SkyNews Editors' Choice

Photo of the Week Contest Winners Archive

All photos submitted to the Photo of the Week, including those not selected as that week's image, are automatically entered into the Photo of the Week Contest. Enter your favourite astrophotographs to be eligible to win a prize in this year's contest. Here are the winners from previous years:

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(2011-12) WINNERS | Photo of the Week contest 10
(2010-11) WINNERS | Photo of the Week contest 9
(2009-10) WINNERS | Photo of the Week contest 8
(2008-09) WINNERS | Photo of the Week contest 7
(2007-08) WINNERS | Photo of the Week contest 6
(2006-07) WINNERS | Photo of the Week contest 5
(2005-06) WINNERS | Photo of the Week contest 4
(2004-05) WINNERS | Photo of the Week contest 3
(2003-04) WINNERS | Photo of the Week contest 2
(2002-03) WINNERS | Photo of the Week contest 1

PHOTO OF THE WEEK CONTEST 10 (2011-2012)

For our 10th annual photo contest, the SkyNews editors selected these outstanding celestial images. Choosing the winners of this contest gets harder each year, as the quality of submissions steadily ratchets upward. Astro-imaging is now a major component of amateur astronomy for two major reasons: the equipment is better than ever and is available at increasingly competitive prices. But here’s a tip. If you are looking to break in, start with the tripod-mounted unguided cat­e­gory. It is the easiest method to achieve decent results, yet it always has the fewest entries. Typically, a 20-second exposure takes the category prize. —Terence Dickinson, Editor

GRAND PRIZE

Winner

Mark Viol took this photo of Comet Garradd near the loose globular cluster M71 on August 26, 2011, at the Starfest summer star party/astronomy convention, held annually at a campground near Mount Forest, Ontario. A Canon 7D was used on an 11-inch Celestron Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope with a 6.3 focal reducer. Guiding was through a 9x50 finderscope with a DSI Pro II mounted on a Sky-Watcher EQ6. Eight 3-minute exposures at ISO 1600 were digitally stacked to create the final image. The judges commented on the sharpness and rich colour in this portrait of a rare alignment of a comet in our solar system with a star cluster 12,000 light-years distant.

Prize: Celestron NexStar 8SE telescope - celestron.com

BEST DEEP-SKY WITH DIGITAL SLR OR WEBCAM-TYPE IMAGER

Winner

Rose-Marie Burke, Glenburnie, Ontario, wanted to shoot the night sky in mid-March, while Orion was still
visible above a lake near her home. Turns out that the view also included Taurus, the Pleiades, Venus and Jupiter. In this 4-minute exposure, the zodiacal light is apparent as well. Equipment: Canon 350D, Sigma 10-20mm lens set at 10mm, f/4 at IS0 400, on homemade barn-door tracker.

Prize: Meade Deep Sky Imager DSI Pro II (either colour or monochrome, as the winner chooses) - meade.com

Honourable Mention

For this two-frame mosaic of the region above the red giant star Antares, Shawn Nielsen of Kitchener, Ontario, used a filter-modified Canon 350D DSLR camera on a Sky-Watcher Equinox 80mm apo refractor, piggy­backed on a Milburn Wedge-mounted Celestron CPC 800 for tracking. Calibration, alignment and stacking in Nebulosity software. Processed entirely in Photoshop CS5.

BEST DIGITAL-CAMERA PHOTO/LUNAR AND PLANETARY

Winner

In the early-morning cold of December 10, 2011, several members of the Toronto Centre of The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada gathered at Humber Bay Park, on the shore of Lake Ontario, to observe the International Space Station pass in front of the Moon at 3:52 a.m. The pass was visible for only about half a second, but club member Bill Longo managed to catch the station near the Moon’s centre using a Canon 5D Mark II attached to a Celestron 9.25-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope. (The space station with its solar panels is H-shaped.)

Prize: Air-spaced doublet 102mm achromatic refractor, focal length 1100mm - canadiantelescopes.com

Honourable Mention

Daniel Borcard spent the evening of March 31, 2012, in his observatory near Saint-Roch-de-l'Achigan, Quebec, gathering images of the region of the Moon around the flat-floored crater Plato and nearby Alpine Valley. A Celestron 9.25-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain was used with a 2x Barlow, red (Wratten 25) filter and Imaging Source DMK 31AF03 camera. Mosaic of two images, each a stack of more than 400 frames.

BEST DEEP-SKY DIGITAL HIGH-RESOLUTION IMAGERY

Winner

Rémi Lacasse obtained this fine deep-sky image of the star-forming nebula IC410, in the constellation Auriga, on December 28, 2011, from his home observatory near Mont-Tremblant, Quebec. He used an RC Optical Systems 12.5-inch Ritchey-Chrétien telescope at f/9 on a Paramount ME mount. Camera: SBIG STX-16803; total exposure, more than 11 hours.

Prize: Sky-Watcher 200mm reflector telescope (1000mm focal length), complete with 8x50 finderscope, eyepiece and mount - skywatchertelescope.net

Honourable Mention

With his 5-inch apo TeleVue NP-127is refractor, Daniel Meek of Calgary, Alberta, took this narrowband CCD image of NGC6992, the Veil Nebula, a supernova remnant in Cygnus. A QSI 583wsg CCD camera was used for the 3-hour exposure utilizing the Hubble Space Telescope colour palette, which imparts the vibrant hues.

BEST TRIPOD-MOUNTED UNGUIDED PHOTO

Winner

Stan Cholak of Andrew, Alberta, photographed a beautiful display of noctilucent clouds on July 1, 2011, from a location about 100 kilometres east of Edmonton using a Nikon D3S with a 24mm lens for a 5-second exposure. Noctilucent clouds are formed of ice crystals at altitudes of 75 to 85 kilometres, higher than any other clouds. They are most commonly seen in mid- to late June and early July from north of +50 degrees latitude.

Prize: TheSkyX Professional advanced astronomy software - bisque.com

Honourable Mention

John Hlynialuk of Owen Sound, Ontario, observed and recorded a very unusual aurora that lasted for less than 20 minutes on the evening of April 25, 2012, from near Oliphant, Ontario. The band of rays extended directly overhead and was captured with a 10mm f/2.8 lens on a Canon 50D; 20-second exposure at ISO 1250.

PHOTO OF THE WEEK CONTEST 9 (2010-2011)

For our 9th annual photo contest, the SkyNews editors judged these eight celestial portraits as our top choices. Continuing a trend established with our first annual photo contest,we receive more impressive entries each year. The only minor downside to this situation is the difficult task facing our editorial judging panel. As always, careful consideration is given not only to the aesthetic and technical qualities of each image but also to the degree of difficulty considering the subject matter and the equipment used. And beginners please note: The winning entries in the tripod-mounted unguided category are always taken with off-the-shelf camera gear. Composition and an eye for the unusual are paramount.

Winner
Shawn Nielsen, Kitchener, Ontario, for this superb portrait of M31, the Andromeda Galaxy, the nearest spiral galaxy similar in size to our home galaxy, the Milky Way. This spectacular celestial image was obtained with a modified Canon Digital Rebel XT (composite of 32 five-minute exposures) using a Sky-Watcher Equinox 80mm f/6.3 apo refractor coupled with a William Optics 0.8x reducer. The refractor was piggybacked on a Celestron CPC 800, Milburn Wedge-mounted for tracking. Guided with an Orion StarShoot AutoGuider and PHD. Acquisition, calibration and align/stack were done in Nebulosity, and the image was processed in Photoshop CS5.
Prize: Meade Deep Sky Imager DSI Pro II (colour or monochrome, winner’s choice) - meade.com

Winner
David DeVries, Brampton, Ontario, for this imaginative multiple exposure of the complete total and partial phases of the lunar eclipse on December 21, 2010. A Canon 50D DSLR was used to take shots of widely varying exposures every five minutes through a Sky-Watcher 10-inch f/4.7 Newtonian reflector during the 2.6-hour event.
Prize: Complete Sky-Watcher Black Diamond ED 80mm OTA package with aluminum case

Winner
Lynn Hilborn, Grafton, Ontario, used a TEC 140mm apo refractor with an FLI ML8300 CCD camera for this winning 6-hour exposure of the Leo Triplet group of galaxies. The SkyNews judging panel noted the exceptional detail revealed in each galaxy in this image - remarkable for this aperture instrument. The galaxies are, left to right: edge-on spiral NGC3628, spiral M65 and barred spiral M66. The trio is about 36 million light-years distant.
Prize: Celestron NexStar 8SE telescope

Winner
Martin Bernier, Saint-Liboire, Quebec, used a Canon 300D with an 18mm lens at f/4 for this 25-second shot of . . .an unusual aurora? No, this is a cluster of light pillars created by ice crystals shaped like tiny domino pieces that remain horizontal in perfectly still air. The reflected light is from individual bright lights in Saint-Hyacinthe, the source of the overall light pollution.
Prize: TheSkyX Professional advanced astronomy software

Honourable mention:
Jim Chung, Toronto, Ontario, captured this pair of beautifully sharp portraits of Jupiter during a few days of excellent seeing over the big metropolis last October.  Taken with a Point Grey Research Flea CCD camera on a Sky-Watcher 12-inch collapsible Dobonsian reflector, these outstanding shots show remarkable detail on nearly opposite sides of the giant planet. 

Honourable mention:
Pierre Tremblay, Quebec City, took this image (12-hour total exposure) of the Dumbbell Nebula (M27) with a QSI 583wsg CCD camera using Astrodon RGB
plus Hydrogen-alpha filters on a Takahashi 212mm Newtonian with a Tele Vue Paracorr corrector. The Dumbbell, near the head of Sagitta the arrow, is a planetary nebula, the remnant of a dying star.

Honourable mention:
Sanjeev Sivarulrasa, Ottawa, Ontario, for this wide-field view of Orion’s three-star belt and environs. The famous Horsehead Nebula is at centre; the Orion Nebula is at lower right. The long, smoky nebulosity at left is a section of Barnard’s Loop. This two-frame composite image was taken with a Hutech-modified Canon 40D DSLR with a 135mm f/2 lens at f/3.2.

Honourable mention:
Brian W. Allan, Bergen, Alberta, took this scenic landscape of the Moon over the Rockies from his front yard overlooking Misty Valley Ranch on the morning of December 23, 2010. It was 9:30 a.m., and although sunlight illuminated the mountains, it had yet to reach into the valley. The camera (a Canon 60D) was handheld; 120mm lens at f/8 at ISO 100.

PHOTO OF THE WEEK CONTEST 8 (2009-2010)

For our eighth annual photo contest, the SkyNews editors judged these 4 celestial portraits as our top choices.

BEST DEEP-SKY DIGITAL, HIGH RESOLUTION | The Soul Nebula by Eric Roy
Prize: Celestron NexStar 8 SE telescope
Equipment used: Takahashi FSQ 106mm apochromatic refractor with an SBIG STL-11000 CCD camera.

BEST DIGITAL CAMERA PHOTO/LUNAR AND PLANETARY | Daniel Borcard
Prize: Complete Sky-Watcher Black Diamond 80 OTA package
with aluminum case
Equipment used: Imaging Source DMK 31AF03.AS CCD camera on a Celestron 9.25-inch Schmidt- Cassegrain.

BEST TRIPOD-MOUNTED
UNGUIDED PHOTO | Bill McMullen
Prize: TheSky6 Professional advanced astronomy software
Equipment used: Sigma 17- 70mm lens at 17mm on a Canon Digital Rebel XT SLR camera.

BEST DEEP-SKY WITH DIGITAL SLR 7 OR WEBCAM-TYPE IMAGER | Gary Colwell
Prize: Meade Deep Sky Imager DSI Pro II (colour or monochrome, winner’s choice)
Equipment used: William Optics 110mm f/7.7 apochromatic refractor and an Orion StarShoot AutoGuider to gather fifteen 10-minute exposures with a filter-modified Canon XSi digital SLR camera at ISO 800

PHOTO OF THE WEEK CONTEST 7 (2008-09)

For our seventh annual photo contest, the SkyNews editors judged these 4 celestial portraits as our top choices.

BEST DEEP-SKY DIGITAL, HIGH RESOLUTION | The Whirlpool by Jean Guimond
Prize: Celestron NexStar 8 SE telescope
Equipment used: Takahashi 150mm apochromatic refractor at f/7.3 with an SBIG STL-11,000M CCD camera.

BEST DIGITAL CAMERA PHOTO/LUNAR AND PLANETARY | Brian Colville
Prize: Complete Sky-Watcher Black Diamond 80 OTA package
with aluminum case
Equipment used: William Optics 66mm apochromatic refractor with a Lumenera Infinity2-1M camera and a Lunt LS50Ha/B1200 Hydrogen-alpha filter.

BEST TRIPOD-MOUNTED
UNGUIDED PHOTO | Starry Vista by Patrick Smith
Prize: TheSky6 Professional advanced astronomy software
Equipment used: 15mm superwideangle lens on a Canon EOS 5D Mark II digital SLR camera at f2.8 for this 30-second exposure.

BEST DEEP-SKY WITH DIGITAL SLR 7 OR WEBCAM-TYPE IMAGER | Cocoon Nebula by Mark Viol
Prize: TheSky6 Professional advanced astronomy software
Equipment used: Celestron 11- inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope with a Canon 350D at ISO 1600.

PHOTO OF THE WEEK CONTEST 6 (2007-08)

For our sixth annual photo contest, the SkyNews editors judged these 4 celestial portraits as our top choices.

BEST DEEP-SKY DIGITAL, HIGH RESOLUTION | NGC1396 by Jean Guimond
Prize: Celestron NexStar 8 SE telescope
Equipment used: Takahashi 150mm apochromatic telescope at f/5.7, 9-hour LRGB exposure with an SBIG STK-11000M CCD camera.

BEST DIGITAL-CAMERA PHOTO—Lunar and Planetary | The Moon by Martin Bernier
Prize: Pentax 8x42 HRc multi-coated binoculars with case
Equipment used: SBIG ST-2000XM CCD camera, Hydrogen-alpha filter, Celstron 9.25-inch SCT, Celestron 0.63 focal reducer.

BEST DEEP-SKY WITH DIGITAL SLR OR WEBCAM-TYPE IMAGER | Comet Holmes by Steve Irvine
Prize: Meade Deep Sky Imager with AutoStar Suite
Equipment used: Sky-Watcher HEQ-5 equatorial mount, 200mm lens at f/4, Canon 350D digital camera.

BEST TRIPOD-MOUNTED PHOTO | The Northern Lights by Zoltan Kenwell
Prize: The Sky6 Professional Advanced Astronomy Software
Equipment used: Canon EOS 1D Mark III digital camera.

For our fifth annual photo contest, our panel of SkyNews editors was once again faced with hundreds of worthy entries. Eventually, these four images emerged as the winners of each category. (Click on the photos to see a larger image)

BEST DEEP-SKY DIGITAL, HIGH RESOLUTION | NGC6992 by Marc Paradis
Prize: Celestron NexStar 8 SE telescope
Equipment used: 100mm f/6.4 TMB apochromatic refractor, ST-2000XM CCD camera.

BEST DIGITAL-CAMERA PHOTO—Lunar and Planetary | Full Moon by Adam Evans
Prize: Pentax 8x42 HRII multi-coated binoculars with case
Equipment used: 8=-nch Celestron XLT, Canon Rebel XT digital camera.

BEST DEEP-SKY DIGITAL, WIDE-FIELD AND MEDIUM-RESOLUTION IMAGERY | The Pleiades by Peter Roth
Prize: Meade Deep Sky Imager with AutoStar Suite
Equipment used: Takahashi f/2.8 astrograph reflector, Canon Digital Rebel XT, HEQ5 Pro equatorial mount.

BEST TRIPOD-MOUNTED PHOTO | April 19, 2007 Conjunction of the Moon and Venus by Steve Irvine
Prize: The Sky6 Professional Advanced Astronomy Software
Equipment used: Canon Digital Rebel XT, 18-55 lens (set to 30mm), ISO 200, 4-seconds.

PHOTO OF THE WEEK CONTEST 4 (2005-06)

After receiving a record number of entries, our panel of SkyNews editors had a difficult task narrowing the selection down to these winning shots. Congratulations to our four grand prize winners! (Click on the photos to see a larger image)

BEST TELESCOPIC GUIDED PHOTO—CCD | IC1805 by Pierre Tremblay
Prize: Celestron CPC 800 GOTO telescope
Equipment used: 90mm Takahashi refractor at f/4 and a Starlight Xpress SXV-H9 CCD camera.

BEST DIGITAL-CAMERA PHOTO—Lunar and Planetary | Mars by Rolf Meier
Prize: Pentax 8x42 HRII multi-coated binoculars with case
Equipment used: October 22, 2005, 14-inch Celestron Schmidt-Cassegrain, Phillips ToUcam webcam.

BEST TRIPOD-MOUNTED PHOTO | September 26, 2005 conjunction by Jay Ouellet
Prize: The Sky6 Professional Advanced Astronomy Software
Equipment used: Canon 20D digital camera, 2-second exposure with a 135mm lens at f2.8

BEST Digital SLR Photo | Milky Way Galaxy by John Gunning
Prize: Meade Deep Sky Imager with AutoStar Suite
Equipment used: Canon 20Da DSLR at ISO 800 with a Nikon 28mm lens at f2.8. Two-frame mosiac (12-minute guided exposures).

From the hundreds of entries received, these images were selected by our panel of SkyNews editors as the winner in each of the three categories. Congratulations to the winners and thanks to all those who made our third contest a success! (Click on the photos to see a larger image)

BEST TELESCOPIC GUIDED PHOTO | The Horsehead Nebula by Remi Lacasse
Prize: Celestron Advanced Series C-8 SCT GOTO telescope
Equipment used: RC Optical 12.5" Ritchey-Chretien telescope; Paramount ME mount;
SBIG ST-10XME CCD camera with SBIG AO-7 adaptive optics; Processing with MaxIm DL, Registar, Photoshop and Neat Image; 4.5 hours (LRGB)

BEST DIGITAL-CAMERA PHOTO | Jupiter by Mike Wirths
Prize: Pentax 8x42 HRII multi-coated binoculars with case
Equipment used: March 10, 2004; 18" Starmaster f4.3 Newtonian reflector;
Philips ToUcam webcam

BEST TRIPOD-MOUNTED PHOTO | Orion Rising by Shaun Lowe
Prize: The Sky6 Professional Advanced Astronomy Software
Equipment used: Nikon D7028mm lens at f3.5I; SO 200; 30 second exposure

PHOTO OF THE WEEK CONTEST 2 (2003-04)

Out of the hundreds of entries from our readers, our panel of SkyNews editors has selected 10 outstanding images. Congratulations to our three grand prize winners! (Click on the photos to see a larger image)

BEST TELESCOPIC GUIDED PHOTO | The Horsehead and Flame Nebulas by Bob Olson
Prize: Celestron 8" Schmidt-Cassegrain GOTO Telescope
Equipment used: Starlight Xpress MX916 CCD camera, Tele Vue 76 apochromatic refractor. Composite of 81 separate 4-minute LRGB images for a total exposure time of 5.4 hours.

BEST DIGITAL-CAMERA PHOTO | Jupiter, February 26/27, 2004 by Darryl Archer
Prize: Nikon Coolpix 4500 Digital Camera
Equipment used: Celestron 14" SCT at f/28 and a Phillips webcam with an IR filter.
2000 frames for each image were accumulated, with the best 100 for each selected and processed with K3CCD Tools, Registax and Photoshop.

BEST TRIPOD-MOUNTED UNGUIDED PHOTO | Star Trails by Shaun Lowe
Prize: Pentax 20mm XW Eyepiece
Equipment used: Pentax K1000 35mm camera and a 28mm lens at f3.5; Exposure time of 10 minutes.

PHOTO OF THE WEEK CONTEST 1 (2002-03)

Congratulations to Mark Golub of Winnipeg, Manitoba, the grand prize winner of the SkyNews Editors' Choice Photo of the Week contest. Mark will receive a Nikon Coolpix 4500 digital camera, courtesy of Nikon.

Mark's winning photo, seen below, was selected by the SkyNews editors from the more than 500 images that were received from our readers. (Click on the photos to see a larger image)

GRAND PRIZE WINNER | The Northern Lights by Mark Golub
Equipment used: Tripod mounted 35mm SLR camera, 50mm lens, Fuji 400, 30 second exposure, Riding Mountain National Park, Manitoba.
Prize: Nikon Coolpix 4500 digital camera

HONOURABLE MENTIONS go to Steve Barnes, Jean Guimond and Leslie Marczi, all of whom will receive three-year extensions to their SkyNews subscriptions.

The Dumbell Nebula (M27) by Steve Barnes
Equipment used: Combination of CCD images taken with a 4" Tele Vue refractor and a 12" Meade Schmidt-Cassegrain.

The Veil Nebula by Jean Guimond
Equipment used: CCD image taken with a 4" Tele Vue refractor, ST-10 camera and a Hutech light-pollution filter.

The Moon's Straight Wall (lower left) and the crater Ptolemaeus (top centre) by Leslie Marczi
Equipment used: Nikon 995 digital camera, attached afocally to a 24mm eyepiece and a Meade 10" Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope.