I love this image. At the risk of spoiling some of the magic, here is the story behind it. The final image is a composite of two photographs made on different nights. 

For the first, as I waited for complete darkness to photograph the night sky, I noticed in the twilight a lone figure on a rocky ridge perhaps 150 meters distant, silhouetted against dusky clouds. I made this image. 

In post-processing, I made some contrast and color adjustments, plus a little cropping to enlarge slightly and center the silhouette. 

I like this image, too, but later I noticed the hooded puffer jacket the person is wearing resembles a space suit, and the horizontal striation of the clouds is reminiscent of space probe images of Jupiter’s gaseous “surface.” The image evokes an astronaut on a rocky moon contemplating the gigantic planet. Then I thought, why stop at the Solar System? 

Perhaps, I could create a conceptual and more cosmic vision by combining the silhouette with a striking Milky Way image. I have photographed the Milky Way many times. Using Photoshop’s “Select Sky” masking feature, I replaced the cloudy sky with a separately shot Milky Way image.

I’m pleased with the final result, above, which has the appearance of a lone human figure on some rocky planet, moon, or asteroid, staring into the center of our galaxy. 

For the astro-purists out there, I make no claim that this is pure astrophotography or an astronomical image. Instead, consider it an artistic interpretation of our place in the cosmos. 

Browse and purchase more of my Milky Way and other astro landscapes prints in my Nocturne gallery.

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