The Great Orion Nebula, a huge cloud of swirling gas illuminated by the hot, young stars being created within it, can be found on a clear, dark winter night as a faint smudge below Orion's belt, in his sword.
Photography of the nebula is not easy, even though it is relatively bright. The problem lies in the exposure latitude of the film. Short exposures show only the bright center of the nebula, while long exposures show the faint outer reaches well while exposing the inner nebula. Therefore, it is best to take a short exposure, such as this one, and a long one and combine them digitally with a program like Photoshop.
