A stellar start to the year

January 11, 2026

A stellar start to the year

M42 Orion Nebula

I have always been fascinated by the night sky and the countless stars in the unfathomable outer space.

My mind gets truly blown by the sheer scale of it all. When I stand there looking up at the heavens above me, I think of all those people stretching over the aeons before me who have done the same. The stars were studied, named by ancient people, worshipped, followed, used for navigation, and even to divine the minds of the Gods.

Other than language, I think astronomy may well be one of the oldest types of knowledge that has been passed on from generation to generation.

The Pleiades, better known as The Seven Sisters.

Gazing up at the heavens fills me with a feeling of awe and connection to something bigger and more profound. My mind races with many unanswered questions - most likely never to be answered within my lifetime, but one day, my imagination conjures, someone may go out there and find them.

For the last couple of years, I have been broadening my photography skillset and dabbling more in astrophotography. I have been fortunate to have seen the Northern Lights on several occasions locally in Pontypool, Abertillery and up the Blorenge. I have spent some time looking up in the darkness at Garn Lakes, Llandegfedd, The Blorenge, and as far afield as Nash Point, capturing the night sky and the light from distant stars that exist thousands of light-years away. Last year, I was really pleased to finally get some decent pictures of Milkyway whilst up at the Folly in Pontypool and at Nash Light House.

Just before the turn of the year, one of my good friends, Nicknamed Father Phil, who works for someone very important up in "the heavens", announced with a flurry of cracking pictures of distant Galaxies he had a new Christmas Present a Dwarf Labs 3 Digital telescope. I was absolutely intrigued, and the quality of his pictures piqued my interest.

By the New Year, I must have accidentally on purpose clicked on the Amazon Dwarf Labs 3 Buy Now button, and within 24 Hrs, my early Birthday present to myself arrived.

Since the New Year, we have been graced with some very clear night skies, and I eagerly put the Dwarf Labs 3 through its paces. I must admit I have been super impressed with the Dwarf; it has to be one of the best pieces of hi-tech wizardry I have purchased in ages, apart from my DJI drones.

So without further ado, here are some of my pictures taken with the Dwarf Labs 3 in recent weeks:-