Astronomy enthusiasts, December has been a great month to make some beautiful pictures of celestial events. Some of you may have been lucky to capture the Geminids on your camera. And tonight is one of the rarest activities, the Christmas Star or the Great Conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter. The two bright planets come close to form almost one entity. On December 21, the day of Winter Solstice, The Great Conjunction will take place. And one of the most anticipated events, photographers can capture the rare spectacle on their devices. NASA has given a set of tips to photograph the great conjunction tonight. If you are a budding photographer with a keen interest to capture Jupiter and Saturn in your frame, we tell you how. If you are only interested in watching it, here's how you can watch it on live streaming.

Tips to Photograph Winter Solstice Great Conjunction

  • Try to go to a place where there is little light pollution to make clearer pictures of Saturn and Jupiter. Jupiter, Saturn and Moon have formed a celestial triangle before, which has been captured by many.

  • Both the planets will be shining bright in the night sky, so although total darkness is not recommended, you can see them clearly.

  • Find a third object that you want to make a part of your frame. It could be a tree, house or a billboard.

  • Use telephoto lens, which help you to zoom at the maximum point. Using a regular lens, will make the image appear as faint stars. A 200m telephoto lens will even be able to capture the moons of Jupiter.

  • Use tripod. If you do not have one, arrange from someone. Clicking pictures at night, with a timer, require stable surface. Tripod comes in handy for long exposure shoots.

  • Leave the image stabiliser option on at all times when clicking stars/planets.

  • Reach the spot early, a little in the daytime and explore the positions of the planets, along with the crescent moon. Take time to plan your frame, as it turns dark gradually.

  • Clicking the conjunction on your smartphones, can be a little tricky, unless you have a great zoom smartphone camera.

  • Explore the night mode of your phone, for better adjustments to the dark setting. But a DSLR will be a better option to zoom in and click for the details.

  • Take a series of photos on your DSLR, one after another so you will get a transition and even if few turn out blur, you will get clearer ones later on.

These are some of the tips to ensure to capture the rare conjunction on your devices. A tripod will be a must, unless your hands can be extremely steady. And once you manage to get the great snaps, do not forget to share them with everybody tonight. Happy Clicking!

 

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 21, 2020 01:43 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).