Messier Astrophotography Reference

The Messier objects are some of the brightest and most well-defined objects in the night sky, and the place where most budding astronomers and astrophotographers get their first experience. Capturing images of these objects, while easier than most of the other night sky objects, can still present challenges to the person just starting out in astrophotography. Every object can be wildly different with differing exposures, different times of the year it is visible, and different sizes. Where do you start?

From the author of Getting Started: Long Exposure Astrophotography and Getting Started: Budget Astrophotography comes a book specifically aimed at helping beginning astrophotographers in North America capture some or all of the Messier objects.

Finally, here is one resource you can use on your desk or take into the field providing information specific to capturing each Messier object, or all 110 of them, in photographs. No other book includes this much information specifically aimed at the beginning astrophotographer.

From objects that can be easily captured with just a few images and nothing but a DSLR camera, to objects that can use hundreds of images of different exposures grouped and stretched separately, this book covers them all giving you differing approaches and showing you what you can expect to get from using the author's techniques.

For each Messier object, this book includes:

• The Messier number and name
• A finished image of the object
• A graphic showing the best time of the year to image the object
• Graphics showing the approximate size of the object in three different scopes
• A short description of the object
• Coordinates of the object
• Detailed notes on imaging the object
• A star chart showing the object's location

Originally written to be used with the author's book Getting Started: Long Exposure Astrophotography, this book concentrates on the objects themselves with some specific tips to image them, particularly with a DSLR. Even with a different type of camera the tips and information presented in this book are an invaluable resource when imaging the Messier objects.

Shooting the Messier objects is a fantastic way to start or continue your astrophotography pursuits, and this book will help make that experience easier and more enjoyable.