Incredible pleased to announce that I won the South Downs Astro competition for my photo 'Ancient Light'! In previous years I've been Runner-Up, Highly-Commended and People's Choice, so it's great to finally be able to say that I've actually won it!!

The photo shows the Milky Way above the abandoned barn in Balsdean Valley, north of Saltdean and to the east of Woodingdean, just on the edge of Brighton.

The photo is titled 'Ancient Light', a nod to the light seen from the Milky Way which takes an amazing 26,000 years to reach us! In a fraction of that time Balsdean Valley has seen roman occupation, a medieval hamlet, use as accommodation during the Second World War and for farming.

There were also a few mentions from the South Downs, BBC News and a short feature on Good Morning Britain, ITV Meridian and BBC South!

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Ancient Light' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Excited to say my photo 'Trees of Life' was also Highly-Commended in the South Downs Astro Competition 2026!

Comet Lemmon (C/2025 A6) above a picturesque row of trees on top of a wooded bank found at East Brighton Golf Course between East Brighton Nature Reserve and Wick Bottom, Woodingdean.

Comets are left over remnants from the birth of our solar system - it is thought that they may have brought water and organic compounds to Earth creating life. I love the interconnectedness between this theory about comets and the trees below which continue to sustain life on our planet.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Trees of Life' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

I can't quite believe I'm writing this, but I have won the People's Choice Award in the British Photography Awards Low Light category for one of my favourite (and one of the hardest) photos I've captured. After being shortlisted for the third year in a row, it's amazing to finally come away with an accolade!

A huge thank you to everyone that voted for me - your support means so much!!

The photo is titled 'Milky Way over the West Pier' and it shows our galaxy the Milky Way rising above Brighton's Grade I listed West Pier with the glowing lights of the wind farm behind it in the distance. The orange colour of the large clouds of dust and gas in the Milky Way core along with the pinks of the 3 most prominent nebula (Eagle (M16), Omega (M17) and Lagoon (M8)) can clearly be seen.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Milky Way over the West Pier' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

In the 2024/25 competition I was Highly-Commended for my photo 'Amidst the Stars'.

A photo taken with a drone high above the Devil's Dyke pub. It looks west across Fulking Escarpment with the village of Fulking to the right and the red light from the Truleigh Hill antenna shining in the distance. It was taken during the brief period of snowfall we had early January 2025.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Amidst the Stars' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Thrilled to be a finalist in the CIOB's (Chartered Institute of Building) Art of Building photography competition which saw thousands of entries. The Art of Building competition is an international showcase for the very best digital photography of the built environment.

Click here to see my image in the CIOB shortlist!

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'The Royal Pavilion's Reflection' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

I can't quite believe I'm writing this, but somehow I've managed to be recognised by THE single biggest astrophotography competition in the world, run by the Royal Museums Greenwich, for my image 'Aurora Borealis over Brighton Seafront'.

The other shortlisted images are all absolutely incredible, so to be featured amongst them, let alone be highly-commended, is a huge honour! It's also quite amusing to me that the shortlist comprises of images from Finland, Norway, Iceland etc.....then Brighton is also there too!

So, to go from capturing the first ever aurora in Brighton back in February 2023 (as far as I'm aware!) to then being recognised for a photo of the aurora from Brighton is truly something I thought as unlikely to happen as when I first started trying to capture the aurora from here back in 2021.

For a short video of the presentation by the Royal Museums Greenwich check out my Instagram @michaelstevenharris

If you'd like to see more of my Brighton Aurora photos please visit my blog by clicking here.

*Astronomy Photographer of the Year Gallery - at the National Maritime Museum: A gallery of all of the images (including mine) are available to see in the National Maritime Museum (near the Greenwich Observatory), open daily 10am-5pm with free entry. I'll be going up to take a look at some point, but if anyone is in London in that area and fancies viewing the gallery (which is no doubt excellent) then I'd love to see a photo of my image in it!

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Aurora Borealis over Brighton Seafront' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Honoured and excited to announce the first of my two shortlisted photos in the British Photography Awards this year - 'Celestial Journey' - a photo of the spectactular Ouse Valley Viaduct (or Balcombe Viaduct), part of the main line from London to Brighton seen below our galaxy, the Milky Way.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Celestial Journey' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Amazingly I have been shortlisted for the British Photography Awards 2024 in the 'Street' category for the second year running. To say I'm happy is an understatement!

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Neon Lights at Low Tide' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Shortlisted in a wonderful exhibition hosted at Blackburn Cathedral. Click here to see images of my photo in the exhibition and the event space it was presented in.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Watching the Moonrise behind the Brighton Palace Pier' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Absolutely thrilled to announce my photo of the Milky Way rising above Devil's Dyke valley won the Outdoor Photography Magazine 'Astro landscapes' competition (Issue 308)!

My photo 'Valley of Stars' was taken in the valley of the local well-known Brighton beauty spot called Devil's Dyke, which is 'steeped' in history. Including the legend that the devil, furious at the conversion of the people of the Weald to Christianity, decided to dig a dyke through the South Downs to allow the sea to flow in and drown their villages.

The Milky Way core can be seen towering above the meandering valley!

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Valley of Stars' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Honoured to announce that my photo of the West Pier from above, titled 'Aerial View of the West Pier', was Runner-Up in Outdoor Photography Magazine 'Aerial landscapes' competition (Issue 309)!

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Aerial View of the West Pier' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

A double-page spread in the Amateur Photographer magazine Feb 2024 issue for my photo 'Fiery Skies over the West Pier'.

For this photo, I decided to take an ultra-long exposure of the final moments of an incredible sunset - the longer exposure time creating smooth waves of blended colour across the sky behind the static pier.

Please click on the photo of the 'Fiery Skies over the West Pier' to see the gallery containing the updated photo and this original shot.

For the 2023/24 competition I won the South Downs National Park People's Choice award for my photo of a flock of birds flying past the beech trees at Chanctonbury Ring as the sun began to set.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Golden Beech' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

For the 2023/24 competition I won the 'South Downs National Park Astro Competition People's Choice award' for my photo of the aurora borealis behind the (locally well-known) tree at Cissbury Ring in Worthing.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Aurora and the Cissbury Ring Tree' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Incredibly pleased to announce that my photo 'Late Night on the Promenade' has been shortlisted in the final selection for the 'Street' category for the British Photography Awards 2023.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Late Night on the Promenade' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Shortlisted in the History Hit 'Historic Photographer of the Year 2023' for my photo of a crescent Moon setting behind the West Pier. It was also featured in an article by The Times.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Crescent Moonset over the West Pier' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Shortlisted in the History Hit 'Historic Photographer of the Year 2023' for my photo of the Flying Scotsman on the Bluebell Railway. It was also featured in an article by The Times.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Flying Scotsman on the Bluebell Railway' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Shortlisted in Amateur Photographer's 'Black and White' category for their 2023 Awards competition - my photo 'In-Flight Entertainment' was also featured on their Instagram account to announce the shortlist.

The photo features a murmuration of starlings flying low across the sea behind a paddleboarder. This low-flying behaviour from the starlings is to avoid the falcons that hang around in the area.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'In-Flight Entertainment' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Ecstatic to announce that I am the Runner-Up in the 'South Downs Dark Skyscapes' category for the South Downs National Park Dark Skies Astrophotography competition (as seen in this article by The Telegraph)!

My photo 'Valley of Stars' was taken in the valley of the local well-known Brighton beauty spot called Devil's Dyke, which is 'steeped' in history. Including the legend that the devil, furious at the conversion of the people of the Weald to Christianity, decided to dig a dyke through the South Downs to allow the sea to flow in and drown their villages.

The Milky Way core can be seen towering above the meandering valley!

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Valley of Stars' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

In the international category I was also given the honour of being highly commended for my photo of the Milky Way arching across the sky, titled 'Confectionary Giant'. A play on our Galaxy, the Milky Way, being both a huge celestial object and chocolates by the Mars Corporation!

The image can be seen in this article by 'The Guardian'.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Confectionary Giant' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

For the 2022/23 competition with the theme of 'Near and Far' I was highly-commended for my photo of the Partial Solar Eclipse on October 2022 above the Chattri.

The Chattri is a memorial to the Indian soldiers who died in the First World War, located just outside of Brighton.

When I planned this photo I was imagining the ‘near’ element as the Chattri and the ‘far’ as both the rolling hills of the South Downs extending to the horizon and the solar eclipse high in the sky.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Solar Eclipse at the Chattri' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Selected as a finalist for my photo 'Jay in an Autumn Oak' taken in the beautiful Leechpool Woods close to Horsham.

The judges said: "Key species, beautifully framed and photographed. Jays are responsible for the dispersal of our most important tree species, the Oak."

My entry along with the other finalists can be seen on this voting page.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Jay in an Autumn Oak' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

Honoured to be winner of the Jessops World Photography Day Competition with my photo of the Beachy Head Lighthouse at low tide, which I titled 'Adventure', inspired by the sense of adventure found in a Studio Ghibli film.

Beachy Head lighthouse is situated below the Seven Sisters Cliffs in the Seven Sisters Country Park.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Adventure' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.

My photo of the interactive laser display over Brighton can be seen on the official Instagram page, as well as the 'Laser Light City for Brighton Skyline' blog page. Lasers coming from Tower Point (North Road), Sussex Heights and Seven Dials.

Please click on the photo to see the gallery that includes the photo 'Laser Light City - Brighton' - where you can view it in a larger size on PC, or purchase a print/canvas.