The Best Astrophotography Galaxy Season Targets for any Telescope

For astrophotographers, Spring means the start of Galaxy season! Called as such due to the vast amount of galaxies available to image – clear skies permitting! Below I have compiled a list of my favourite astrophotography Galaxy season targets for any telescope.

There’s something for all focal lengths here, whether that be getting multiple galaxies in the same field of view (FOV) with a modest setup, or getting really up close and personal to a distant galaxy with a bigger scope and pulling out the amazing detail in the dust lanes. You can see which options will work for your equipment by using free software such as Stellarium to plan your imaging session.

Sky-Watcher EvoGuide 50ED & ZWO ASI120MM Mini Review

The Sky-Watcher EvoGuide 50ED and ZWO ASI120MM Mini auto guiding bundle is a popular choice among astrophotographers. Not only is the price reasonable, but the quality of the guide scope and camera are second to none. As a 2-inch refractor with FPL53 glass, the EvoGuide 50ED could also double as an astrophotography telescope if you purchased the dedicated field flattener to give that nice flat field from corner to corner! I’ve been using this guide scope and camera since Summer 2020 so I thought it was time to let you know my thoughts on this auto guiding bundle.

Optolong L-eXtreme Narrowband Filter Review

The Optolong L-eXtreme filter has narrow 7nm band passes in the Hydrogen alpha (Ha) and Oxygen III (OIII) lines, unlike the older Optolong L-eNhance, which also has a band pass at the Hydrogen beta (Hb) line. The Optolong L-eXtreme will block out that extra bit of light pollution by omitting the Hb line, while retaining all the detail from emission nebulae by capturing the targets in Ha and OIII.

5 Astrophotography Deep Sky Targets for Beginners

It’s no secret that some astrophotography targets are easier to image (and find!) than others. Here I am going to break down my 5 favourite deep sky astrophotography targets for beginners, how to find them and share my images along the way. All of these targets are well suited to camera lenses, but some will really pop when using a telescope. Some of these targets are visible to the naked eye, but a couple will require a basic level of star hopping. As long as you can find the nearest bright star to the target, you shouldn’t have a problem locating any of them.

Optolong L-eNhance Filter Review

With so many different light pollution filters available it’s difficult to know which one to get. The Optolong L-eNhance narrowband filter has been a complete game changer for my astrophotography. If you’re using a one shot colour camera (CMOS, CCD or DSLR), then you need to be seriously considering adding this filter to your arsenal.

The Optolong L-eNhance is a tri-band pass filter, allowing Hydrogen alpha (Ha), Hydrogen beta (Hb) and Oxygen III (OIII) wavelengths through. Isolating these 3 specific wavelengths is key when imaging nebulae such as the Heart nebula (IC1805), and your camera will filter out all that nasty light pollution that can be so damaging for us backyard astrophotographers.

The Pleiades M45

The Pleiades, also known as M45 and Seven Sisters, is an open star cluster located in the constellation Taurus. It is one of the closest star clusters to Earth, at a distance of 444 light years and is easily visible … Read More