WINTHROP — The Bailey Library will virtually host astrophotographer Mike Taylor at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 30. The event is part of a yearlong series celebrating Maine’s bicentennial that will explore outdoor recreation in Maine, and is sponsored by Kennebec Savings Bank, according to a news release from the library.

Mike Taylor Mike Taylor-Taylor Photography

The public is invited to attend via Zoom by visiting baileylibrary.org/athome. Participants will need a high-speed Internet connection, and a device capable of running the Zoom software or app for the free event. For help attending, email director Richard Fortin at rfortin@baileylibrary.org.

Taylor will give a slideshow presentation focusing on the process of capturing the features of the night sky including the moon, the stars, the Milky Way, the occasional meteor, and the Northern Lights. The presentation will explain how astrophotography is different from landscape photography, and explore where the Milky Way is in the sky, and how it moves through the night and through the seasons.

Taylor also will spend time talking about how to track the Northern Lights, and how Maine’s latitude compares to places such as Iceland and Norway. Additionally, he will discuss processing nighttime photographs and the logistics and equipment involved in capturing and processing time-lapse footage.

Taylor’s photography and articles have been featured at NASA, The Huffington Post, The Weather Channel, NBC News, Down East Magazine, Outdoor Photography Magazine, and various others.

Taylor also is a contributing member of the International Dark-Sky Association and has been working in conjunction with their organization to help raise public awareness of artificial light pollution and its impact on human health, wildlife, and safety.

Taylor works out of his studio based in a 19th century farmhouse in central Maine, owned and operated by Mike and Sonia Taylor. He has been a landscape and studio photographer for more than 20 years.