Incredible photo of the milky way over Australia

Our galaxy is an amazing place, and it makes for some stunning photographs.

This photo, for example was taken yesterday by Matthew Vandeputte at the town of Rockhampton, Australia, from nearby Mount Archer.

Incredible stuff.

The #milkyway over #rockhampton last night! What a magical place. Two shot blend, Canon 5D3. @CanonAustralia pic.twitter.com/zrTnptL4Ft

— MATJOEZ (@Matjoez) September 16, 2014

App user? See the image on either Twitter or Instagram.

Photography enthusiasts might like to know that, according to his Reddit post, he shot this with a Canon 5D3 and Tokina 11-16 2.8 from a tripod with a long exposure (about 20 seconds for the milky way). Taking two exposures - one for the galaxy and one for the town - he then simply blended them in Photoshop so we could see the whole scene.

If you're wondering why you've never seen the sky like this, it's because you need a dark sky location - without light pollution from the nearby cities. Mountain ranges out west or the "middle of nowhere" down south can both provide good views.

Matthew Vandeputte is a professional photographer with a passion for astrophotography and time-lapse work. You can find his work on Instagram, Facebook, Google+ or on his website.

Via Reddit Australia.