Nilesh Choithramani, Aoraki Nights (PLACES WILDERNESS 2025)

This was one of those nights where everything aligned - the Milky Way arched over the snow-capped Southern Alps of Aoraki / Mt Cook, the air was crisp with alpine stillness, and the faint flow of the aurora australis bled into the horizon like a dream. Photographing nights like this isn't about capturing perfection. It's about reverence. About bearing witness to what most will never see - and feeling, even for a moment, completely and beautifully small.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.