Punk Dad Stills

Punk Dad Stills Just some favourite stills from a Punk Dad...

"War & Peace Nebula (NGC 6357 in an Altered SHO Palette)" – Punk Dad StillsA vast star-forming region in the constellati...
02/06/2026

"War & Peace Nebula (NGC 6357 in an Altered SHO Palette)" – Punk Dad Stills

A vast star-forming region in the constellation Scorpius, lies around 8,000 light-years from Earth. Within its towering clouds of gas and dust, some of the most massive stars in our galaxy are being born, their intense radiation sculpting the surrounding nebula into the intricate shapes and dark voids we see today.

Looking at an image like this, it's hard not to reflect on the strange scale of things. These glowing clouds span hundreds of light-years, yet the light reaching my telescope tonight began its journey long before modern civilisation existed. Every star, planet, and person we have ever known exists within a tiny corner of a universe that seems almost beyond comprehension.

And yet, somehow, here we are—small, temporary observers with the ability to look back and wonder.

30th of May 2026
Captured with AstroRigg “Ares” – Sawtell, NSW, Australia (Bortle 4 - Moon 99.2%)
Total Integration: 4 Hours & 30 Minutes (SHO – 300s subs)
Askar ACL200 (200mm f/4) | Player One Ares-M Pro (IMX533 Mono)
iOptron GEM28 | N.I.N.A. • PHD2 • PixInsight + Plugins • Lightroom

“The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC in LRGB)” – Punk Dad StillsLocated around 200,000 light-years from Earth, the Small Mag...
02/06/2026

“The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC in LRGB)” – Punk Dad Stills

Located around 200,000 light-years from Earth, the Small Magellanic Cloud is a neighbouring dwarf galaxy orbiting our Milky Way. To the naked eye it appears as a faint patch of light in the southern sky—but that faint glow contains billions of stars.
When we photograph objects within our own galaxy, we are looking into the depths of the Milky Way. Here, we are looking beyond it.

The light in this image began its journey long before recorded human history. Across an immense gulf of space, it travelled for 200,000 years to reach a camera in a backyard on the east coast of Australia.

It's a reminder that even our nearest galactic neighbours exist on scales almost impossible to comprehend—and yet, on a clear night, they can fit comfortably within the frame of a photograph.

31st of May 2026
Captured with AstroRigg “Ares” – Sawtell, NSW, Australia (Bortle 4 - Moon 100%)
Total Integration: 1 Hour & 20 Minutes (LRGB – 120s & 300s subs)
Askar ACL200 (200mm f/4) | Player One Ares-M Pro (IMX533 Mono)
iOptron GEM28 | N.I.N.A. • PHD2 • PixInsight + Plugins • Lightroom

Gave the website a proper overhaul today—new look, new tone, and a small webstore now up and running with prints and a f...
02/05/2026

Gave the website a proper overhaul today—new look, new tone, and a small webstore now up and running with prints and a few other bits and pieces.

Been a solid day of tinkering and fine-tuning. If you feel like having a browse, it’s all live now:

https://punkdadstills.com/

Rock on 🤘

“The Great Carina Nebula (Caldwell 92 in SHO Palette)” – Punk Dad StillsLocated around 7,500 light-years from Earth, the...
03/04/2026

“The Great Carina Nebula (Caldwell 92 in SHO Palette)” – Punk Dad Stills

Located around 7,500 light-years from Earth, the Great Carina Nebula glows deep within the southern skies—a vast stellar nursery of hydrogen, oxygen, and sulfur, where new stars are born from the same elements that make up life itself.

From Australia, our position on Earth offers a unique window into the dense heart of the Milky Way. Here, we look not outward, but inward—into the layered depths of our own galaxy.

Captured in an SHO (Sulfur–Hydrogen–Oxygen) palette, this image isolates the specific emission signatures of these elements and remaps them into colour, revealing the structure and composition of the nebula—light that has travelled across thousands of years of space to reach us.

In regions like this, stars—and potentially worlds—are constantly forming. Across billions of years, and countless combinations of atoms and DNA, life emerged on Earth against staggering odds. In a universe of near-infinite possibilities, how likely is that? And if it happened here… how many times has it happened elsewhere?

This image is a reminder: the atoms shaping this nebula are the same that shape us.
To look into it is to look both outward into the cosmos—and inward, toward our own origins.

Captured with AstroRigg “Ares” – Sawtell, NSW, Australia (Bortle 4)
Total Integration: 2.5 Hours (Hα, OIII, SII – 300s subs)
Askar ACL200 (200mm f/4) | Player One Ares-M Pro (IMX533 Mono)
iOptron GEM28 | N.I.N.A. • PHD2 • PixInsight + Plugins • Lightroom

"Anarchy in the Forest" by Punk Dad Stills
19/03/2026

"Anarchy in the Forest" by Punk Dad Stills

"Scott's Head Aurora Australis" by Punk Dad StillsCaught some Aurora Australis tonight (20th January 2026) in this crazy...
20/01/2026

"Scott's Head Aurora Australis" by Punk Dad Stills

Caught some Aurora Australis tonight (20th January 2026) in this crazy geomagnetic storm. The readings tonight were pretty wild! Some of the most vivid sights tonight were while I was driving (-5508 nT @ 22:33 !!!). Still really happy with the shots. 🙃

Scotts Head, NSW. Latitude 30.75° S.

Nikon D5600 + Nikkor 20mm f/1.8 + Fixed Tripod
ISO 1250 | f/2 | 10" - Exp Comp +2.7 | 30mm Equivalent Focal Length

Edited with Adobe Lightroom Classic

"West High Street Graffiti Light Trails" by Punk Dad StillsNikon D5600 + Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 + Fixed TripodISO 100 ...
16/01/2026

"West High Street Graffiti Light Trails" by Punk Dad Stills

Nikon D5600 + Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 + Fixed Tripod
ISO 100 | f/7.1 | 13" | 18mm

Edited with Adobe Lightroom Classic

I’ve just had a 2026 calendar and a 2025 photo book printed, both featuring my favourite photos I took throughout 2025.T...
06/01/2026

I’ve just had a 2026 calendar and a 2025 photo book printed, both featuring my favourite photos I took throughout 2025.

The book is a small hardcover with 40 images across 38 pages, printed on premium glossy paper. The calendar is A3, double-wall, with 14 images printed on thick high-quality paper.

Details are here if you’re curious:
https://www.punkdadstills.com/shop/

"Yarilla Trails" by Punk Dad StillsNikon D5600 + Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8 + Fixed TripodISO 160 | f/18 | 20" | 21mm Equivale...
29/12/2025

"Yarilla Trails" by Punk Dad Stills

Nikon D5600 + Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8 + Fixed Tripod
ISO 160 | f/18 | 20" | 21mm Equivalent Focal Length

Edited with Adobe Lightroom Classic

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