Horse head Nebula  (IC 434), Image cropped, rotated, and downsized for display here

The Horse head is formed by a cloud of dark dust and gas that lies in front of a patch of interstellar hydrogen that's been heated to a glowing red. The image was first noticed on a photographic plate in the late 1800’s. It became one of the most well known astrophoto images. Back then it was in black and white, but with today's DSLR's we can take its picture in color. It is a faint and difficult subject for amateur astrophotographers to capture. It requires good technique and adequate equipment, and conditions must be clear and steady.

The object below and to the left of the horse head is a a bright reflection nebula cataloged as NGC 2023. The radiation from this newborn star is blowing a hole in the surrounding gas, allowing us to see it.

10" F6.3 Schmidt Cassegrain reflector. Modified Canon 300D at Prime focus
 600 sec, ISO 800
 8 photos at the above settings, averaged together, then brightness and contrast enhanced