Bat Cave and stars
Icarian landscape, stars and a cave full of bats flying around my head!
Comet C/2020 F3 Neowise
Comet and ‘Portara’ archeological site in Naxos island, Greece.
Camera Model Nikon D600, Naxos, Greece, Shooting Date/Time 16/07/2020 19:53, Author Chris Kotsiopoulos, Tv( Shutter Speed) 1/10 sec – 5 sec, Aperture Value 2.8, ISO 1600, Lens Nikon 50mm, Multiple exposures – HDR processing
Durdle Door and planetary conjunction
Saturn, Jupiter and the Moon
A triple planetary conjunction as seen from Durdle Door in Dorset, England.
Camera Model Nikon D600, Reading UK, Shooting Date/Time 19/11/2020 18:46, Author Chris Kotsiopoulos, Tv( Shutter Speed) 20 seconds, Aperture Value 4.0, ISO 1600, Lens Rokinon 14mm
Reading UK startrails
Thames River in Reading UK, The calm water contributed to some nice reflections.
The colourful lines in the sky are from passing airplanes, landing in a nearby airport.
The five swans are actually only two -the mother swan in the nest and the father patrolling the area- as the one in the background was captured several times using an external flashgun.
Camera Model Nikon D600, Reading UK, Shooting Date/Time 28/05/2020 22:53 – 01:45, Author Chris Kotsiopoulos, Tv( Shutter Speed) 20 seconds x 470 shots, Aperture Value 4.0, ISO 800, Lens Rokinon 14mm
Ikarian Old Lady
Η Γρια του Κακοπέρατου.
Many years ago, a mother from the island of Ikaros saw her son sailing away. The young man never returned, so the mother stood still at the very same spot waiting and waiting until she was petrified.
If you stay late at night, you can still see her spirit glowing around the stone that used to be her body.
As I was lying on a flat rock, next to the 10 feet limestone rock that the weather elements and the sea shaped in an almost human form, I was thinking about the petrified mother local myth. I fell asleep in an almost metaphysical surrounding composed of a human like unreal figure by the wavy Ikarian pelagos and a glorious night sky.
When I woke up, I inspected the series of star trail images. To my surprise, in a few shots, a green bright light was glowing in the sea next to the ‘petrified mother’.
I still wonder about the glow. Was it from divers, spearfishing or perhaps the Mother’s spirit?
Camera Model Nikon D600, Xilosirtis – Ikaria island, Greece, Shooting Date/Time 10/07/2019 21:59 – 11/07/2019 02:39, Author Chris Kotsiopoulos, Tv( Shutter Speed) 30 seconds x 510 shots, Aperture Value 4.0, ISO 1600, Lens Rokinon 14mm
All night startrails
This is a star trail shot from evening to the next morning.
The purple color to the left is from the sunset and to the right of the image is from the sunrise. The green and blue lights are from passing fishing boats. The shot was taken at Euboea island, Greece.
Camera Model Canon EOS 550D, Shooting Date/Time 28/07/2014 22:12 – 29/07/2014 05:01, Author Chris Kotsiopoulos, Tv( Shutter Speed) 60 sec x 403 shots, Aperture Value 4, ISO 800, Canon 15mm fisheye lens
Η συγκεκριμένη λήψη αστρικών ιχνογραμμών κράτησε όλο το βράδυ. Ο μωβ χρωματισμός στα αριστερά και στα δεξιά είναι από την δύση του Ήλιου και την ανατολή αντίστοιχα το επόμενο πρωί. Τα μπλε και πράσινα φώτα καταγράφηκαν από διερχόμενες βάρκες.
Ghost startrails
A whirling sky of falling stars, a haunted house and a few ghosts?
Well… Not really. Just a moonlit star trail image using a ‘falling stars effect’, a rather eccentric deserted house somewhere in southern England and myself in a white blanket, trying to get warm.
The ‘ghost effect’ is achieved by stacking multiple shots. The non stationary objects are blended and look fussy just like my ‘ghosts’ in the picture. The pumpkin took me two hours to prepare but I enjoyed every minute of it! Happy Halloween!
Camera Model Nikon D600, Shooting Date/Time 22/10/2015 22:05 – 22:30, Author Chris Kotsiopoulos, Tv( Shutter Speed) 25 seconds x 60 shots, Aperture Value 4.0, ISO 1250, Lens Rokinon 14mm
Durdle Door and the Milky Way.
Durdle Door is a natural limestone arch on the Jurassic Coast near Lulworth in Dorset, England.
Glastonbury Tor Moonrise
Watching the Buck Moon rise from Glastonbury Tor, few seconds before clouds cover the Moon completely.
Glastonbury Tor is a hill at Glastonbury in the English county of Somerset, topped by the St Michael’s Tower. The Tor seems to have been called “The Isle of Avalon”. According to King Arthur’s mythology, Avalon is where his sword Excalibur was forged.
19/07/2016 – 21:12. Camera: Nikon D600, lens: Bresser Skylux 70mm
Ikaria island Milky Way and Mars
The Milky Way from inside of a shallow cave in ‘Seychelles Beach’, Ikaria island.
The prominent reddish ‘star’ to the left of the frame is planet Mars. The shot as taken at July 16, 2018.
Ikaria island night sky
This is a revisit in one of my favorite places combining breath-taking scenery and dark skies at Pezi, Ikaria island.
The first time I was lucky enough to capture a total lunar eclipse combined with lightning strikes . This time, the shooting was well planned. The target was the Milky Way along with five planets and the Moon. After hours of hiking, I reached the top of the highest mountain on the region and waited for the narrow time window where all the targets were inside the frame, it was dark enough for the Milky Way to appear and there was adequate ambient light from the Moon to illuminate the foreground. Taken the next day, this photo explains why the area is known as ‘The Planet of the Goats’!
Camera Model Nikon D600, Shooting Date/Time 16/07/2018 22:06 – 22:23, Author Chris Kotsiopoulos, Tv( Shutter Speed) 25 seconds x 22 shots – 360 ° panorama, Aperture Value 3.2, ISO 2500, Lens Samyang 14mm
Ikaria island Moon and stars
Startrail image sequence. The bright line at the right is the rising Moon.
The shot was taken at Pezi, Ikaria.
Canon EOS 550D, 25/6/2011 2:03 – 4:13, Shutter Speed 60 sec x 129 shots, Aperture Value 4.0, ISO 800, Lens Canon EF15mm f/2.8 Fisheye, Focal Length 15.0 mm
Αστρικές ιχνογραμμές και ένας παραξενος βράχος. Η φωτεινή γραμμή στα δεξιά είναι η Σελήνη που ανατέλλει. Η λήψη έγινε στο Πέζι Ικαρίας.
Planets rising in Kos island
Venus, Jupiter and Mercury in a rare triple planetary conjunction.
This picturesque scene is a stack of 60 shots taken at Kos island Greece. At the foreground, Alikes salt lake is the most important wetland of the island.
Camera Model Canon EOS 550D, Shooting Date/Time 25/5/2013 20:59 – 21:30, Author Chris Kotsiopoulos, Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1 – 8 sec, Av( Aperture Value ) 5 – 7.1, ISO Speed 200 – 400, Lens Canon EF50mm f/1.8 II, Focal Length 50.0 mm
Flamingo sunset
Sunset and flamingo birds at Kos Island Greece. Alikes salt pan at Tigkaki is the most important wetland of the island.
Camera Model Canon EOS 550D, Shooting Date/Time 29/9/2013 18:54, Author Chris Kotsiopoulos, Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/2500, Av( Aperture Value ) 5.6, ISO Speed 200, Lens Canon EF70-200mm f/4L USM, Focal Length 163.0 mm
Winter Solstice Sun
Lulworth Cove is a cove near the village of West Lulworth, on the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site in Dorset, southern England.
Apart from its unique geomorphology it is an ideal target for Winter Solstice photography. From this vista it spans 115 degrees across the southern horizon whereas the Sun covers 103 degrees from sunrise to sunset at this latitude during the shortest day of the year. Exhausting planning and preparations, rough and slippery terrain, cows blocking the narrow footpath (that was fun actually!), 3 intense storms during the day, mission accomplished!
Camera Model Nikon D600, Shooting Date/Time 21/12/2015 aprox 08.00 – 16:00, Author Chris Kotsiopoulos, Lens Rokinon 14mm
Moonrise tree
Moon and a lonely tree at Kalivia, Attiki, Greece.
Canon EOS 550D, SW ED 80, 24/8/2010 21:31, Shutter Speed 1/500, Aperture Value 7.5, ISO 200
Σελήνη και μοναχικό δέντρο στα Καλύβια Αττικής.
Nisyros Volcano and Milky Way
This is a night sky panorama from inside of an active volcano at Nisiros island, Greece.
This is the most active volcano of the Kos caldera, having frequent seismic activity. There is a strong smell of sulfur as you go down the crater.
Camera Model Canon EOS 550D, Shooting Date/Time 09/06/2013 03:00 – 03:04, Author Chris Kotsiopoulos, Tv( Shutter Speed) 30 seconds x 5 shot panorama, Aperture Value 2.8, ISO 3200, Canon 15mm fisheye lens.
Μέσα στο ηφαίστειο της Νισύρου.
Olympus mountain and the Moon
The Moon and part of the Mitikas peak at Olympus, the highest Greek mountain.
In Greek mythology, Olympus was regarded as the ‘home of the gods’. The shape and position of this peak inspired the ancient Greeks to think of it as the throne and home of Zeus/Jupiter the most powerful of all the gods.
Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XTi, 7/8/2009 6:35, Shutter Speed 1/250, Aperture Value 4.0, Bracketing +1/3, ISO 100, Lens EF70-200mm f/4L USM, Focal Length 200.0 mm
Σελήνη και τμήμα του Μύτικα στον Όλυμπο. Ο Μύτικας είναι η ψηλότερη κορφή της Ελλάδας. Κατά την Ελληνική μυθολογία, θεωρείτο ο θρόνος και κατοικία του Δία.
London moonrise
The full Moon rising behind The Shard, the tallest building in UK standing at 310 meters height.
A completely cloudless sky, almost no haze (really unusual for the London standards!) and meticulous planning and preparation, all contributed for the successful result.
Nikon D600 camera, Sigma 400mm, APO, Macro lens, f/9, ISO 400, 1/13 sec, 28/06/2018 from 21:34 to 21:50.
Water splash and Sun sparkles
This is a sculpture of water! It was created by tossing a big stone into the sea.
After several attempts, throwing big stones into the sea, and many uninteresting results, the last attempt rewarded me with an unusually shaped ‘sculpture’ of water. The shot was taken in October 2008, next to the Temple of Poseidon in Sounio, using my first point and shoot digital camera.
Fujifilm Finepix E550 camera, shutter speed 1/950; ISO 80, F/8.
Stone bridge star trails
The stone bridge at Plaka, Ioannina is the largest in Greece and the third in Europe. It is 19 meters high and 40 meters long. This is the original historic bridge, destroyed back in 2015 during a severe flood.
Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XTi, 31/7/2010 22:30 – 1/8/2010 00:11 , Shutter Speed 2 minutes x 51 shots, Aperture Value 4.0, ISO 800, Lens Canon EF 15mm f/2.8, Focal Length 15.0 mm
Starry night
The rough Icarian landscape and the Milky Way. This was the best night sky I have ever seen! At first, I thought that the glow behind the hill was light pollution, only to realise a few minutes later that it was the Milky Way core!
Canon EOS 550D, 13/6/2010 1:48, Shutter Speed 30 sec, Aperture Value 2.8, ISO 3200, Lens Canon EF 15mm f/2.8, Focal Length 15.0 mm