Angkor Temples Under the Stars

angkor temples night photography

From time to time, we have requests about capturing the Milky Way or star trails in the temples of Angkor. Unfortunately due to the  archaeological  park’s  opening hours (most temples are only open between 7.30 am and 5.30 pm), night photography in the temples is quite difficult.
January and February are the most favorable months to take pictures of the temples under the stars.  Angkor Wat temple opens at 5 am therefore  it is  possible  to capture long exposure of the night sky. Of course you will not be able to do very long star trails and only several minutes long exposures. Like for any astrophotography,  you have to be aware of the phase of the moon as a full moon will disrupt your plan to get a starry sky.  Here are few night pictures below we capture in the temples of Angkor, we will update  this gallery from time to time with new shots.

 

 

Phnom Bakheng temple under a  full moon

Phnom Bakheng temple is a 10th century hilltop temple, very popular as it drawn thousands of visitors everyday for  sunset. Going there at sunrise  is a unique photography experience even with a full moon.

 

phnom bakheng temple stars angkor travel photography

Phnom Bakheng tower under the stars illuminated by a full moon

 

phnom bakheng temple full moon night angkor travel photography

Phnom Bakheng shrines under the full moon

 

Angkor Wat under the stars

Angkor Wat under the stars is  a  challenging capture as  your camera  will facing  east. Also, because the temple opens  at 5 am,   it is, for many months of the year,  already too late to capture the stars. Another challenge is coming for the light pollution from the  numerous LED torch used by the earliest visitor to navigate in the park at night. In the two pictures below you can see three of the five towers of  Angkor Wat illuminated by those LED’s. Despite all that, it is still possible to see stars above Angkor Wat temple just before the astronomical sunrise.

angkor wat photography tours night

Angkor Wat under thousand of stars

 

angkor wat photography tours night

Angkor Wat temple before sunrise under starry sky

 

angkor wat photography tours night

Angkor Wat temple before sunrise under starry sky

 

angkor wat photography tours night

Angkor Wat library under the stars

 

 

Bakong temple after sunset

In the picture below, the beautiful three-tiered Bakong temple mountain, built during the 10th century is in the  company of Jupiter and Venus in this rare planetary conjunction taken in October 2015.

venus jupiter conjunction Bakong temple

Bakong temple after sunset with Venus and Jupiter

 

 

Bayon temple under the moon full

 

 

bayon temple full moon

Bayon temple lit up by full moon

 

If you are looking for a photographic  challenge and want to capture Angkor under the stars we will be happy to assist you, please have a look at the many photography tours  we have at www.angkorphotographytours.com.

Solar Eclipse at Angkor Wat temple

The last solar eclipse making the headlines in Angkor was the one on the 24th October 1995. It was a total eclipse reaching its maximum just before noon. As the sun was already high in the sky, no picture could be taken with the silhouette of Angkor Wat.

The recent solar eclipse that took place on March 9th 2016 received almost the same attention from the media. In a narrow corridor stretching from Sumatra to Sulawesi in Indonesia, the eclipse was total but only partial in other parts of Southeast Asia: Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Philippines, and Cambodia.

As the date of this eclipse  was close to the Spring Equinox celebration where the central tower of Angkor Wat  is perfectly aligned with the rising sun, it was such a perfect timing for watching the sun rising  behind the main towers of the temple. Sunrise on that day was at 6.16 am and the eclipse started at 6.39 am, reaching its maximum  at 7:34 am and ended at 8.37 am.

As expected, the moon started passing in front of the sun just after sunrise. As the eclipse continued the sun was close enough to the main tower to capture a half-sun sitting right above the pinnacle of the main tower. It was also a good time to catch some reflection on the pond.

Another eclipse leaving only a crescent of sun above Angkor Wat will take place on April 20th 2042. Save the date, it should be another spectacular event, though with a maximum point at 8.06 am, the sun will already be quite high on the sky but the changing of light might be interesting.

 

(These pictures were taken with a Canon 5DMKII and a 24-105 mm f:4 lens fitted with a 10-stops neutral density filter)

angkor wat sunrise photography tour

Angkor Wat temple before sunrise – 6.08 am.

 

Angkor Wat solar sunrise eclipse photography tour

Beginning of the solar eclipse behind Angkor Wat – 6.41 am

 

sun eclipse angkor wat photograhy tour

Sun eclipse above Angkor Wat main tower – 6.54 am

 

Sun eclipse Angkor Wat photography tour

Sun eclipse beside Angkor Wat main tower – 6.58 am.

 

sun eclipse angkor wat photograhy tour

Sun eclipse above Angkor Wat main tower – 7.04 am.

 

Angkor Wat temple eclipse photography tour

Angkor Wat temple reflecting on water pond – 7.08 am.

 

partial solar eclipse photography tour

Partial solar eclipse at the maximum – 7.35 am.

 

Angkor Wat temple moat photography tour

Angkor Wat temple and its moat view from the from West entrance – 8.06 am.