Find out about BBC Sky at Night Magazine's latest online events, astronomy and astrophotography courses and webinars.
BBC Sky at Night Magazine Masterclass
The Art of Solar Imaging
From aurora to sunspots, discover how to capture the Sun at its most powerful in this complete guide to safely photographing our nearest star – while its visible surface is in a peak state of activity.
Our nearest star, the Sun, is more active now than it has been for the past decade as it approaches solar maximum, but its brightness makes it a challenging target to photograph.
Our expert talks will show you how to work with the Sun’s intense light in safety and capture the effects of solar maximum.
This is the time when sunspots, flares and prominences are at their most abundant, and when the beautiful night-time effect we owe to the Sun, the aurora, can be visible more often.
Talk 1
James Rowley-Hill
Capturing the aurora
This talk will set you up with the background science as to what causes the aurora, how to plan and predict the aurora and how best to capture a display using smartphones and DSLR cameras.
Talk 2
Mary McIntyre
Sunspots on a budget
We’ll cover what sunspots are, what equipment and accessories you can buy on a budget to see and image their movement, and how to stay safe while capturing the Sun’s dynamic surface.
Talk 3
Dave Eagle
Revealing the Sun's interior
Our final talk looks at the kit needed to photograph the Sun's dynamic features and why this unveils more detail than standard solar filters, plus processing to create finished images.
Masterclass 1
Capturing the aurora
- Speaker: James Rowley-Hill
- Date: Thursday 3 April 2025, 7pm BST
The Sun is currently close to the peak of its solar cycle and this increase in its activity is predicted to last for much of 2025. This year we’re likely to see a greater chance of dramatic aurora displays – like the two incredible events experienced across the UK in 2024. Should we get another memorable night of Northern Lights during this time of heightened solar activity, it’s best to be prepared.
This talk will set you up with the background to what causes these ‘bucket list’ phenomena, how you can plan for and to some extent, predict, the aurora reaching across the UK, and how best to capture them using smartphones and DSLR cameras.
Agenda
- What causes the aurora and how the Sun drives it
- Why we see more dramatic displays at solar maximum
- Different forms the aurora takes and how what you see changes depending on location
- Predict displays and get info on when they’ll be visible, ahead of time
- Capture the best shots of the aurora and how photos differ from what you see
- Processing tips to get your captures looking their best
About the speaker
James Rowley-Hill has been chasing the Northern Lights for over 20 years. What was once a hobby is now a passion he’s well known for. By co-running the AUK Aurora UK Facebook group, he shares his expertise with more than 40,000 members, putting out alerts for aurora activity across the UK.
Masterclass 2
Seeing sunspots on a budget
- Speaker: Mary McIntyre
- Date: Thursday 24 April 2025, 7pm BST
We’re seeing a greater number of sunspots now that the Sun is at the peak of its solar cycle, and these regions of intense magnetic field are set to increase as the Sun becomes more active. You can safely reveal this remarkable magnetic activity on the Sun using as little as a filtered pair of binoculars, a telescope, or a long camera lens.
In this talk we’ll cover what sunspots are, what equipment and accessories you can buy on a budget to see and image their movement over time, and how to stay safe while capturing the Sun’s dynamic surface.
Agenda
- Projecting the Sun’s image and how to do it safely
- Equipment options safe for solar imaging with a telescope
- Dedicated solar telescopes and what to look for when buying one
- Capturing images of the Sun’s surface with phone cameras, DSLRs and astro cameras
- Sketching and drawing active solar regions
About the speaker
Mary McIntyre has been an avid solar photograper since 2012. A regular writer for Sky at Night Magazine and a co-presenter on its Star Diary podcast, Mary is also the co-author of the Collins Stargazing Bible.
Masterclass 3
Flares and prominences, revealing the Sun’s interior
- Speaker: Ivana Peranic
- Date: Thursday 22 May 2025, 7pm BST
Our Sun is essentially a huge ball of hydrogen and helium: the two core ingredients of all stars. Capturing detailed images of its inner workings takes highly specialist equipment and techniques – from etalons and narrowband filters, to ‘double-stacking’.
Our final talk will introduce the essentials of the Sun’s structure to reveal the layers where hidden details like flares and prominences can be seen. We’ll then look at the kit that’s needed to photograph these dynamic features, and why this unveils more detail than standard solar filters, before covering the processing steps that go into creating dramatic finished images.
Agenda
- Layers of the Sun and its atmosphere, where fine detail can be found
- Why hydrogen-alpha telescopes and filters reveal the Sun’s atmosphere in detail
- Other equipment options for detailed solar imaging
- Capture and processing techniques, from lucky imaging to colorising
- How to choose your captures: full-disc and closeups
About the speaker
Ivana Peranic's solar photography reveals the remarkable activity and turbulent surface of our nearest star. Her photography and articles have featured in popular space and astronomy magazines and her images have been shortlisted at the European Astrofest in London.
For more info about BBC Sky at Night Magazine's virtual events, visit our FAQ and T&Cs page.