Astrophotography is more than just a hobby – it brings the vastness of the universe straight into your living room. For Dr. Henk Groth, it’s the most distant galaxies that truly captivate him. Using high-quality photo equipment and producing razor-sharp, high-contrast inkjet prints, he brings these wonders of the cosmos up close and personal.
When it comes to printing, the passionate photography enthusiast relies on Hahnemühle Photo Rag® Bright White and the premium print service from WhiteWall. This paper is one of six new FineArt Inkjet papers now available in WhiteWall’s range – bringing the total to twelve Hahnemühle papers to choose from. Perfect for anyone who wants to turn their photos into long-lasting works of art.
Why does Dr Henk Groth trust Photo Rag® Bright White?
The short version:
I use high-end photo equipment
Often wait weeks for clear, moonless nights
Choose the darkest location possible – luckily, my backyard works quite well
Over several nights, I capture hundreds of images (for this photo: 200 images, totalling 6 hours of exposure time)
Spend many hours at the computer stacking, processing, and carefully editing everything
And when the perfect image is finally ready, it should look just as impressive when printed
A standard poster print doesn’t do it justice, but a professional FineArt print on the bright white, matte Hahnemühle paper shows the colours and details of distant galaxies as naturally and deeply as the night sky itself.
The Full Story:
After many years of landscape and macro photography, a friend suggested I try astrophotography. Armed with a good camera setup and a tracking mount to compensate for Earth’s rotation, we set off on our first nighttime photography adventures. My ambitions quickly grew: the telephoto lens was replaced by a telescope, the carbon tripod gave way to a much sturdier steel one – the only piece that has remained with me is my trusted Canon EOS 5D IV.
Of course, gear isn’t everything: great astrophotos also require the right timing and location. Ideal conditions include moonless nights and as little light pollution as possible. My backyard in Göttingen surprisingly meets these requirements quite well.
A single astrophotograph typically consists of dozens to hundreds of individual exposures collected over several nights. In this case, it was 200 images with a total exposure time of six hours. On the computer, they are carefully stacked, processed, and edited. Only then does the true subject emerge: perhaps a galaxy whose light has travelled for millions of years or a glowing hydrogen nebula resembling the shape of California. But even if the digital version looks stunning, one last challenge remains: the print. Regular prints often fail to capture the fine details and the depth of space. That’s why many astrophotographers skip printing altogether.
I wanted to change that.
Through friends and family, I discovered WhiteWall and I was immediately impressed. The prints of my image of Messier 33, a spiral galaxy in the Triangulum constellation, on the bright white, matte Photo Rag® Bright White paper from Hahnemühle were brilliant, rich in detail, and showed the deep blacks in the background, just as I had seen them on screen.
Finally, I can present my images the way they deserve to be seen.
With the addition of six premium Hahnemühle FineArt Inkjet papers, WhiteWall now offers even more options to present photographs as true works of art. Whether it’s the matte Photo Rag® Bright White, the ultra-smooth Photo Rag® Ultra Smooth, the expressive Photo Rag® Baryta, the shimmering Photo Rag® Metallic, the textured German Etching®, or the eco-friendly Bamboo – each paper has its own unique character and is perfectly suited to different photographic styles and forms of expression. Combined with WhiteWall’s precise printing service, it’s the perfect setup for anyone who values maximum visual impact, longevity, and professional presentation.
