Filters for Astrophotography
Filters are an important part of deep sky astrophotography. They allow you to collect better data on your targets by isolating the light you want, from the light you don’t (light pollution).
Astrophotography filters come in many shapes and sizes, from 48mm discs that thread into your telescope adapter, to clip-in DSLR models that snap into the body of your camera.
If you are capturing images from the city, a light pollution filter can be the single most important investment you make. For example, a broadband filter like the Optolong L-Pro can help you capture more natural looking images of deep sky objects with your DSLR camera.
On this website, I do my best to share information and astrophotography tips that provide value. I could pat myself on the back about all of the great astrophotography images I took this year, but it is of little interest to anyone if I don’t explain how I took the shot. In this article, I’ll…
The Lobster Claw Nebula (Sharpless 157) is a bright emission nebula. It lies near the edge of the northern constellation Cassiopeia, bordering on Cepheus. As you’ll soon see in my long-exposure image, this bright HII region is surrounded by many more interesting deep-sky objects. It sits very close in the sky to another popular emission…
Last week, I photographed the Wizard Nebula with my camera and telescope in the backyard. The final image includes 24 individual exposures of 4-minutes each, for a grand total of 1.5 hours. Despite a bright moon interfering, it is by far my best image of the Wizard Nebula to date. In this post, I’ll explain…
The Optolong L-eXtreme filter is now being used in backyards across the globe, which is great news for those that take astrophotography images in heavy light pollution. This astrophotography filter features even narrower bandpasses than last year’s L-eNhance, making it perfect for nebula photography from the city. The Optolong L-eXtreme filter isolates the H-alpha (Ha),…
If you shoot your astrophotography images with a color camera in the city, there is a good chance that light pollution filters can make your life a little easier. How? By ignoring specific wavelengths of light in the visible spectrum associated with artificial light sources such as a street lamp. The best way to test…
After almost a decade of taking pictures of space with a DSLR camera, I have come to the realization that a DSLR Ha filter is quite possibly the most important astrophotography filter in your kit. Traditional light pollution filters designed to help you photograph deep sky objects in broadband (true-color) are useful, but a hydrogen-alpha…
In this post, I’ll share my results using the Optolong L-eNhance filter for deep sky astrophotography in the city. The L-eNhance is a dual band pass filter that ignores artificial light, yet collects a strong signal emitted by certain nebulae. This light pollution filter was designed for color cameras, whether it’s a DSLR (a modified…
I’ve recently had a chance to review the Optolong L-Pro filter (2 types) for astrophotography from my light-polluted backyard in the city. Unlike many of the filters I used in the past, the L-Pro is suitable for both stock and astro-modified DSLR cameras (it includes a UV/IR block). I’ve always had trouble collecting images with…
If you’ve been following AstroBackyard on YouTube, you’ll know that I regularly shoot DSLR astrophotography images under the heavily light-polluted skies at home. My night sky is classified as Bortle Class 8 in terms of sky quality, a white zone on the light pollution map. This certainly makes things more difficult in terms of collecting data…
One of the most common questions I receive each day is which light pollution filter I recommend for astrophotography in the city. There have never been so many choices available, with each one offering their own advantages and disadvantages. Couple that with the fact that these astrophotography filters can be expensive, and you’ve got some…
With the aid of an Astronomik 12nm Ha filter, I can capture deep-sky images more often than ever before. With both the Canon EOS clip-in version for my DSLR and the 2″ CCD round mounted version for the my dedicated astronomy camera, I collect photons in every moon phase. Despite the bright 80% illuminated moon…
The hot nights of early summer astrophotography start late and end early. The warm temperatures at night make their presence known in my DSLR images in the form of noise. My latest deep-sky project involves capturing data on NGC 6888 in H-Alpha with a DSLR. My highly portable astrophotography equipment allows me to move the…