Ollie Taylor has visited some of the darkest places on earth in search of the perfect conditions for night sky astrophotography - taking pictures of the night sky in some enviable locations. The award-winning astrophotographer recently added AlUla to that list, setting up his impressive collection of cameras in the dark sky park of Gharameel. AlUla’s still nights and majestic rock formations offer a perfect canvas for aspiring night-sky shooters or seasoned astrophotographers alike.

It's at a really good latitude that allows us to see more in the night sky than we can in other parts of the world,” Ollie says of Gharameel, as he prepares for an evening under the stars in AlUla.
“My first impressions of this place are like, ‘wow, there's so much potential’. You just drive along this landscape and you can see by the smile on my face that we're going to be able to create some epic stuff here.” For each astrophotography expedition, Ollie spends weeks preparing - using a range of apps to assess the suitability of each location. 

This includes studying light pollution maps, humidity records and historic weather sequences. The topography of a location is also key, with apps like AllTrails helping to ascertain what contours - inclines, declines or deep valleys, - may need to be tackled. AlUla’s night sky park of Gharameel has emerged as Saudi Arabia’s leading location for stargazing. For centuries, the Bedouins benefited from AlUla’s clear skies as a navigation aid; now, visitors are flocking to admire the twinkling tapestry that lies above. Given that the naked eye can appreciate the stars in AlUla, it is no surprise that conditions are also optimal for astrophotography.

A perfect night sky and a perfect location-you need all the elements to be right [for good astrophotography],” Ollie explains. “The number one key is weather; naturally, we need clear skies. “We're working in a part of the world here in Gharameel and AlUla that is renowned for not really having much cloud cover and being predominantly clear. “With all the lone trees and the mountains - it’s an awesome landscape. You can spend however many weeks trying to map out an area but then it’s the undiscovered stuff and the shots that you don’t plan for that can still turn out to be the best ones.”