Klaus Brasch (Astrophotography under Southern Skies) is a biology professor and director of research and technology transfer at California State University. An expatriate Canadian, he was raised and educated in Toronto and Montreal, and began his academic career at Queen's University in Kingston. His professional interests range from cell biology to the origin of life. An avid amateur astronomer since his teens, Klaus owns several telescopes and enjoys observing and photographing from California's mountains and dry desert skies. His work has been published in Sky News, Sky & Telescope, Astronomy magazine and several popular astronomy books.

When it comes to astronomical treasures, it's pretty much a given that the southern skies are disproportionally richer than the northern hemisphere. Whether it's the central Milky Way arching overhead, the Southern Cross, the Coal Sack, or countless other celestial splendors, the southern sky is both visually and photographically stunning. The only way to really appreciate this, however, is to actually go there, and for a variety of reasons, Australia is the location of choice.

Klaus has been on two astronomical expeditions to "Oz", both remarkable adventures and both uniquely rewarding. This talk will outline some of the "do's" and "don'ts" for any northerner contemplating a similar trip, as well as providing some post 9/11 suggestions. What should you bring, when should you go, and where are the best locations? Most importantly, the talk will show many of the splendid astro-images he and his colleagues managed to obtain, what techniques, films and optics proved best, and how the photographs were scanned and digitized for optimal results.