you planned.
6) What has been your biggest struggle with photography so far?
The moon! It is my enemy! To capture the milky way, it is important to have optimal viewing conditions.
The sunlight reflecting off the moon always ruins this for me!
