Dark nebulae are the silhouettes of the sky. They neither shine nor reflect light – instead, dense clouds of cold gas and dust swallow the light of the stars behind them, standing out as deep black structures against the brighter background. They are especially striking against the dense star fields of the Milky Way. The range spans from individual globules in the Barnard catalog to sprawling dark-cloud complexes. Dark nebulae are often the birthplaces of future stars and frequently appear alongside reflection and emission nebulae. Photographically they demand one thing above all: a truly dark sky and clean data, because their impact depends on the contrast with the surrounding star field. Light pollution and noise quickly erase their subtle structures. This page gathers every dark nebula I have photographed so far. Click into any object to learn more about it and see all the astrophoto posts it appears in.
Dark Nebulae
Dark nebulae swallow the light of the stars behind them, standing out as black structures. This page shows every dark nebula I have photographed so far – each with its own object page.
