Milky Way Photographers Show Off Best Shots of Our Galaxy in 2023—Here Are the Competition Winners

Stars, stars, and still more stars!

Digital has made all the difference—it’s been a game changer for would-be astrophotographers everywhere, training their lenses skyward at night to capture the splendor of the Milky Way.

In the foregoing era of film, the light insensitivity of cameras in dark conditions confounded photographers trying to portray this dimly-lit spectacle. Digital has since shattered that boundary by bringing forth the Milky Way with a sensitivity to color once reserved only for high-end telescopes and NASA productions.

“The Scenery I Wanted to See” by Mitsuhiro Okabe. (Courtesy of Mitsuhiro Okabe)

Novel techniques and software innovations also allowed photographers to blend separate foregrounds and backgrounds to create artistic composites hitherto unheard of outside of Hollywood special effects studios. Magic was made possible from the comfort of your home PC.

As pro-grade cameras increasingly proliferated and fell into the hands of more everyday people, the pool of astrophotographers exploded exponentially across the globe. The grandeur of the Milky Way has never been so readily available. Literally, the click of a mouse is all it takes.

“The bottle tree portal” by Benjamin Barakat. (Courtesy of Benjamin Barakat)

The Internet brought all this together; online photography competitions focused on revealing the beauty of our galaxy have connected star artists to public hubs and allowed them to present and exhibit the crème de la crème of their niche.

Capture the Atlas is one such astrophotography contest. This year, over 3,000 Milky Way entries were submitted in its annual competition, of which, a mere 25 from 16 different countries were selected as the winners. The photographers came from far and wide: from the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Madagascar, Chile, Argentina, Namibia, Switzerland, Bulgaria, Spain, Slovenia, Japan, Iran, Peru, Yemen, and Indonesia.

Words can do their work no justice; you must see it yourself. You can expect to see sublime star arches that will cause you to contemplate your own minuscule existence in this vast universe.

“South of Home” by Lorenzo Ranieri Tenti. (Courtesy of Lorenzo Ranieri Tenti)

“Celestial Shield” by Iván Ferrero. (Courtesy of Iván Ferrero)

“The Eyes of the Universe” by Mihail Minkov. (Courtesy of Mihail Minkov)

The celestial arc parading over Castillo de Aunqueospese in Spain makes the 12th-century castle seem almost brand-new by comparison.

The diamond-studded night sky over the mystical island of Socotra in Yemen calls to mind an alien landscape with its bizarre dragon’s blood trees reaching skyward like the antennae of some strange lifeform.

The same can be said for the twinkling stars over the reddish rock formations of Cafayate Salta, in northwestern Argentina, whose surreal towers and portals saw them fittingly dubbed “star factory” by the photographer.

These are but a few panoramas you will witness in this year’s pageant. There’s so much more. We’ll leave it to your eyes to feast upon and appreciate their splendor.

By bringing all this artistic talent and imagery together, Capture the Atlas achieves its goal: to offer new astrophotographers a pair of experienced shoulders to stand upon and boost them forth on their own photographic journey through inspiration; and bring “our galaxy closer so everyone can learn and discover more about our Milky Way.”

“Milky Way Rising over Stony River & Mt Taranaki” by Brendan Larsen. (Courtesy of Brendan Larsen)

“Alien Forest” by Marcin Zając. (Courtesy of Marcin Zając)

“Shapes of Nature” by Uroš Fink. (Courtesy of Uroš Fink)

“Wind River Nights” by Brandt Ryder. (Courtesy of Brandt Ryder)

“Winter’s Airglow” by Larryn Rae. (Courtesy of Larryn Rae)

“Night under the Baobab Trees” by Steffi Lieberman. (Courtesy of Steffi Lieberman)

“The La Palma Astroexperience” by Jakob Sahner. (Courtesy of Jakob Sahner)

“The Cathedral Light Show” by Roksolyana Hilevych. (Courtesy of Roksolyana Hilevych)

“Gigi Hiu Shining In The Dark” by Gary Bhaztara. (Courtesy of Gary Bhaztara)

“The Night Train” by Alexander Forst. (Courtesy of Alexander Forst)

“Interstellar” by Jose Luis Cantabrana Garcia. (Courtesy of Jose Luis Cantabrana Garcia)

“The Cactus Valley” by Pablo Ruiz García. (Courtesy of Pablo Ruiz García)

“Milky Way over Cuenca’s Hoodoos” by Luis Cajete. (Courtesy of Luis Cajete)

“Cafayate star factory” by Gonzalo Santile. (Courtesy of Gonzalo Santile)

“Lut Glow” by Isabella Tabacchi. (Courtesy of Isabella Tabacchi)

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