Photography is often about being in the right place at the right time. Sometimes, it’s spontaneous, like in street photography. But often, especially in the case of astrophotography, it’s the work of careful planning. Astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy knows this all too well. No stranger to months of planning and precise coordination, McCarthy recently shared one of his latest photo series: scenes being up close and personal—mere hundreds of feet—from a SpaceX launch pad, capturing the Raptor 3 engine’s first flight.
McCarthy’s proximity to the launch yielded incredible shots. One showcases the power of the rockets. With his camera trained on the thrusters, he captured the moment of liftoff as fire trailed the bottom of the ship. Partially obscured and therefore abstracted, the smoke and flames cloaked the circular motif created by the cropped angle. It’s McCarthy’s most detailed photo of a Starship rocket since he began shooting them two and a half years ago.
It was uncertain how the launch would go, as it was the first time for both the new engine and vehicle. But for McCarthy, it was also uncertain how his camera would react to the proximity of the event. “This more powerful Raptor 3 engine would send a blast of hot exhaust and debris into the place where I placed my camera, 600 feet from the pad,” McCarthy explains, “so my hope was I would get a shot before my camera was blasted, and would be able to recover my memory card. Thankfully, the damage wasn’t too bad, and I didn’t even lose the lens (unlike some of my other cameras).”
“The exhaust kicks up debris like pebbles and bits of concrete,” the photographer continues, “and launches them like bullets at the lens. The wind gust is like a tornado, and can knock over tripods and fling gear hundreds of feet. It’s pretty intense!”
While he captured a close-quarters shot of the ship, McCarthy also photographed it as it was gliding through the sky. Scroll down to see that image and get a peek into his incredible setup leading up to the launch. Then, follow Andrew McCarthy on Instagram to see what he’s shooting next.
Astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy shot incredible scenes from the SpaceX launch pad, capturing the Raptor 3 engine’s first flight.
Get a peek into McCarthy’s setup—a mere 600 feet from the pad—in the videos below.
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