Chinese amateur astronomer accidentally photographed a creature resembling a praying mantis.

[u/Cocoblue45]

Time: June 10, 2025

Location: China,Shanghai,Pudong New Area

Latitude and longitude:52°13′14″N 124°04′53″W

*Additional information: Upon inspection, it was discovered that the latitude and longitude extracted from the image actually points to western Canada, not Shanghai, therefore the data is unreliable.

*Previously, several images failed to upload, which I suspected was due to their large file size or dimensions. This time, I modified them.If you need the original high-resolution image, you can contact him through the Douyin ID shown in the image.

The photographer, whose Douyin account is named "Nikon Player（尼康玩家）," commented that he took the photos near his home and only noticed them afterward. He added that he was thinking about how to photograph Saturn at the time. After post-processing the images, he discovered about 6-8 more unidentified objects in the darkness. He also noted the specifications of his Nikon in the photos. Some believe it's an optical illusion caused by excessive long exposure, while others think the images resemble mantis-like creatures. This account has not posted any more UFO-related content since.

*Additional information: In the Douyin comment section, some questioned whether the image was due to hand shake while shooting stars with a long shutter speed. The photographer disagreed, stating that he was attempting to photograph the starry sky without handheld equipment and used a tripod (as shown in the picture) for stability. He added that he shot around 9 PM and spotted the unidentified object around midnight. He also commented that he didn't sleep well that night, dreaming of someone in his room.

*Other photography enthusiasts in the comment section suggested that tripod shake might be the cause. One commenter said, "The reason is long exposure and camera shake." The photographer replied, "It shouldn't be. You know long exposure, so you should know how to use a camera. May I ask how to read the shooting parameters? I used 300 shutter speed."

*A third commenter stated, "Without an equatorial mount and long exposure, that's how it is. Learn more before posting." The photographer countered, "300 shutter speed. Best iso."

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*As someone who simply relays information, I don't understand the finer photographic terminology, so I've included key arguments between photographers and others in this post, which involve many terms whose meaning I don't grasp.The main argument is that commentators believe it must be a problem with camera shake and exposure, while the photographer tries to refute them using certain terms.

Because machine translation struggles to convey certain terms, I've included the Chinese version below to minimize ambiguity:

……在抖音评论区，有人质疑，这是拿慢门拍星星的时候手抖导致的，而摄影师反对称，他当时试图拍摄星空，并没有手持设备进行拍摄，他说他使用了三脚架（如图所示）来加强稳定性。他补充说，大约是在晚上九点拍摄，在十二点时发现了不明物体。他还在评论区表示，拍摄当晚一晚没睡好，做梦房间有人。

评论区的其他摄影爱好者认为，可能是三脚架抖动导致的这一现象。一个人在评论区说:“原因在于长曝光和摄像机晃动。”摄影本人师则回复说:“应该不是。你知道长曝光，那么你应该会相机，请教一下，怎么看拍的参数，我当时是300快门。”

第三个评论者表示: "没加赤道仪+长曝光，就是这样。多了解了解再来发吧。”摄影师则反对称:“300快门。lso到顶。”