Featured photo: Treasa Giblin Frazer, see below for the full panoramic shot
Three talented night-sky photographers from Donegal have been selected for the next stage of the prestigious ‘Reach for the Stars’ astrophotography competition.
The competition, run by the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS), aims to find the best astro-photographs taken in Ireland over the past year and public voting is now open for you to choose your favourite.
Each photo is as breathtaking as the next, as the photographers faced the elements to get the perfect shots.
The aurora is a popular feature in this year’s contest.
The shortlisted photographers from Donegal are:
Daragh McDonough, from Letterkenny has been shortlisted in the ‘Out of this World – Planetary’ category for his image ‘Crescent Moon over Tory Island’.
Daragh McDonough “Crescent Moon Over Tory Island” Horn Head, Co. Donegal
Ozgun Ozdemir, from Letterkenny has been shortlisted in the ‘Back on Earth – Landscape’ category for his image ‘Northern Lights at Dunfanaghy’.
Ozgun Ozdemir “Northern Lights at Dunfanaghy” New Lake, Dunfanaghy, Co. Donegal
Treasa Giblin Frazer, from Lifford has been shortlisted in the ‘Back on Earth – Landscape’ category for her image ‘Aurora Rainbow’.
Donegal is blessed with a dark night sky and other entrants reaped the benefits of this:
Clifford Brown was fortunate to be at Marble Hill Beach for this iPhone shot of the northern lights.
Clifford Brown – “Northern Lights in Donegal”
Derry photographer Patryk Sadowski is also in the running with his photo of the aurora spectacle over Fanad Lighthouse:
Patryk Sadowski “Fanad Head – Aurora 2024”
While a high-profile judging panel will select the overall winning entries in the coming weeks, an online vote was launched today, so members of the public can also have their say.
All shortlisted images can now be viewed on the ‘Reach for the Stars’ website, www.reachforthestars.ie, and members of the public can cast their vote for their favourite image.
The winning images selected by the judging panel and the public vote will be announced in July, and an outdoor exhibition will be staged by DIAS to showcase the best images.
Commenting today, Dr. Eucharia Meehan, CEO and Registrar of DIAS said: “I’m so impressed by the level of creativity and skill we have amongst photographers in Donegal and right across the country. This year has seen the highest number of entries in the history of the competition, and we hope to see the interest in our night skies continue to grow.”
Votes for the Public Choice Award are restricted to one vote per person, and voting will close at midday on Friday, 5th July 2024.
DIAS’s ‘Reach for the Stars’ competition is being run in partnership with The Irish Times, and is sponsored by Alice Public Relations and the Astronomical Observatories of Ireland. The Irish Astronomical Society are initiative supporters.
