Shot about 50 minutes before sunrise. Several advanced editing steps here, but nothing expert. This was a single raw exposure which I processed into two, under and over, ala HDR. After adjusting and flattening, several more adjustment layers to recover detail from the foreground landscape and a little tweak to the highlights to make the planets a little more prominent. A few more layers to tweak sharpening, as well as an oversharpen (25/85/2) to boost contrast. This last step is also to blame for the odd color shift right at the tree/sky boundary.
This was a difficult shot to get because the planets were at the juncture where the sky was brightening quite quickly. The atmosphere was extremely clear that morning. I have one shot of Jupiter (the lowest of the bright planets) right at the horizon. Usually the murk right at the surface prevents any visibility until an object is about a half degree up. Not this day. Very cool pre-dawn sky.
I don't believe this shot will do well. Not enough "wow" for the average viewer. I'm predicting a 5.7. The planets are Mercury (top), Jupiter, and Mars to the right. The faint object above and left of Mercury is a 2nd magnitude star in Scorpius. The sky gradient is real with a very slight boost in sat.
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This is SO beautiful! Such a stunning display of colors. I love the negative space in the sky but how stunningly the horizon compliments it! Amazing photography! 10
love the minimalist composition, don't think the factory should have been centered though, much more interesting if it was off to the side. water comes through nicely - nice job
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