Updated April 22, 2024 A star tracker is a portable tracking camera mount designed for astrophotography. The device ‘tracks’ the motion of the stars to allow you to take long exposure images of space without star-trailing. These devices are commonly used with a DSLR/Mirrorless camera and lens, or even a small astronomical telescope. Recent models…
A total solar eclipse will cross North America on April 8, 2024. If you are hoping to take a picture of the event with your phone camera, you will need to protect your camera just like you need to protect your eyes. The easiest way to do this is to place a pair of certified…
In the astrophotography realm, Galaxy Season refers to the period in Spring when the night sky offers up a buffet of incredible galaxies to observe and photograph. From early March until mid-May, the window of opportunity for night-sky enthusiasts to photograph a wide variety of galaxies is at its best. I don’t know about you,…
If you are like me, you spend most of your time photographing deep-sky objects from your backyard. While I love a good dark sky trip, the backyard is where the majority of my astrophotography projects take place. The backyard is a convenient option for an impulsive night of astrophotography, but what are we missing out…
Photographing a solar eclipse can be a life-changing experience. You may only get a few chances in your lifetime to view or photograph this celestial event, so you want to make sure you are well-prepared and practiced ahead of time. If your first run with your gear is the day of the eclipse, you’re setting…
After rejection a year ago, the Scientific and Technical subcommittee of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) has agreed to add the issue of satellite constellations as an agenda item for further discussion. It will be addressed as ‘Dark and Quiet Skies, astronomy and large constellations: addressing emerging issues…
Astrophotographer Yannick Akar has stunned the amateur astrophotography community with one of the most detailed photos of the Andromeda Galaxy you will ever see. The image was created by capturing a staggering amount of data, spanning the course of two seasons. The final image includes a whopping 146 hours of total integration. Since posting the…
Every amateur astrophotographer knows that the key to a sensational image is to capture as much exposure time on your target as possible. Reddit user ColorsOfCosmos took that idea to the extreme by collecting a staggering 68 hours of total exposure time on Wolf-Rayet 134. The resulting portrait of this cosmic bubble in Cygnus is…
As an astrophotographer myself, I am constantly learning new image-processing tips and tricks from the astrophotography community. My absolute favorite way to learn is by watching YouTube videos created by knowledgeable people willing to share what they have learned. I have recently discovered Paulyman Astro, who is a fantastic resource for all things PixInsight. He…
Have you ever wondered how big a certain nebula or galaxy is compared to another object? To help visualize this, Reddit user Nicolas Large has created this incredible deep-sky object size comparison chart using actual images he has taken through his telescope. Titled ‘A Very Rich Night Sky‘, the photographer managed to include a whopping…
A full-frame camera has a larger image sensor, which means you can capture a wider field of view through your telescope or lens. This can help you create larger astrophotos, (in terms of both image resolution in pixels, and file size). While it might seem like upgrading from a crop-sensor camera to a full-frame model…
In this post, I’ll break down how to photograph the Orion Nebula, one of the most spectacular deep-sky objects in the night sky. While it may just look like a smudge to the naked eye, Orion is the nearest, large star-forming region to Earth at just 1,500 light years away. When you take a picture…