The Milky Way over Dwejra Bay

A Notable Photo of the 2015 International Earth & Sky Photo Contest

From the photographer: “Dwejra Bay and the Fungus Rock with an eruption of stars, nebulae and gas clouds which make up our Galaxy the Milky Way. What a better place to spend sometime at sea in Summer with spectacular sunsets and breath taking views of the Azure Window, cliffs and the Fungus Rock while sailing in or out of this sheltered natural bay. The long exposure transforms the small light on the yacht’s mast into a beacon, which balances the image with its bright, elongated reflection on the water surface. It also lights up the Fungus Rock to the left, helping it stand out more in the scene. The sky glow to the left is light pollution from the mainland, its is very hard to escape it on these small, densely populated Mediterranean islands. I feel that in this image the Milky Way seems like confronting artificial lights on the left. The boat is small, but long exposure made its light and reflection look massive!

A 140 Mega Pixel Wide Angle Panorama stitch of 15 images in 3 rows”
© Gilbert Vancell