[Move your mouse over the image to see labels.]  The first early morning glimpses of Orion rising leave me smiling with the return of the winter constellations.  This image is two stacked exposures; one through a #3 fog filter to diffuse the brighter stars and thus accentuate their brilliance and color.  The red giant Betelgeuse (alpha) shows up yellow here, while the younger and hotter stars appear blue.  The bright pink central "star" in the sword is M42, the Great Orion Nebula.  The horsehead/flame complex is visible as a soft red glow below and to the left of the left-most star of the belt (zeta).  The exposure also shows Barnard's loop (discovered by the astrophotography pioneer).  Also visible is the large round nebula around the head star Lambda Orionis.  Taken at Gary and Carolyn Strong's Juniper Sky astronomy preserve in 9/03.

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