Big Sky
Our sunrises and sunsets are memorable for their colour and clarity. And when night falls, the dark skies of central NSW are some of the best in Australia – proving popular with photographers and stargazers alike.
The night sky is also important to the Wiradjuri people – whose Dreaming stories feature Baiame, the creator god and sky father as well as the story of the Seven Sisters star cluster. The annual SkyFest event at Condobolin’s Wiradjuri Study Centre brings together traditional stories and modern astronomy.
“This part of the world has some of the best and clearest night skies”
– Local expert, ‘Donna the Astronomer’
Popular sunrise/sunset locations
- Gum Bend Lake
- Lake Cargelligo
- Reservoir Hill, Condobolin
- Anywhere with a cool drink in hand!
Astrophotography checklist
- A tripod
- DSLR or mirrorless camera
- Large aperture lens (Ideally f2.8 or lower)
- Shutter-release cable (or self-timer)
- Warm clothes and patience!
Did the earth just move for you?
Fun fact: because the Earth is constantly rotating, if your exposure is too long you’ll see ‘star trails’. This is a cool effect in itself, but if you’re going for a clean night sky look, to account for the planet’s motion, your exposure should be no longer than 25 seconds for full frame cameras – or around 16 seconds for a crop sensor camera.
The art of the seven sisters
Many artists have portrayed the Dreaming stories of The Seven Sisters through traditional artworks. These stories tell of an Ancestral Being who fell in love with seven sisters yet was forbidden to marry them. So he disguised himself as a man and pursued the seven over the land and sky. In a final attempt to evade him, the sisters transformed themselves into fire and ascended into the heavens to become stars – now known as the Pleiades cluster in the constellation Taurus.