Photographing the milky way on Wembury Beach in south Devon, UK

Three nights on Wembury Beach chasing the Milky Way… One night crystal clear, one night a cloud‑soaked betrayal. The last night - perfect skies but busy!  Tracked shots, driftwood foregrounds, a meteor cameo, annoying headlights and phone screens — and plenty of tea brewed under the stars. New blog post.

Three Nights on Wembury Beach: Chasing the Milky Way Over South Devon

After the Durdle Door Debacle (which you can read about here - https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2026/05/my-second-milky-way-session-of-2026.html), I decided it was time for a confidence‑restoring mission. So, I headed back to familiar territory: Wembury Beach, South Devon, where the Milky Way would rise neatly over the Newton Ferrers headland just after midnight, like a cosmic lighthouse beam brightening the night sky.

Images from The Durdle Door Debacle

It is clear I just haven't got image collection and then post editing nailed down yet - a major work in progress! 

I gave myself three nights for Wembury Beach.
One turned out beautifully clear.
The second … well, let’s just say the clouds had other plans.

And the third? 

Headlights, phone screens, white head torches - so many rejected images! 

But that’s astrophotography for you — part science, part art, part cosmic roulette.

 

My Goals for all three Nights

I kept things simple and focused:

• Capture good-quality Milky Way data, both tracked and untracked
• Take midnight landscape shots with actual thought behind the composition (a personal growth area…)
• Attempt some form of Milky Way selfie
• In post-processing, balance sky and foreground exposure for a clean composite blend

Basically: redeem myself after Durdle Door and come home with something worth showing the internet.

 You can read here, how I plan a milky way imaging session: https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/02/beginners-guide-to-taking-your-first.html  and https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/02/beginners-guide-to-taking-your-first_19.html

Night One: Clear Skies and Cosmic Calm

The Milky Way would be at its best between 01:00 and 02:30, with high tide at 00:30 — a detail worth checking unless you enjoy wet feet and expensive equipment baptisms.

I rolled into the National Trust car park around 23:45, and by midnight I was on the beach, headtorch glowing and arcing about like a confused firefly. Thanks to a daytime recce, I already had two compositions in mind:

1. Sitting on a log with the Mill House and Milky Way behind
2. A wider shot of beach, driftwood, and Mill House under the rising core

Conditions were a dream:
Clear skies, 8°C, barely a whisper of wind. The sea behaved itself. No spray. No drama. Just the quiet hush of the tide and the occasional owl wondering what on earth I was doing.

Shooting Workflow across the night 

I worked through a structured sequence:

• Tracked portrait frames
• Untracked portrait frames
• Switch to landscape orientation
• Repeat: tracked → untracked
• GoPro night timelapse movie

Camera Settings

• Untracked: ISO 1600, 20 seconds × 15 frames, f/2.8
• Tracked: ISO 1600, 80 seconds × 20 frames, f/2.8 

Gear List (for the fellow kit nerds)

• Canon 800D (astromodded)
• Samyang 14mm f/2.8
• Aoelean wireless intervalometer
• Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer 2i (WiFi)
• William Optics wedge
• Benbo Mach 3 carbon fibre tripod
• USB power bank
• Sky-Watcher right‑angled polar viewer
• MSM green laser with SWSA2i attachment
• Gorillapod 3kg ball head
• Petzl headtorch (with red mode, obviously)
• Dew band heater 
• Joby Gorillapod small tripod with phone holder attachment
• GoPro Hero 9 

Between sequences, I brewed tea on my Primus Lite Jetboil stove — its soft hiss and occasional roar felt oddly comforting. I prefer a stove to a flask; it reminds me of my mountaineering days and my more recent dinghy‑cruising adventures (which you can find on my YouTube channel: ).

There’s something grounding about making tea under the stars.  

 

I haven't quite got the brightness sorted - both images are a little dark.

Tonally, the blues and magentas are a little strong in the sky. 

Night Two: The Great Cloud Betrayal

Five weather apps promised clear skies.
Five.

Naturally, the moment I arrived, the sky filled with thin, high cirrus — the kind that looks innocent until you realise it’s basically a giant cosmic diffuser.

We had 80% cloud cover for the entire session. I stayed, of course. Hope springs eternal in the heart of an astrophotographer.

The only consolation?
One frame — just one — caught a meteor streaking through the murk. A tiny victory, but I’ll take it.

Some nights are like that. The sky gives you a polite “no” and you pack up, slightly cold, slightly grumpy, but still weirdly satisfied.

Equipment and capture details remained similar to Night one. But, when I got home - all the imagesd were ditched. Every single one had excessive clouds in. 

Night three: far too much going on 😕

Too many astrophotographers in close proxsimity - and then cars in and out of the car park on the cliff top; people with phone screens and white head torches! So much movement across my frames at times - and, frustratingly, it was the best sky across the three nights 😭. The milky way positively glowed - like scattered diamonds across a black velvet cloth backdrop  - you get my drift! 

I did have a shooting plan for this night - rather than my normal 'random' approach

• do a star trail above the mill house
• take a series of landscape shots from 2 different parts of the beach area (the tide was out fully) - the aim to take at least three shots of each location scene so I could stack each set of three in affinity photo to get a really sharp landscape foreground. 
• take a series of tracked shots and then untracked shots from each of the locations above
• try out my google pixel 6a on astrophotography mode

I did manage to get all the data but a quick glance confirms my suspicions - lots of random lighting and ghostly shadows..... did I say it was sooooooo frustrating? 

 

Processing the Milky Way Images

Back home, everything will go into Affinity Photo’s AstroStack.
After stacking, I will move through:

• Develop Persona for initial corrections
• Photo Persona for the heavier lifting

If you’re curious about how I edit my Milky Way images, I’ve written about my workflow here:

https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/12/editing-tutorial-guide-to-how-i-post.html

 https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2026/05/some-sessions-give-you-diamonds-others.html

I am in the process of updating my work flow and when I have finished it - I will post a summary here as an update - giver me a couple of weeks. 

Final Thoughts

Three nights on Wembury Beach reminded me why I keep coming back to this coastline. Even when the clouds misbehave, even when the apps lie, even when the universe throws curveballs — there’s still magic in the process.

Clear skies aren’t guaranteed.      Good data isn’t guaranteed.   You can't predict random interventions! 

But the experience? Always worth it.

And when the Milky Way finally arcs over the headland, bright and delicate like spilled sugar across black velvet (I like this analogy better) — well, that’s the moment that keeps you, and me, coming back.

The Cosmic dust in the city Project University of Plymouth

New to my blog? You can drop in here first to learn more about me and the blog: https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/p/welcome-to-my-astronomy-and.html

As the blog grows, I want it to stay easy to navigate. To help with that, I’ve put together a simple guide that explains how everything is arranged and how to find things quickly:

• Want to Find Something Quickly on My Blog? https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/12/want-to-find-something-quickly-on-my.html

You’ll also see labels, categories, and series developing over time so you can follow particular themes - whether that’s equipment, observing sessions, learning logs, or location-based posts. Anyway, welcome and enjoy. I hope ytou find something useful.  Steve  

 If  you have read previous posts recently, you will know that I am participating in a citizen science project "Cosmic Dust in the City Project"  - run by The University of Plymouth. 

You can read previous posts here: https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2026/05/cosmic-dust-in-city-project-university.html

And find out about the project here: https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/research/public-engagement-at-plymouth/cosmic-dust-in-the-city

This was the kit I received from the University a few days ago - very simple equipment but a comprehensive approach and methodology. 

Well today, here was my first go! 

My first mistake: over-ambition and over-zealousness!

This was just a 30cm length worth of my guttering clear out! 

Following the instruction card step-by-step, I mixed the guttering contents in water and gave it a good stirring. 

After allowing material to mix and then settle, I scooped off all the floating debris

Time for some 0.5mm diameter sieve action 

Well this was the stuff that got caught by the sieve 

What then followed was thirty minutes or so of gently sieving out the water mixture and then doing what can only be described as panning for gold! I used two old ice cream tubs to gently siphon off the ater and fine floating material using a panning motion until I was left with the heavy particles whicvh had made it through the sieve and sunk to the bottom

here are a few more initisal mistakes. Firstly I followed the instructions about drying out the wet sediment on paper. However, they didn't specify what paper type! paper towel seemed a good idea at the time but.......on second thoughts!  In addition, there is sooooo much sediment....which has heaped and so will take some drying out. 

I remember in Prof. Steve's live teams meeting saying to us all - if you have lots of material - its going wrong somewhere! Basically, 99.999999999% of this stuff will be iron based roofing material! 

I did go off piste with this sample. My gutter material was so dry that there was lots of very fine dust left in the gutter and so I ran the bagged magnet over that and to my surprise lots got picked up that way as well! I won't submit this as it wasnt collected properly; and also the particle sizes are very varied - some well over 0.5 mm. I think a friend has a microscope and I might try and borrow it and see what I have got though - curiosity! 

Once the wet stuff has dried out - I will have a go at doing the doubloe bag magnet trick with that and that will be the sample I send back to the university. 

This citizen science stuff is exciting. It may take a few goes to perfect the technique though. 

Cosmic dust in the city project

 My Cosmic dust in the city project pack has arrived. 

Phials, plastic bags, magnet, fine sieve, petri dish, instructions and more 

May the gutter sweeping begin! Really looking forward to this. 

Cosmic dust in the city Project University of Plymouth

New to my blog? You can drop in here first to learn more about me and the blog: https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/p/welcome-to-my-astronomy-and.html

As the blog grows, I want it to stay easy to navigate. To help with that, I’ve put together a simple guide that explains how everything is arranged and how to find things quickly:

• Want to Find Something Quickly on My Blog? https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/12/want-to-find-something-quickly-on-my.html

You’ll also see labels, categories, and series developing over time so you can follow particular themes - whether that’s equipment, observing sessions, learning logs, or location-based posts. Anyway, welcome and enjoy. I hope ytou find something useful.  Steve  

The Cosmic dust in the City Project University of Plymouth - Citizen science in action 

Prof. Stephen Grimes and Research Assistant Jenny Wiggins

I have signed up to participating in a citizen science project - searching for Micro-meterorites. 

And I think it is quite exciting. 

I first heard about the project when Stephen did a presentation to the Plymouth Astronomicial Society recently. It was fascinating. 

You can read all about the project here: https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/research/public-engagement-at-plymouth/cosmic-dust-in-the-city

What are Micro-meteorites I hear you all ask? 

Goiod question - short answer - tiny extraterrestial particles that pass through the Earth's atmosphere and settle on the planet surface. They orginate from asteroids and comets and around 20,000 to 40,000 tonnes of this comsic dust arrives annually; around 5,200 tonnes reaching the surface - 80% of it from comets and 20% from asteroids. 

A micro meteroite has an average diameter of 0.25mm. Tiny! Really tiny! 

Chemically and texturally, they can tell us much about the formation and evolution of the early Solar System, the history of the Earth's atmosphere, comet and asteroid composition and finally, long-term climate processes including atmospheric CO2 levels. 

More about the project

It aims to engage schools, families, amateur scientists and community groups in and around Plymouth - with hands on planetary science activities and training of citizen scientists to collect and identify urban micrometeriorites using simple equipment. A regional and national archive of Micrometeorites will be developed as well. 

So what will I be doing? 

I will be gently sweeping out my roof gutters to collect the dust and dirt in them. When it has dried out, I will use a strong magnet to lift out any micrometeorites which I will then send off to the university for examination. If there are any - I will be able to go up to the University lab and see my micrometeorites under a microscope at some point.  

This is so exciting and cool! I am awaiting my citizen science kit and can't wait to get started. 

Find out more about the project using the link above.  I will keep you updated with my progress.

Thank you Stephen and Jenny for such an exciting citizen science project! 

Some sessions give you diamonds. Others, merely gravel! The ups and downs of milky way astrophotography!

 New to my blog? You can drop in here first to learn more about me and the blog: https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/p/welcome-to-my-astronomy-and.html

As the blog grows, I want it to stay easy to navigate. To help with that, I’ve put together a simple guide that explains how everything is arranged and how to find things quickly:

• Want to Find Something Quickly on My Blog? https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/12/want-to-find-something-quickly-on-my.html

You’ll also see labels, categories, and series developing over time so you can follow particular themes - whether that’s equipment, observing sessions, learning logs, or location-based posts. Anyway, welcome and enjoy. I hope ytou find something useful.  Steve 

Milky Way Editing Workflow: What I Managed to Salvage From a Tough Night at Durdle Door

“Not every Milky Way session gives you diamonds — sometimes you come home with gravel. Last week at Durdle Door was one of those nights! Here, in today’s post, I show how I salvaged the data, blended the sky and landscape in Affinity Photo, and squeezed something usable out of a tough session. Clear skies… eventually!”

 

Last week I returned to Durdle Door for my second Milky Way session of 2026 — and if you’ve read the trip report, you’ll know it was a night that fought me every step of the way. Between wind, moon glow, and a restless tripod, the data I brought home was… well, let’s call it “character‑building.” Sometimes astrophotography hands you diamonds; sometimes it hands you gravel. This time, I came home with a bucket of gravel.

Still, even a difficult session has value. You learn, you adapt, and you squeeze every last drop out of the data you did manage to capture. That’s what this post is about: how I processed the images, what worked, and how I blended the sky and landscape using Affinity Photo.

Read the full story of my Durdle Door Milky Way shoot here: My Second Milky Way Session of 2026 at Durdle Door
https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2026/05/my-second-milky-way-session-of-2026.html

And if you want the detailed version of my milky way editing workflow, this earlier guide covers the foundations: For the full breakdown of my workflow, see my Milky Way Editing Tutorial (Affinity Photo + Sequator).
https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/12/editing-tutorial-guide-to-how-i-post.html

 Below is the updated, slightly refined workflow I used for this session.

 

My Milky Way Editing Workflow (2026 Update)

1. Stacking the Sky Images — Twice

For each night, I created two separate stacks:

• one in Sequator
• one in Affinity Photo

I always do this. Some nights Sequator produces a cleaner, more natural result; other nights Affinity Photo pulls ahead. It’s a bit like developing film in two different darkrooms — you never know which one will coax out the best detail until you compare them side by side.

Each program produced one stacked sky image for Night One and one for Night Two.

 

Lots to be please about in the landscape bit - most of it is well lit and in focus. 

The blur of breaking waves is nice. 

Issues? The stark transition line at horizon; the mismatching tone and colouring between landscape and sky. The sky is too blue and not well defined. 

2. Preparing the Landscape Images

I selected a handful of blue hour and midnight hour landscape shots and opened them in Affinity Photo’s Develop Persona for basic RAW adjustments.

Key steps:

• neutralised the pink cast caused by my astro‑modified camera
• applied the same colour‑correction method described in my earlier workflow post
• exported each landscape frame as a TIFF

These TIFFs become the “foreground plates” for the final composite.

 

3. Preparing the Stacked Sky Images

The stacked skies went through the same initial treatment:

• colour‑neutralising the astro‑mod magenta tint
• adjusting white balance for a clean, natural starting point
• exporting as TIFFs ready for blending

At this stage, both sky and landscape images are “pre‑balanced” so they play nicely together later.

 

Version two - the landscape is too dark now! 

This post editing malarkey is quite challenging to grasp! 

How I Replace the Sky in Affinity Photo

This is the part people ask me about most often, so here’s the exact process I use — clean, repeatable, and reliable-ish – if you have some basic photo processing skills.

Step‑by‑step sky replacement workflow

1. Select the sky
   Use the Select Brush Tool to paint over the sky area.
   Click Refine and brush along the horizon to improve the transition.
2. Invert the selection
   Now the landscape is selected instead of the sky.
3. Create a mask
   With the landscape layer highlighted, click the Mask Layer icon.
   The sky should now disappear.
4. Deselect
5. Add the sky image
   Paste your sky TIFF into the document.
6. Move the sky layer below the landscape layer
   This places the sky “behind” the masked foreground.
7. Position the sky
   Use the Move Tool.
   I temporarily set the sky layer to 75% opacity so I can align it precisely.

 

Blending the Horizon for Realism

This is where the magic happens — the difference between a believable composite and one that looks like two photos glued together.

Softening the transition

• Select the landscape mask
• Use a soft black brush at 10–20% opacity
• Gently paint along the horizon to soften the edge
• If the transition is still too harsh, apply a 1–3px Gaussian Blur to the mask

As my wife, who makes her own clothes, would say “Think of this step as feathering two pieces of fabric together until the seam disappears.”

 

Matching Colour and Light Between Sky and Foreground

Adjusting the sky

On the sky layer, I typically apply:

• Recolour Adjustment (warmer or cooler depending on the scene)
• Curves Adjustment (to brighten or darken specific areas)
• HSL Adjustment (to reduce saturation if needed)

For the Milky Way:

• background sky → slightly cooler, bluer hue
• Milky Way core → a touch more magenta

Right‑click each adjustment and choose Mask to Below so it only affects the sky.

I often darken the sky slightly near the horizon — a personal preference, but it adds depth and realism.

 

This one is my favourite - the landscape was taken at midnight. The sky done afterwards with fewer tracked shots at a lower ISO and shutter speed. 

Adjusting the landscape

The goal is to make the foreground feel like it belongs under that sky.

Typical adjustments:

• Curves to darken or cool the landscape
• HSL if colours feel too warm or saturated
• Mask to Below so adjustments apply only to the landscape layer

Finally, I may feather the horizon again with a soft black brush at 10–20% opacity, building up the blend gradually until it feels natural.

 

Final Thoughts

This wasn’t the Milky Way session I hoped for — far from it. But even when the data isn’t great, the workflow still teaches you something. Every failed frame is a stepping stone to the next successful night, and Durdle Door will definitely see me again when the conditions are kinder.

If you’ve got tips, tricks, or your own approach to blending sky and landscape, drop them in the comments. I always credit contributors in future updates and love learning from other people.

Clear skies, stay safe, and keep looking up
— Steve

• Beginner’s Guide: How to Photograph the Milky Way in the UK  https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/02/beginners-guide-to-taking-your-first.html
• How to plan for a milky way photography session: https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/08/a-beginners-guide-to-post-editing-your.html