Astrophotography Journey in the Himalayas by Anushtup Roy Choudhury
In the vast and majestic Himalayas, Anushtup Roy Choudhury, a renowned adventure photographer, finds his muse. With a passion for astrophotography, landscape photography, and drone photography, Roy Choudhury captures the stunning celestial and terrestrial beauty of the Indian Himalayas.
Roy Choudhury, the co-founder of Light N Lens and mentor for astrophotography within the community, carries a carefully selected array of lenses. These include the Sony 50mm f1.8, Sony 28-70mm f3.5-5.6, Samyang 14mm f2.8 MF, and Tamron 28-200mm 2.8-5.6. For stability, he relies on the Digitek DTR 520 Tripod and the Leofoto LS 285C Tripod, while the Move Shoot Move star tracker ensures sharpness in his long exposure shots.
His camera of choice is the Sony A7 Mark II, with plans to upgrade to the Sony A7C II. Despite the challenges posed by his home's Bortle 9 skies, Roy Choudhury finds the Himalayas an ideal location for his astrophotography endeavours.
Planning and preparation are crucial for Roy Choudhury's Himalayan expeditions. He utilises smartphone apps such as PhotoPills and The Photographer’s Ephemeris to track celestial events and ensure optimal timing for his shots. Weather forecasting apps like Windy or MeteoBlue help him avoid clouds and storms. GPS-enabled devices and trail navigation apps such as Gaia GPS or AllTrails are essential for scouting precise spots and maintaining safety on high-altitude hikes.
Long exposure techniques, careful ISO and aperture settings, and potentially stacking multiple images to reduce noise are standard workflows for Roy Choudhury's astrophotography. Post-processing involves enhancing faint star details, adjusting colour balance, and stitching panoramas or time-lapses if done. Using software to highlight constellations or the Milky Way helps bring out the astrophotographic subjects vividly.
The Himalayas offer extremely dark skies and dramatic foregrounds, but the environment demands meticulous preparation in gear, physical readiness, and environmental awareness to capture astrophotography effectively. Roy Choudhury's combined steps embody this approach, maximising the stunning celestial and terrestrial beauty of the Indian Himalayas.
Roy Choudhury's dedication and skill have not gone unnoticed. His images have been featured in prestigious publications such as Astronomy Magazine, Amateur Astrophotography, and the Amateur Astronomy Picture of the Day (AAPOD2). Notably, one of his shots was shortlisted for an APOD and featured on NASA's Sky Facebook page.
In addition to his astrophotography, Roy Choudhury organises half-yearly offline photography exhibitions and conducts commercial photography workshops and tours. He also documents his travel experiences on his YouTube channel.
Recently, one of Roy Choudhury's images was selected and featured by National Geographic's Natgeo Traveller India Instagram. In November 2023, he completed an Everest Base Camp expedition, where he continued his astrophotography journey. Another of his images was featured by NASA's APOD Instagram, further solidifying his reputation as a master of astrophotography in the Indian Himalayas.
For those interested in connecting with Roy Choudhury, his social media links are provided. His journey in the Himalayas serves as an inspiration for aspiring photographers, demonstrating the beauty that can be captured when passion meets preparation.
- Anushtup Roy Choudhury, known for his passion for astrophotography, carries a variety of lenses such as the Sony 50mm f1.8, Sony 28-70mm f3.5-5.6, Samyang 14mm f2.8 MF, and Tamron 28-200mm 2.8-5.6 for his photography.
- For stability during his long exposure shots, Roy Choudhury relies on the Digitek DTR 520 Tripod and the Leofoto LS 285C Tripod, while the Move Shoot Move star tracker ensures sharpness in his images.
- To plan his Himalayan expeditions, Roy Choudhury utilises apps like PhotoPills, The Photographer's Ephemeris, Windy, MeteoBlue, Gaia GPS, and AllTrails, helping him track celestial events, avoid clouds and storms, and scout precise spots.
- Standard workflows for Roy Choudhury's astrophotography include long exposure techniques, careful ISO and aperture settings, potentially stacking multiple images, and post-processing that involves enhancing star details, adjusting colour balance, and stitching panoramas or time-lapses.
- Roy Choudhury's dedication and skill have been recognized, with his images featured in Astronomy Magazine, Amateur Astrophotography, and the Amateur Astronomy Picture of the Day (AAPOD2), among others.
- Apart from astrophotography, Roy Choudhury organises photography exhibitions, conducts commercial photography workshops, tours, and shares his travel experiences on his YouTube channel.
