Photographer Spends 10 Years Creating Out-of-This-World 8K Milky Way Timelapse

Italian photographer Mattia Bicchi is a master of timelapse photography, including the exceptionally challenging and demanding subset of Milky Way timelapse.

The artist’s new Milky Way timelapse compilation, presented in glorious 8K HDR for those with adequate displays, collects a decade of Bicchi’s best astrophotography work into a single 13-minute video, and it’s utterly mesmerizing.

A Decade of Lessons

In his 10 years of shooting Milky Way timelapse photography, Bicchi has learned a lot. He tells PetaPixel the number one lesson has been “patience, a lot of patience.”

“There were times in the beginning that I would rush to start the timelapse and by rushing it, I would make a mistake that would result in throwing away the timelapse and wasting the entire night,” he explains.

Timelapse photography is demanding and time-consuming even in daylight, but the challenges are dialed up to 11 at night — every shot takes a lot longer, and creating a timelapse requires many individual photos for every one second of video (24, 25, or 30 are all typical frame rates).

Bicchi has also learned that the entire process is much more fun with company.

“Another lesson I learned is to enjoy the night shooting out with someone else — a friend, another photographer or a family member. At the beginning, I was going out always by myself, which is good sometimes. I still love to spend a night under the stars by myself, but when you share the beauty of the Milky Way and the night sky with someone is incredible.”

Even though the photographer’s timelapse work is amazing, and he has some big clients on his CV including Netflix, BBC, Ford, and Amazon, to name just a few, he believes there’s room for him to improve over his Milky Way timelapse work.

“I want to improve shooting timelapses with the motion control slider and include pull-focus techniques,” he explains. “I also want to improve the quality of the timelapse by investing in new lenses and learning different post-production techniques.” Bicchi also wants to use a star tracker more, enabling him to introduce longer focal lengths and more dynamic movements to his work.

In Search of Better Skies and Dealing With the Seasons

While his compilation includes beautiful night skies from all over, there are plenty of dark skies he has yet to explore.

“The top three locations I want to go to are the Canary Islands (I had everything planned for a 10-day shoot in May 2020, but the pandemic happened), New Zealand, the night sky over there is breathtaking! Another place I would love to visit and shoot the Aurora is Norway.”

As for Bicchi’s favorite places so far, he points to a lake region south of Toledo in Spain, Zafra Castle, made famous by Game of Thrones, and the Durdle Door rock formation in southern England. The videos for these locations are sprinkled throughout this article, including the Spanish spot below.

While Milky Way timelapse photography is always challenging, Bicchi notes that each season offers its own challenges.

“I have to stay in one spot close to the camera for five or six hours, and it gets very cold in some locations,” Bicchi says of winter shooting. “I struggle to keep warm, especially my feet and hands.”

On the other hand, during the warmer months, the photographer must contend with people out with flashlights.

“If I shoot in the spring/summer the most challenging part is the lights and torches of people or light painter photographers, I have to go normally during the week to get a timelapse of famous spots. Flashing lights and torches are very distracting in a timelapse and they can ruin it.”

The overall appearance of the Milky Way depends a lot on seasons, too. At different times of the year, the core is visible at night, and the angle of the Milky Way shifts throughout the year.

“The Milky Way’s position in the sky changes throughout the year and especially the Milky Way core is not always visible. Here in the northern hemisphere, you can see the core from March to September and that is when I would normally shoot the Milky Way. Also, from March to September the angle of the Milky Way core changes, so I need to consider that when I go out shooting a specific location,” Bicchi explains.

At the 2’49” mark in his compilation video, there’s an example of the Milky Way at its vertical position in June. Compare that to a clip from April around the 10-minute mark, and the Milky Way is rising at a much lower angle.

He does shoot in the winter, though, as mentioned. At this time, the Milky Way is a bit dimmer and shows fewer stars compared to the galactic core, but it features some nice constellations.

The Importance of Planning and Scouting

Bicchi has learned a lot over the years and spent a ton of time in the field and honing his editing craft. If he could impart any lessons to himself a decade ago, when he was just getting started, he’d tell himself to invest in glass rather than the fanciest camera bodies.

“The lens is what will make a difference for a good Milky Way timelapse,” the photographer says.

These days, he loves the 14mm focal length because it allows him to capture a lot of the Milky Way and some foreground elements. He uses longer lenses, too, particularly alongside his star tracker, which he used to capture a timelapse of the Neowise comet.

He’d also tell himself to learn how to plan better “because planning is one of the most important parts of shooting the Milky Way.”

“Learn how to read the weather forecast properly, what what the dew point is to avoid moisture building up on the lens.”

“And learn the position of the Milky Way using photography apps like Photopills, The Photographer’s Ephemeris, and PlanitPro,” he adds.

While Bicchi can’t go back in time to impart these lessons to his past self, he can share them with new and future photographers thanks to his e-book, Mastering Time, which includes all the knowledge he has accumulated over the past decade. He also offers private on-location workshops and post-processing tutoring to help budding timelapse photographers.

Planning a good shot goes beyond apps and weather forecasts, of course. Bicchi does on-the-ground scouting during the daytime to familiarize himself with a location and find the right compositions. It is complicated to find a good frame in the dark, and it’s vital to see any potential hazards while there’s still ample light. He strongly advises against venturing to an all-new spot in the dark, as it can be dangerous.

More From Mattia Bicchi

Mattia Bicchi is a very successful timelapse photographer with a diverse, remarkable portfolio. He has previously been featured on PetaPixel for amazing work like this timelapse of London and this one of a comet over Madrid. He frequently uploads videos to YouTube, including helpful tutorial videos.

Image credits: Mattia Bicchi