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Starry nights
The nights in Ticino and now in Mürren were starry. The winter constellation of Orion is near sunrise in the south, which allows a “late” rising. This morning I was able to capture Orion with the red color of its nebula in the center of the dagger. So dark was it on the local helicopter landing site of Mürren. Somewhat to the left of the top of the Jungfrau one could see a faint zodiacal light.
Starry night at Mürren (Sirius and Orion) © Julian Köpke 
Weak zodiac light over Jungfrau © Julian Köpke -
Mürren II
With the first cable car to the Schilthorn I started at 7:40 am in Mürren. Unfortunately, as a tourist I couldn’t go up earlier. On the terrace of the mountain station there were two cardboard figures with shooting irons in hand, which appeared to me on the pictures of the webcam as strangely motionless guests. The temperature at 0 degrees Celsius was not friendly for the hands, so I was mostly alone on the platform.
How do you photograph mountains ? At distant mountains the colour disappears into a dull blue, which is why I prefer black and white in these cases. Then a gripping dynamic may develop that draws you into the image.
Snow field at Eiger (Alps of Bern) © Julian Köpke The technical side of a cable car has always fascinated me. A cable car is a workplace for drivers, technicians, engineers and many others. The first ride in the morning is a cheerful encounter of these people, who have known each other for along time and take turns doing some work on the machines. That’s why we were allowed to listen to music for the morning gymnastics during the drive uphill.
In fact, the construction of a mountain station on the Schilthorn before it became the location for the 4th James Bond movie starring George Lazenby was certainly controversial and economically questionable. After the movie, everything was clear. Today you can admire many scenes and their making of on a separate floor, as well as 10 minutes of impressive films about the local landscape and the film.
Piz Gloria (Schilthorn) with 007 Café. Some scenes of the 4th 007 movie were shot there. It's been the headquarter of Blofield. © Julian Köpke It was only while processing the images that I noticed the many airplane tracks in the sky that had not been there for so long.
The mountain range of Eiger (left), Mönch and Jungfrau also looks better in black-and-white technique. The imminent change of the weather is already clearly visible on the image.
Mountain chain Eiger Mönch Jungfrau. There will be a weather change. © Julian Köpke -
Mürren
The peace in Mürren is almost intrusive. It is not disturbed by traffic noise. Only the occasional buzzing of the cable cars is reminiscent of normal life. The starry sky is great because at night very few lamps illuminate the village.
Jupiter Moon Saturn over Alps (Mürren) © Julian Köpke Autumn is already more advanced in Central Switzerland thanin Ticino. Temperatures in the shade are well below 10 degrees Celsius. The sun has a lot of power at 1600m, you can easily sweat when walking.
While searching for a location for my tripod slowly upwards, I meet individual hikers or groups of two. The large groups take the cable car to the summit and do not appear on the hiking trails. Surprisingly many fly into the valley by paragliding.
Early autumn in the Alps © Julian Köpke
