Source: Radio New Zealand
Young photographer Tom Rae tramped over snow and ice, camping overnight in the Southern Alps, to get one of the winning shots of the Milky Way Photographer of the Year competition.
The competition, run by Capture the Atlas, selected 25 photos from over 6,500 submitted from around the world.
His “Night at the Remarkables” shot shows the Milky Way arched over The Remarkables in the Southern Alps, while the lights of Queenstown glow far below.
“I thought, ‘Hey, why not climb to the top of The Remarkables ski field in Queenstown and spend the night up there, have a wild adventure, and be able to have a look down and see an element of civilisation in amongst all of this vastness in the night sky,” Rae says.
His shot was among five other winning images from New Zealand photographers taken in different iconic locations.
Originally from Christchurch, Rae says he chose Queenstown for its incredible mountains.
He started astro-photography at 14 years old, playing around with his camera and the night sky.
He spent several hours lugging camera gear and tripods up the snowy mountain range to get the shot, and says photography is not a hobby for the faint-hearted.
“That night was one of the more extreme examples of overnight camping that I’ve had. But so worth it to be able to get an image like that and pull it off.”
He used a star tracker to align his camera with the night sky.
Rae says the image combines elements of human nature – the wildness of the mountain ranges is disrupted by the lights of the Queenstown village so close by.
Rae’s work was selected in 2023 and 2024 as well, the first being a panorama taken at Lake Tikapo, and the other taken at Huka Lake at Aoraki.
He’s extremely proud of his most recent winning shot.
“That is an image that I always look at and go, ‘Wow, like I absolutely love that.’ And I’m sure I will be looking at it the same way in many, many years to come.”
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand