The Deep Sky Imaging Primer

The book that taught thousands of people about astrophotography has been completely revised and updated in this second edition. It covers everything you need to know to capture stunning images of deep-sky objects with a DSLR or CCD camera: The fundamental concepts of imaging and their impact on the final image How to pick a telescope and camera How to get set up and take the images Where and when to find the best objects in the night sky How to process images using Adobe Photoshop(R) and PixInsight(R) Start-to-finish examples of image processing Full-color with over 300 illustrations.

The Astrophotography Manual, Second Edition is for photographers ready to move beyond standard SLR cameras and editing software to create beautiful images of nebulas, galaxies, clusters, and the stars. Beginning with a brief astronomy primer, this book takes readers through the full astrophotography process, from choosing and using equipment to image capture, calibration, and processing. This combination of technical background and hands-on approach brings the science down to earth, with practical methods to ensure success. This second edition now includes: Over 170 pages of new content within 22 new chapters, with 600 full-color illustrations. Covers a wide range of hardware, including mobile devices, remote control and new technologies. Further insights into leading software, including automation, Sequence Generator Pro and PixInsight Ground-breaking practical chapters on hardware and software as well as alternative astrophotography pursuits

Thousands of people learned astrophotography from the first two editions, now The Deep-sky Imaging Primer has been fully revised and expanded in this third edition. It has been updated to include the latest cameras, technology, and software. Everything you need to know about capturing and processing stunning images of deep-sky objects is covered. You'll learn about the fundamental principles of electronic cameras, optics, and mounts; how to choose the best camera and telescope for you; how to set up, choose exposure parameters, and take the images; where and when to find the best deep-sky objects; and how to process images. In addition to PixInsight® and Adobe Photoshop®, Affinity Photo® and AstroPixelProcessor® are now fully covered. Start-to-finish examples of image processing are included, with a focus on PixInsight. Full-color throughout with 373 illustrations.

Finally, a compact, reasonably-priced atlas designed with imaging in mind! Seventy full-color charts cover the entire sky, with stars down to 9th magnitude and over 2000 deep-sky objects plotted in their correct size and shape, including many nebulae not found in visually-oriented atlases. 416 emission nebulae and supernova remnants, including the complete Sharpless (Sh2) and RCW catalogs. 171 reflection nebulae, including the complete van den Bergh (vdB) catalog. 146 planetary nebulae, including the complete Abell catalog 52 dark nebulae and molecular clouds 792 galaxies (larger than 3 arcminutes) 38 galaxy groups from the Abell and Hickson catalogs 108 globular clusters (larger than 5 arcminutes) 309 open clusters (larger than 5 arcminutes) The tabular index contains important details on each object, including a description, the best time of year to capture it, and the required field of view. With information on nearly every possible photographic target in the night sky, The Astrophotography Sky Atlas will help you choose your targets and plan your imaging.

This book provides a thorough introduction to and exploration of deep sky astrophotography for the digital photographer. With over 280 images, graphs, and tables, this introductory book uses a progressive and practical style to teach readers how to image the night sky using existing, affordable equipment. The book opens with a brief astronomy primer, followed by chapters that build progressively to explain the challenges, offer solutions, and provide invaluable information on equipment choice through image capture, calibration, and processing in affordable software. The book’s focus ranges from how to image sweeping vistas and star trails using only a camera body, lens and tripod, to more advanced methods suitable for imaging galaxies, clusters, nebulae, and stars. Other features of the book include: Real-world assignments showing how and when to use certain tools and how to overcome challenges and setbacks Practical construction projects Evaluations of the most recent developments in affordable hardware and software Exploration on how sensor performance and light pollution relate to image quality and exposure planning Ground-breaking practical chapters on lucky imaging and choosing and using the latest CMOS cameras Written in an accessible, easy to follow format, this comprehensive guide equips readers with all the necessary skills to progress from photographer to astrophotographer.

The Astrophotography Manual is for those photographers who aspire to move beyond using standard SLR cameras and editing software, and who are ready to create beautiful images of nebulas, galaxies, clusters, and the solar system. Beginning with a brief astronomy primer, this book takes readers through the full astrophotography process, from choosing and using equipment through image capture, calibration, and processing. This combination of technical background information and the hands-on approach brings the science down to earth with a practical method to plan for success. Features include: Over 400 images, graphs, and tables to illustrate these concepts A wide range of hardware to be used, including smartphones, tablets, and the latest mount technologies How to utilize a variety of leading software such as Maxim DL, Nebulosity, Sequence Generator Pro, Photoshop, and PixInsight Case studies showing how and when to use certain tools and overcoming technical challenges How sensor performance and light pollution relate to image quality and exposure planning

The Astrophotography Planner will help you make the most of every clear night to produce the best deep-sky images possible. It features charts for 76 of the best deep-sky objects visible from the northern hemisphere, including quality imaging hours for any given date, plus maps and detailed moon information for 2020 and 2021.

In this book, Warren Keller reveals the secrets of astro-image processing software PixInsight in a practical and easy to follow manner, allowing the reader to produce stunning astrophotographs from even mediocre data. As the first comprehensive post-processing platform to be created by astro-imagers for astro-imagers, it has for many, replaced the generic graphics editors as the software of choice. With clear instructions from Keller, astrophotographers can get the most from its tools to create amazing images. Capable of complex post-processing routines, PixInsight is also an advanced pre-processing software, through which astrophotographers calibrate and stack their exposures into completed master files. Although it is extremely powerful, PixInsight has been inadequately documented in print--until now. With screenshots to help illustrate the process, it is a vital guide.