The astro-photography exhibition of stunning images shot by 20 South Island photographers opened at Alexandra’s Central Stories Museum and Art Gallery on Friday (June 17).

Mayor Tim Cadogan spoke at the exhibition’s opening night where around 80 people attended and the winners were named. 

Dunedin’s Yang Zheng won the jury prize and took home an LED TV worth $1,399 with his image of the ‘Mount Cargill Communications Tower’. 

The jury prize winning shot Mount Cargill Communications Tower by Yang Zheng, who has only been living in Dunedin for the past two years. 

Competition judge Naomi Arnold said this entry’s storytelling was the best. 

“Its bold human elements are its best feature and connect people to their universe. Astro photos can feel cold and remote but this makes me think of a sleeping city full of people with their comms spire and its glowing red light reaching out to the heavens.”

She said she loved its complementary textures, lights and colours. “I could look at this for ages and find it provokes all sorts of thoughts and story lines.”

Composite category and overall winner went to ‘That Cabbage Tree’ by Mosgiel’s Michael Cookson. 

Judge Paul Le Comte said the simple beauty of this image blew the judges away.

Composite category and overall winner That Cabbage Tree by Mosgiel’s Michael Cookson. He started as a hobby photographer in 2018. 

“A very simple subject matter but invites you in further with question, is it the landscape or the nightscape that draws you into the image. I imagine it will be different for many people.”

He noted the technical attention to detail in the image, which is illuminated with light painting (shining a light on the tree).

“Overall a very serene image of a place that many of us know as having spectacular night skies… but also subject to incredibly windy stormy nights.”

‘Moon over the Taiaroa Head Lighthouse’ by Dilanka Wijesekara won the natural category. It was Dunedin-based Dilanka’s eighth attempt to nab this shot. 

Paul said the judges appreciated the planning to capture this image and the perseverance in trying again when conditions were unfavourable.

‘Moon over the Taiaroa Head Lighthouse’ by Dilanka Wijesekara won the natural category. She said it was one of her “dream shots”.

Central Otago’s climate brings clear nights and our sparse population means there is little light pollution. The Southern Hemisphere is the best place to see the Milky Way and we can often observe the Aurora Australis too. This exhibition pays homage to space, the stars and what we see from our place amongst them. 

Time lapse movies are included, a combination of thousands of ultra high definition snapshots of time captured over hours.

The exhibition opened on June 17 and runs through until August 28, 2022. This year it will also visit Arrowtown’s Lakes District Museum and Gallery July 23 until August 31. 

To learn more about the Winterstellar Charitable Trust click here.