My astrophotography talk has been presented both at national and international level to societies and general clubs.

Astronomy is quite a niche area that generates a lot of interest particularly when the audience sees results of what might be possible from a back garden location after providing a little bit of help and knowledge.

These talks are tailored depending on the audience (as indicated below).

General Clubs – concentrating more on the results together with an explanation of how and when to see the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis). There are lots of photographs to see of the night sky and presented with a bit of humour.

Photography Clubs – as above but in addition, discussions on how to achieve widefield astrophotography using just a camera and lens (both zoom and wide angle), understanding the “500 rule”, iso/shutter speed/aperture triangle, how to achieve perfect focus out in the field, calibration frames and what they achieve, various software packages. Further discussions on photographing the aurora.

Astronomy clubs – as above but in addition, equipment connectivity, software packages available, Pro’s & con’s using a standard camera, an astro modified camera and a CCD. Discussions on solar astronomy and finally discussions on remoting and the IT side to make this happen

Schools and Colleges – tailored to suit the age level – On a side note, 8-10 year olds are banned as they ask the hardest of questions !!!

The talks are between 45 to 90 minutes in length and will continue to evolve as new images are added. Every talk is different and humour is always included. The talk can also be presented in two halves with a coffee/tea/comfort break inbetween

The dates for my upcoming talks are <HERE>

The costs for a presentation are ….

£40 (within 15 miles of Filey)
£60 (between 20-40 miles of Filey)
£80 (around 50 miles from Filey + possible overnight accommodation costs)

Venues over 100 miles please contact me …

FEEDBACK Received …

Dear Steve, I hope this message finds you well. I wanted to take a moment to sincerely thank you for the incredible photography presentation you delivered at Ashington Camera Club on Thursday night. Your insights, creativity, and passion for photography truly captivated the audience and provided valuable knowledge and inspiration. Your ability to showcase the artistry behind each image, along with your technical expertise, made the session both educational and engaging. We especially appreciated your discussion on [Astrophotography], which gave the members a new perspective on photography. It was a pleasure to learn from you, and the club members are grateful for the time and effort you put into sharing your expertise. Hopefully some of the members will look at applying some of the techniques you discussed, we would hope to have the opportunity to see more of your work in the future. Once again, thank you for your inspiring presentation. Please keep up the great work, and I hope our paths cross again soon.

Stephen Bowden is a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society (FRAS) and recently delivered a presentation entitled “Discovering the night sky”. Photographs were shared of deep sky objects such as Galaxies and Nebulas including detailed images of our closest star with most of these taken from his back garden observatory near Filey in North Yorkshire. Stephen also explained in simple terms how the Northern Lights manifest together with photographs taken of the aurora from Filey and Scarborough area. Most of the photographs presented had been taken using a digital SLR camera and Stephen was happy to share “how” the photographs were captured so that audience members with similar aspirations could achieve the same results. The talk was extremely well received and generated much discussion with our society members. A very different but enlightening talk that clearly demonstrated his passion and enthusiasm on this subject. We look forward to receiving Stephen back soon for another of his talks.

It was nice to meet up with you again. On behalf of the Beverley Photographic Club I would like to thank you for an entertaining evening. Your presentation on “Discovering the night sky” was both humorous and very knowledgeable. There were some spectacular images especially of Nebulas. You answered the numerous questions very well and in depth which is always a bonus. My personal favourite image was of the refueling plane and although you might have been lucky (your words), the sharpness of the silhouette against the moon was fantastic. Must be one in a million. Thank you again until the next time.

Filey Rotary had the pleasure of welcoming Steve Bowden to give us his talk “Discovering the night sky”. This was a fascinating talk where Steve showcased a number of his amazing photos and a few jokes and facts thrown in to make it very engaging and informative.

Steve is a brilliant photographer. His Astro stuff goes over my head but he’s a real expert. The thing you didn’t see is his landscape work and he’s great at that as well. Apart from all that just a really nice bloke. “Discovering the night sky“.