What is this about?

This post documents how I do deep-sky astrophotography with only “standard” photography equipment. Hardware, software, and everything in between. It kind of works, but depends on what you want to photograph (and your expectations). I do recommend getting at least a star tracker. I do not have one, but I hear they are a must. In this post I will skip some details and information, as I expect you to do some research yourself. Or watch some videos. This is more of a reference, or an “is this even worth it?” thing with a bit of basic stuff thrown it.

Disclaimer: I do not get any money for mentioning products. They are just what I use.

What is deep-sky astrophotography?

Deep sky objects (DSOs) are things deep in the sky. This includes: Nebulae, star clusters, galaxies, so basically anything outside our solar system. Sounds great, right?

Well… except that most of the DSOs are so faint that you cannot see them with the naked eye. Additionally, our sky (or atmosphere really) is in the way, absorbing or scattering light from DSOs. And people do not tend to like darkness, so they put lamps everywhere that outshine distant galaxies.

Despite these odds, deep-sky astrophotography tries to capture every precious photon emitted thousands to millions of years ago in a galaxy far, far away. Or in our galaxy, it is still far away.

How can you even do deep-sky astrophotography?

Like with every good hobby, by putting every single cent into the hobby. You have other hobbies? Not anymore. Real pros put complete observatories for tens of thousands of € (or $ (or whatever)) in their garden. They buy their house specifically so they can put an observatory in their garden. Or they built large metal structures and shoot them into space and call them space telescopes, so the pesky atmosphere is not in the way.

Ok that might be a bit extreme, but a good rig is not really cheaper than buying good lenses. Multiple.

You can of course settle for one of these smart-self-calibrating-goto-all-in-one-telescopes, that are probably cheaper and result in a lot less hassle, but where is the fun in that?

Or, if you are poor like everyone, you can just use whatever expensive camera and lens is lying in the drawer next to you from your last FOMO buy. This is what I choose to do for now.

Equipment

Camera

I already said, whatever is in your drawer and lets you attach a lens. It should be mountable on a tripod, or else I can’t help you.

Bring extra batteries. Multiple.

I use a decade old Nikon D500.

Lens

I recommend something below 150 mm effective, otherwise you will get issues without a star tracker, because the earth just rotates too fast. Other than that it depends on your desired target.

I use a Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG. Because nothing is cooler than using a macro lens to photograph things that are 1438031031832166400 km in diameter.

And it is the only fast telephoto lens I have in this range. Wider lenses allow for epic Milky Way shots, but this post is not about that.

Tripod

Your shaky hands won’t cut it.

I use a Rollei Compact Traveler No. 1 Carbon with the ball head of the Rollei C5i Alimunum.

The sturdier, the better. I go for portability so I can transport it in a backpack and hang the backpack or a bean bag on the tripod to make it more stable.

Shutter remote

If your camera does not allow taking photos for time-lapses (interval shooting), you need a remote shutter to do this. I have a Rollei Cable remote release that I do not use.

Torchlight

A headlamp with additional red light is best. I use a Ledlenser MH5. If your surrounding is bright enough that you do not need a lamp, you are doing it wrong.

Backpack

If you have to travel to the dark skies. I use an Atlas Athlete together with the Atlas Adventure Hip Belt. Slaps top of bag: This bad boy can fit so much gear in it!

Computer

As beefy as possible. Fast current CPU with lots of free SSD space (2 TB is great, external is fine, I would not recommend using an HDD) and RAM (32 to 64 GB). If you do not have this, an observatory is probably cheaper in the current pc market.

In the end you trade money for speed. Except for the SSD space, as this method requires processing a lot of images. Nevertheless, it will not be fun with a slow computer. Well, nothing is fun with a slow computer to be honest.

Smartphone

For some useful apps, and to have something to do while you wait for the photons to hit your sensor. Bring a powerbank, if you are outside for longer.

Method TL;DR

So, how can you capture an object that moves quickly across the sky? You choose the longest exposure time that is short enough that the object seems to stand still. Combine it with a wide open aperture and the highest ISO you can stomach. Then you put your camera on a tripod, point it at the thing in the sky and let it shoot thousand of images, while sometimes making sure the thing in the sky does not escape from view.

Planning

The first step is to plan. And to learn.

Apps

I use the following apps and websites to plan:

• stellarium
  • Find your next target and plan when and where it is visible
  • It has the option to input your camera and lens data, so you can roughly see what your sensor will see
  • Useful if you are outside and want to know what that is
  • Available for PC as well
• PhotoPills
  • Plan the location, including when and where the sun, moon and Milky Way are
  • It also has useful calculators for setting the correct exposure time to not get elongated stars
• Windy
  • All things weather, clear skies are mandatory
• Clear Outside
  • The weather app for astrophotography, good for the last minute “is it worth to close Netflix and go outside” decision
• Light Pollution Map
  • If it is too bright at night, go somewhere where it isn’t
• CoMaps
  • If you have to go somewhere use this, so you do not get lost at night in a dark forest

Learn Astronomy

You have to learn about DSOs, their size, magnitude, and where they are. Without a star tracker, go for bright objects that fit into the view of your camera/lens combination. Fainter objects will require too many exposures and thus more disk space and longer processing time.

Pro tip: The higher the object is in the sky, the less atmosphere is between your sensor and the elusive photons. Also light pollution from nearby cities has less of an effect. So try to avoid shooting near the horizon.

Pro tip: Wait for astronomical night, so no light scattered from the sun annoys your sensor.

Pro tip: Do not do astrophotography under the full moon. Although I did in the case shown below. At least choose a target on the other side of the sky. Or do whatever you like. Who cares.

The Shoot

The second step is the actual shoot.

Preparation

• Go to the dark place
• Set up your tripod and weigh it down, if possible
• Put your chosen lens on your camera and the camera on the tripod
• Set the camera and lens up, in my case with the 105 mm on the D500
  • Image quality: RAW
  • Mode: Manual
  • Exposure time: 2 s
  • Aperture: f2.8
  • ISO: 3200
  • Disable autofocus
  • Disable image stabilization
  • Close viewfinder shutter
  • Use quiet shutter (QC, reduces vibrations (maybe))
  • Set up interval shooting
• Focus the lens to infinity
  • This is crucial to get right, unless you like blobs as stars
  • Enable live view, so you see on the LCD screen what the camera sees
  • Enable the live view exposure simulation (Pv-Button on Nikon), if available
    • The live view will be very noisy, but much brighter, so you can see all the stars
  • Point the camera at the sky and choose a few stars
  • Gently move the manual focus until the stars become points
  • Rock the focus back and forth to get a feeling where the sharpest point is
    • Use both hands, if possible, to move the focus ring more precisely
  • Lock the focus, if the lens allows it
• Take a test image to check if the stars are pointy
• Check stellarium (or your favorite planetarium app) to see in which direction the DSO is and which constellation is nearest
• Move from brighter to fainter stars, until you find the exact stars which are near the DSO
  • First by eye until you have the rough location, then via viewfinder
• Make sure to line the view up the way you want the DSO to be imaged
• Then move the camera view center to where the DSO will be in a few minutes, so that the DSO is still in view, but not in the center of the view. By doing this, it stays in view for a longer time, while it moves across the camera’s view despite the earths’ rotation, without having to adjust the camera.
  • Check in the planetarium app (best with your camera/lens data) so you know in which direction the object will move
  • Make sure the object has some space to move in the view, otherwise you will have to adjust the camera a lot
  • If you are fancy, you can check how long it will take to move through the view and set a timer to adjust the camera
    • Pro tip: Standard lenses are sharpest at the center, so try to have your main point of interest always near the center
      • This will require you to adjust the camera more often, but the end-result will be sharper
  • Except if you have a star tracker, then, lucky you, you can ignore all this
• Make another test image and check the
  • Sharpness
  • Correct star positions
  • DSO (For brighter ones you might already see it in the image)

Shooting for the stars

• Start your intervalometer
• Check the latest image after a few minutes to see if the DSO is still in view (depends heavily on the camera/lens and DSO)
  • Adjust the camera view if necessary
    • Pro tip: The objects in the sky do not move linearly, they also rotate. Keep that in mind when adjusting the view
  • Check the focus from time to time
    • Depending on the lens, it is possible to get focus drift, especially when pointing straight up
      • This happened when I forgot to turn off the lens’s image stabilizer
• Repeat until the sun comes up, clouds come in, your feet hurt, you’re cold because you did not need that jacket, your batteries died or your SD card is full
• Keep an eye on the dew point (e.g. with Clear Outside), so your lens does not get all dewy on you
• Pack your stuff and go home
  • Check with the torchlight, it is easy to forget and loose something in the dark

Post-processing

This is an example for one of my last astrophotography sessions. I photographed the Sadr Region around the star Sadr (γ Cygni) in the Cygnus constellation. For processing I used Siril 1.4.2 and GIMP 3.2.0 and used the general processing steps from this great tutorial from Astrofotografie aus Norddeutschland (in German). Others like Deep Space Astro also have great tutorials in English. Just check that the Software Version is current, as it is currently very actively developed.

I use Linux, so not everything might be the same on Windows or MacOS.

Warning: Processing ~3500 2 s exposures taken with my 20.9 MP camera required about 1.2 TB of disk space and took about 5 hours with my 32 CPU cores and 64 GB of RAM. Registration and stacking takes the longest time. If you have a potato or toaster as a PC (no judging!) this might not work at all.

For my workflow to work, you need to have Siril prepared with GraXpert with a Background Extraction and Denoising model, as well as StarNet. A local object catalogue is also helpful.

Pro tip: Siril stores all its files in the selected current working directory. If you save the intermediate progress as FITS files, you can jump back to a previous snapshot of your image even after closing Siril (recommended after stacking is complete).

The following steps are the ones I took. They might not be the best steps, but at least they are my steps. Except most of the steps which I borrowed from the Astrofotografie aus Norddeutschland video.

Siril - Stacking

• Get your images from your camera (I use Rapid Photo Downloader)
• Open your favorite photo management software (I use digiKam)
• Go through the images you took and weed out the obviously bad images (you can do this later in Siril as well, but I prefer to check the images at least roughly myself)
  • Most are likely from checking/adjusting the view while the intervalometer is running
• Open Siril
  • Choose the correct current working directory (house button in the top left) that has enough space to house the large files (depending on the number of images, something around 1 to 2 TB might be required)
  • Change to the Conversion tab and drop all your images in there
    • Choose FITS sequence in the drop-down and check Debayer for color images
    • Click on Convert
  • At the bottom center select AutoStretch with High Definition enabled from the drop-down

• Change to Sequence and Open Frame List
  • Check the images and select one where the framing of the DSO is as you want the final image to be
  • Click on the reference checkbox to mark it as the reference for registration
• Change to Registration and press “Go register”
  • This makes sure that each image is transformed so that the stars align with the reference image
  • The default using Global Star Alignment has always worked well for me
  • This can take a long time (hours, depending on the number of exposures and capability of your computer)
• Change to Plot
  • Here you can see the Full Width at Half Maximum (FWHM)) of the stars in each single image
  • The higher the image position in the diagram (higher FWHM), the more blobby and less pointy the stars are
  • By selecting images which are less sharp and excluding them, the final image will be sharper
    • You can select them directly in the plot and then right click -> Exclude selected points
  • Here you can also see focus drift, how well you refocused, or if the atmosphere, clouds or dew decreased sharpness
• Change to the Stacking tab and select Average stacking with rejection
  • You can check here how many images will be stacked
  • Start stacking by pressing Start stacking
  • This again will take a long time as well

Siril - Preparing image for stretching

• Select an area of the image for cropping (left click and drag), to remove lesser exposed edge areas
  • Right click -> Crop to crop
• Extract the background using GraXpert
  • Select Scripts -> Python Scripts -> Processing -> GraXpert-AI.py
  • Select Background Extraction with Smoothing 1.00 and subtraction
  • Click Apply
    • This can take a few minutes, depending on your system

• The next step is plate solving found under Tools -> Astrometry -> Image Plate Solver
  • Input your DSO or nearby star into the search field and click Ok
  • When everything worked you can now click on the galaxy symbol at the bottom and get an annotation of all the things in the image (adjust it with right-clicking it)
  • For some reason I did not bother looking up, this sometimes does not work, especially for processed images, so do it now (also the next step is not possible without plate solving)
• Color calibration time! Go to Image Processing -> Color Calibration -> Spectrophotometric Color Calabiration
  • This is even more complex, so RTFM
  • Short version: Select Average Spiral Galaxy as the white point in the drop-down and click Ok
    • If you have filters or want to add atmospheric corrections you can include them
• Remove green noise via Image Processing -> Remove Green Noise -> Apply
  • This does not lose you any data despite some people claiming so. It just moves the G histogram of the RGB image around a bit. Useful, as camera sensors are actually something like RGGB and not RGB (they have double the green pixels).
• Next comes the deconvolution which I do not do, as it does not seem to work well with my setup
• Next! Noise reduction using GraXpert
  • Select Scripts -> Python Scripts -> Processing -> GraXpert-AI.py
  • Choose Denoising as the operation with Strength around 0.9
  • Click Apply
  • This can take a bit, depending on if you can utilize a GPU (My AMD GPU is not recognized 🙁)

• Image Processin' -> Star processin' -> Desaturate Stars
• Now the magic trick: Separate stars from the rest!
  • Image Processing -> Star processing -> StarNet Star Removal
  • Check Pre-stretch linear image and Generate star mask
  • Execute!

Siril - Stretching

• We were in AutoStretch until now, change it to Linear and make sure the value range sliders are all the way right (for the top slider) and left (for the bottom slider)

• Now the most important part: Stretching the image!
  • Bring out some of the colors
    • Image Processing -> Stretches -> Asinh Transformation
      • Stretch factor around 100 and press Apply
  • Star Wars: Return of the DSO
    • Image Processing -> Stretches -> Generalised Hyperbolic Stretc
    • Check the Logarithmic scale box at the top and monitor the histogram at all times to make sure no pixel values are clipped (become white or black)
    • Loop until the image looks good:
      • Click on histogram maximum to set the Symmetry point
      • Set Stretch factor to < 1.0
      • Set Highlight protection between 0.6 to 0.7
      • Click Apply
      • If the histogram has moved further to the right (the background gets bright) and no pixel values are in the darker ranges
        • Switch Type of stretch to Linear stretch (BP shift) and shift the Black Point until the histogram starts just short of complete black
        • Apply
• Increase color saturation Image Processing -> Color Saturation
  • Increase Global Amount with low Background factor and Apply
  • Whatever looks good
• Save the starless image as a TIF

• Stretching the stars is next
  • Make sure the view is in Linear with the full range again
  • Bring out the colors
    • Image Processing -> Stretches -> Asinh Transformation
      • Stretch factor around 200 to 300 (depends on image) and press Apply
      • Make sure in the histogram (with log-scale) that no clipping has occurred, redo and adjust Stretch factor if necessary
  • Change to Image Processing -> Stretches -> Histogram Transformation
    • Loop until image looks good:
      • Pull the middle arrow below the histogram slightly to the left
      • Click Apply
• Increase color saturation Image Processing -> Color Saturation
  • Increase Global Amount with low Background factor and Apply
  • Whatever looks good
  • No colorful confetti please, but many stars are blue or orange
• Save the starmask image as a TIF
• We are done with Siril for now

GIMP - Finalizing

• Open GIMP and load both starless and starmask images into layers (starmask on top)
• Set starmask layer mode to Screen

• Use Levels tool to move black point of each R, G, B
  • Make sure all three color component left-most peaks (background) are on top of each other
  • Do this for both the starless and starmask images
• Use the Curve tool to adjust contrast to your liking
• Duplicate starless layer
  • Add mask based on grayscale
  • Increase contrast of mask via Curve tool to include the bright areas of the DSO
  • Add Gaussian blur on mask (not the image)
  • Copy the mask (not the image and do not paste yet)
  • Increase Saturation
  • Increase Sharpness
  • Merge down with original starless image
• Duplicate starless image
  • Create any mask
  • Paste mask from above and anchor it
  • Invert mask
  • Reduce saturation of the image
  • Add Gaussian blur (this time to the image)
  • Merge down with original starless
• Check how the image looks with and without the stars and adjust until you like it

• Select starmask image
  • Use Select by Color tool to select stars
  • Grow selection so stars are completely selected
  • Use Distort -> Value Propagate with the More black option to make stars look better
• Final Curve and Saturation and whatever else adjustments with both starless and starmask images

• Export final image as jpg
• Preparation for publishing back in digiKam
  • Resize and watermark the image via Batch Queue Manager and saved Workflow
  • Some final sharpening of the resized image
  • Custom ExifTool script for adding original image metadata from the RAW-file and adding Copyright information
    • This is meant for non-astro images; I currently do not have a good way to merge original metadata and FITS metadata for the final jpg

Congratulations! If you are still reading this: I hope any of this was helpful. Here is a bonus image that shows how an astro-photo looks like when stacking with the Pixel maximum stacking method in Siril: The future of earth-based astrophotography!

Example images done with this technique

Just a few images that I took and processed similarly. To see details, check out the links below each image.

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I hope you had fun, I know I did!

My equipment

With this post I want to list what exact equipment I use when photographing nature.

I have one main camera, the Nikon D500, and a secondary camera, the Nikon Z50. I use both for nearly all types of photography, except I usually do not use the Z50 for animal photography. Furthermore, I use my smartphone, currently a Fairphone 4, for casual photos or documenting landscapes if I do not have the Z50 with me. My equipment is getting old, so this is not a guide on what you should buy. There are more modern and likely better alternatives. Read my previous blog-post for a guide on equipment.

You can see what equipment and settings I used for each of my photos, both in my gallery and on social media. The following lists are a summary of my gear. Entries are sorted by (subjective) importance for nature photography.

Disclaimer: This is not advertisement, but a list of my current gear. I do not get any money for listing these items. Please refer to your favorite social media to see paid advertisement (except for the Fediverse, do not go there if you want ads).

Cameras

• Nikon D500
  • Good all-purpose crop-sensor camera
  • Very good for wildlife and telephotography
• Nikon Z50
  • Small and lightweight
  • Good as second camera for landscapes, street photography or point-and-shoot
• Fairphone 4
  • Not the best camera on a phone, but works for documentation purposes
  • Bought it for repairability, not photography
  • GPS works well for tracking
  • It has Android installed because of some bought apps, but I want to ditch Google at some point

Lenses

For D500

• Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM Contemporary
  • Good for wildlife and any long telephotography
  • Not that heavy, suitable for hiking and handheld photography
• Tokina AT-X Pro 11-20mm f/2.8 DX
  • Good for landscape
  • Good for night-photography
  • DX lens, not suitable for full frame
• Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG
  • Good for macro (up to 1:1 magnification ratio)
  • 105mm focal lengths allows you to be further away from insects, so they are not scared as easily
  • I often prefer the Sigma 150-600mm, as many insects still fly away (if they can) when approaching with the macro lens
• Nikon AF-S DX Nikkor 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR
  • Versatile lens that I have filters for, so I use it for long-exposures
  • Nowadays would prefer a lens without variable aperture (f/2.8 or f/4)
  • DX lens, not suitable for full frame
• Nikon AF-S DX Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 G
  • Standard lens for crop sensor (near 50 mm effective focal length)
  • Great for general photography
  • DX lens, not suitable for full frame
• Nikon AF-S Nikkor 50mm f/1.8 G
  • Great for portraits
  • Seldom use it for nature photography, except if I do

For Z50

• Nikon Nikkor Z 17-28mm f/2.8
  • Good for landscapes
  • Suitable for night-photography
  • The lens I use on the Z50 when using it as a second camera
• Nikon Nikkor Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR
  • Kit lens of the Z50
  • Flexible and very small, making the Z50 not larger than small digital cameras
  • Seldom use it for nature photography

Miscellaneous

If you need a European (German) reseller for some of the more difficult to get camera accessories, I have had good experiences with Augenblicke Eingefangen. And please avoid Amazon. Good clothes and general outdoor equipment can also be found in hunting and fishing stores.

Filters

I use multiple 76 mm filters for the Z 17-28mm and DX 16-85mm

• Off-brand filter caps similar to these
  • Very useful for travel as I have my stack of filters always with me
• HOYA FUSION ONE circular polarizer
  • I had to buy a new one after my old one fell into a lake after making this photo
• Set of Haida ND slim filters (ND0.9, ND1.8, ND3)
  • My long exposure photos are done with these
• HOYA HD UV
  • I have not used it much

Tripods & straps

• BLACKRAPID Sport Camera Strap
  • Combined with Magpul QD STRAP SWIVEL - D LOOP
  • I added a Backup connection to camera via a buckle connector with loops
  • Works in combination with a backpack
• L-Bracket for the D500 with QD from Kirk Enterprise Solutions (not available anymore, as far as I can see)
• Universal fit lens plate with QD for the Sigma 150-600
  • For some lenses the complete lens collar can be replaced for QD compatibility
• Simple off-brand quick release plate for the Z50
• I just noticed Atlas Packs also sells QD Clips for their backpacks, so I ordered one in combination with a Leofoto QD quick releasse plate for the Z50
  • If this works well, I would only use the Camera Strap when hiking without the backpack or when carrying both cameras
• Rollei C5i Alimunum tripod (I have an earlier version of this one)
  • I use a ProMediaGear GKJr. Katana gimbal on it
  • I have LensCoat covers for both the tripod and the gimbal
• Rollei Compact Traveler No. 1 Carbon tripod (I have an earlier version of this one)
  • My most used tripod, as it is very lightweight and small, so I always take it on travels
  • I put the larger ball head of the Rollei C5i on this tripod
• Wildlife Watching Supplies Double Bean Bags
  • Filled with plastic granulate
  • Useful for longer sessions while lying down
  • I seldom use it, since I have elbows for short sessions (which I usually do)

Backpacks & bags

• Atlas Athlete
  • Together with the Atlas Adventure Hip Belt
  • This is the only good camera backpack with separated compartments and proper support I could find at the time (2020)
  • Expensive (especially when importing to Europe), but really worth it
  • By now they also sell other equipment, like QD clips for their backpacks
• Cullmann Action 150
  • Small bag for the Z50 + Z 17-28mm
  • Has space for filters or other small equipment
  • I added a strap to connect it to the Z50 for extra security when using it as a second camera
• DOMISO Camerabag
  • Very small bag for the Z50 + Z 16-50mm
• Genesis Rover L (I have a version in black)
  • Large bag for the D500 + smaller lenses
  • Has space for filters, batteries and other stuff
  • Has a hip belt
• I have more bags I seldom/never use

Trigger & flash

• Rollei Cable remote release
  • Cheap and useful
• Godox V1Pro flash
  • I combine it with a Godox XPRO II for remote triggering of the flash
• TRIOPO Speedlight TR-988
  • Cheap speedlight that works, but cycles slowly from AA batteries
  • I now use it as a second flash

Covers & camouflage

• Wildlife Watching Supplies Single Layer Ultra Light All in one camera & lens cover
  • Combined with their awesome waterproof lens cap
  • One of my best purchases
  • I always carry it with me, so I can shoot in the rain
• Wildlife Watching Supplies Four Seasons all weather camera & lens cover
  • Combined with a slightly bigger waterproof lens cap
  • I use it less regularly, but is probably great in a snow storm (I guess, never tried that)
• Off-brand rain cover for shooting without the Sigma 150-600
• LensCoat Realtree Max4 cover for the Sigma 150-600
  • Combined with Wildlife Watching Supplies Zoom Sleeve
  • When I lost my original lens hood during a hike, I also lost the LensCoat cover for it (I searched, but blame the camouflage for not finding it)
• Wildlife Watching Supplies 3D Leafy Cover
  • Looks great and is good camouflage
  • I seldom use it, as I prefer to be mobile
  • I also have net shawls, that I have used to e.g. cover my backpack
• Deerhunter Sneaky 3D Suit
  • Came together with gloves and facemask
  • Why did I buy this?
  • I think I played too many video games
  • The gloves are great to avoid your hands from shining bright
  • Investment for the future when I am tired of walking around and want to play hide & seek with mammals
    • Or maybe for the zombie apocalypse?

Miscellaneous

• Nikon Battery Chargers for MH-25a (D500) and MH-32 (Z50)
• Off-brand camera and lens cleaner set
• Ledlenser MH5
  • Headlamp with beam focus option
  • Accepts Li-ion and standard AA batteries
  • Red LED for night photography
  • Small and comfortable to wear for longer sessions
• Ledlenser P2
  • Small handheld flashlight as backup
• Anker PowerCore+ 13400
  • For charging smartphone on the go
• LEATHERMAN WAVE multitool
  • Useful for all kinds of things like repairs and meal preparation
  • It can be used to open bottles and cans
• Zeiss Terra ED 10x42 binoculars
  • Powerful binoculars
  • I use them less than I would like, because I always have my Sigma 150-600mm with me that allows me to see just as far, but with the benefit to immediately take a photo
• Off-brand XQD Card Reader
  • I prefer to get data directly from the camera, so I do not use it often

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…dary. Legendary!

Equipment list

What equipment do you really need for nature photography? It very much depends on what you want to photograph. Here are some personal suggestions that can get you started, but not everything is needed on this list. Actually, you could start photography only with one item on this list. Your smartphone. But I do not recommend that, if you really want to learn about photography.

I do not guarantee that any of the equipment will help you get better photos. A good photographer can get good photos with any equipment. You buy stuff because you read about it here? Good luck. Buy at your own risk. These tips are based my personal experiences and might not be correct and good for everyone.

One or two cameras

• One camera with fast autofocus and full resolution frame rate (>10 fps) if you want to photograph wildlife
  • With interchangeable lenses
  • With viewfinder
  • With two dials that can be operated by thumb and index finger
• A second (smaller/cheaper) camera is nice, so you do not have to swap lenses as often and have a backup with you

Lenses

• The choice of lens depends on the goal of your photography
  • The focal lengths listed below are for full frame cameras
  • Divide the focal lengths by your camera’s crop factor to get the recommended focal length for your camera
  • Every lens can be used for every type of photography, the following list names the more typical use-cases
• Long telephoto lens with 300 to 900 mm for birds and shy mammals
  • Do not use cheap telephoto lenses without good stabilizers or small aperture (>f8), because they are difficult to stabilize and have bad image quality (especially in low light situations, where many animals are active)
• Medium telephoto lens with 100 to 300 mm for mammals
• Portrait lens at typically around 85 mm
• Macro for insects and plants (e.g. 105 mm, can also be used for portraits)
  • Macro photography might require additional equipment not mentioned here (ring flash, slider)
• Standard lenses for landscapes, street photography and portraits (50 mm)
• Wide angle lens for landscapes and nightscapes (15 to 35 mm)
• Travel zoom (any preferred focal lengths) for lightweight travelling

SD cards

• Only for digital photography
• Supported card types depend on the camera body
  • Check camera manufacturer website for compatible cards
• Invest in high quality and fast storage
• For longer trips, take backup SD cards, if one is full or should fail

Film

• Only for analog photography
• I do not have any recommendations on good film, as I photograph digital only, but most of the entries on the list might still be relevant

Backup battery

• Get original batteries
  • Many off-brand batteries are cheap garbage that will break very quickly or do not last as long as advertised
  • Check camera manufacturer website for compatible batteries

Filter

• Disclaimer: I am not an expert on filters
  • I mostly use my telephoto lens for which I do not own any filters
• If you prefer to get everything in-camera, filters are necessary
• Good filters that do not tint the image and have a high transmission can be expensive
• UV filters are sometimes recommended to protect the lens
  • Filters can add lens flares and reduce image quality, depending on filter and situation
  • I have found the lens hood to be enough protection for me
    • But I have yet to photograph in a windy desert
    • And I look after my equipment and am aware of exactly where my lens is at all times
  • I have not found UV filters to do anything for me
• Polarizers can be awesome to reduce reflections from leafs and water and increase the intensity of the sky
  • You loose some light though
• For photos including water, neutral density (ND) filters are great, so you can do long exposures during the day
• For landscapes, graduated ND filters bring the exposure of the sky down, reducing the need for post-processing
  • I do this in post-processing instead

Camera strap system

• A good camera strap is very important for heavy telephoto lenses
  • For heavy lenses, always attach to the lens not the body, or you risk damaging the lens mount on the camera

Tripod

• Get a tripod built from light carbon fiber for travels and daily use
• A more heavy one with a gimbal head is useful for stationary photography with long lenses
  • Get this only if you have a very heavy lens that you cannot lug around, or if you prefer to stay stationary (e.g. in hides)
• Get quick releases/brackets for your camera and long lenses

Camping chair

• Only for stationary photography or when using a hide
• There are quite compact chairs

Camera bag

• Useful for the second camera or when only using smaller lenses

Camera backpack

• If you travel a lot, get one where the bag opens up on the back, so it is not easy to steal your equipment
• A backpack that has separate compartments for the camera equipment and other stuff (clothes, food, drink) is very useful

Remote shutter release

• For night, long-exposure or time-lapse photography
• Also useful for triggering in situations where you cannot or do not want to reach for the trigger on the camera itself
• Check what is compatible with your camera

Rain cover

• Should be big enough for the camera and the lens
• Should allow you to operate the camera and optimally also the lens

Clothes

• Yes, you should wear clothes when photographing…
• Long clothes against sunburn and mosquitos (if you have either)
• Waterproof jacket for rainy days
• Waterproof trousers for very rainy days
• Warm clothes for winter (if you have a winter)
  • Including gloves that allow you to operate the camera
• Robust trousers (optional knee padding)
  • I do not think I ever went photographing without kneeling or lying down at some point
• Comfortable and sturdy hiking shoes
• Rubber boots or wading pants (if you like to stand in water for some reason)
• Cap or hat against bright sky, sunburn and rain

Headlamp with red light

• Very useful if you are up very early or late
• The red light is awesome for night photography, as you will not be blind every time you turn on the lamp
• With some practice it can be used for light-painting, if you have no other light brought with you

Smartphone

• GPS navigation
• GPS tracking
  • There are dedicated devices, but I have found my smartphone to be accurate enough
• Bird/animal identification (I do not carry a book in the field anymore)
• Snap quick images of environments
• Emergency light if you forget your lamp (or the battery is empty)
• Always bring a powerbank

Laptop

• For longer trips to sort out and backup photos after each day
• A smaller (for example 13“) laptop is portable, but can still be fast enough for editing

External SSD/HDDs

• Get fast and robust external SSDs to store backups during longer trips
• Get large storage HDDs for regular backups of your photo library

Computer

• If your laptop is good enough, use that
• Mid to high-end PC
• Fast storage (M.2 NVMe SSDs)
• Optional GPU
  • Some graphics programs can utilize GPUs to apply filters or machine learning models much faster
• Optional color calibrated monitor (better consistency with other devices/prints)
  • Monitor with 27“ and 2K resolution and above is nice to see details
  • These can be expensive, but there are cheaper ones that are sufficient for non-professionals
  • It is possible to calibrate monitor yourself, but it did not work well for me
• Optional graphics tablet for precise composition work
  • I have one without a screen that has been very useful for nightscapes

Transportation

• Many remote places are unfortunately very remote
• You do not need to own a car, but some places are only accessible by car
  • Use car sharing services or rent a car, if you do not need a car otherwise
• If you limit yourself, you can get by with a good bike and going by bus or train
  • This will of course depend on your (local) infrastructure
• Be prepared to hike a lot

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… wait for it …

Photography tips

In this post, I want to list some recommendations I can give for people starting with photography. This is from the perspective of an amateur photographer that focuses on nature and wildlife.

If you decide to follow any of my recommendations, you do so at your own risk. I warned you. You are on your own. No refunds. These tips are based my personal experiences and might not be correct and good for everyone.

Get a good book on the basics

• You can go far with a good book in combination with experimentation
• I have the German version of The Beginner’s Photography Guide which I can recommend
• Read and understand the book before buying more stuff

It is ok to start with entry-level equipment

• If you upgrade later, the older camera can still be used as a backup or second camera
• You can sell your used equipment when you upgrade

Not everything is needed to start

• A camera and a lens go a long way, especially together with a tripod

Get a camera with interchangeable lenses

• If you have a decent camera, the lenses are more important for the image quality and photography style than the camera

Take your time and research before buying

• The camera brand and body define what lenses are available
• Which brand you choose is not that important, as all larger brands will have most equipment available
• Consider that you are usually limited by the brand’s ecosystem
  • Research the lens mount type to see compatible lenses and equipment
  • There are adapters for using lenses with other mounts, but I have never tried them
• The image sensor format (medium, full frame, APS-C, Four Thirds) influences depth-of-field (DOF), signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio, but also effective focal length and camera and lens weight
  • Medium format results in shallow DOF, good S/N-ratio and large and expensive camera systems
  • Four thirds results in deep DOF, worse S/N-ration and smaller and cheaper camera systems
  • I like APS-C because of the longer effective focal length and smaller and cheaper system
• It is possible to rent cameras and lenses to try them out
• A camera should feel good and fit in your hands so that you can reach all the buttons and dials, otherwise you will not enjoy using it (tip added by Steinwaelzer@nrw.social)
• Depending on the used market where you live, there can be good prices on used or refurbished lenses that will have a much better quality/cost-ratio than some of the cheaper lenses bought new

Get good quality lenses

• Kit lenses (bought in a set with the camera) are cheap, but often lack quality
  • They are a good starting point, especially if you are not sure if photography is for you, but consider that you will likely upgrade sooner than later
• It is better to save money for a more expensive lens, then buy a cheaper one
  • That said, there are relatively cheap and small prime lenses that have a good quality (e.g. 50 mm f/1.8)
  • Nowadays any decent lens is likely good enough if it fulfills your requirements, except if you have a sensor with a high pixel density and want to blow the image up to room scale
• Zoom lenses increase flexibility, but often reduce image quality compared to a comparable prime lens
  • Most of my lenses are zooms, as I prefer not having to swap lenses as often
• Good lenses stay relevant for tens of years
• The best lenses have wide apertures (usually f1.8 or f2.8, f4 for telephoto)
  • These are often the most expensive and heaviest, so a good balance between budget, image quality and weight has to be struck

Get a good camera strap

• One of the most important pieces of equipment for me
• Allows effortless carrying of heavy telephoto lenses
• Blackrapid (which I use) or Peakdesign are good
  • I am paranoid and have a second, more simple buckle connection to the camera to break the fall, should the strap connector fail
• Warning: For heavy (telephoto) lenses always attach the strap to the lens, not the body
  • The weight can damage the mount between lens and camera

Get a good tripod

• For travelling and everyday use, get a lightweight carbon fiber one with a hook to add extra weight
  • You get (mostly) what you pay for, so do not buy cheap stuff
  • Cheap tripods are not good at dampening vibrations
  • A good tripod will last you a lifetime
• A more heavy tripod with a gimbal can be helpful for stationary photography, e.g. from hides
  • I have not used mine a lot, as it is heavy and bulky, and I prefer to be mobile
• Get an L-bracket or quick release for your camera, so you can quickly attach and detach from the tripod
  • The one I use has an attachment point for the strap
• If your long lens does not have an included quick release plate, get one, so you can quickly attach and detach it from the tripod
  • The one I use has an attachment point for the strap
  • When using a long lens, always attach the lens to the tripod to balance the weight and avoid damaging the lens mount

Always carry multiple batteries

• Otherwise, the best shot well line up just as you loose the juice

Be prepared

• Nothing is more annoying than having to stop a photo tour because you get wet, your hands or feet get cold, you get thirsty, or you get sunburned

Just go outside

• The more you test and play around the better you will get
• Get familiar with the camera, so you know how to quickly change the settings you need
• There are a lot of settings you will need to test to see what works for you in certain situations
• To learn wildlife photography, zoos, animal enclosures, and parks are great places to practice camera settings and composition

Use auto ISO

• Going from completely manual to manual with Auto ISO is life-changing for wildlife photography
  • Especially if you walk around and the lighting conditions change all the time due to clouds and trees
• You still need to know when to change the aperture or shutter speed, so always keep an eye on the ISO
• If it is darker, I keep the settings on open aperture and lowest shutter speed I know I can get sharp images with

Hold the camera correctly

• A good grip on the camera and stable body stance can reduce the camera shake by a lot
• Look through the viewfinder when doing handheld photography
  • By pressing the camera to the face you stabilize it
  • If you use your right eye to look through the viewfinder you can keep the left eye open and reduce the risk of missing something

Every equipment has its purpose

• “You don’t need X” or “you need Y” arguments are mostly irrelevant (except this epic list of course ;)
• It all depends on your personal style, goals, and preferred subjects
• Every photographer has to make their own experiences and find their own style and workflows

Study photos of other photographers

• Looking at photos with known camera settings is very helpful to learn how to approach different situations
• One awesome resource is Flickr, where you can see equipment and settings for each photo

Learn about composition

• Know the basics of composition
  • You can learn from theory, practice or from studying any type of visual artworks from other artists
  • I mostly learned by practice and looking at artworks
• If unsure:
  • Use the rule of thirds (most cameras and software allow overlaying such composition rules)
  • Avoid visual clutter, so the eye is drawn to the subject and not the background
• Know that ignoring composition rules and best practices can create unique images
• A well composited cropped photo is better than an uncropped photo with bad composition
  • Especially in wildlife photography it is difficult to compose during the shoot, as it requires a lot of planning and even more luck
  • I often do not have the time for both, so I take what I get and fix the composition in post-processing

Photograph wildlife at eye level

• If possible, try to get the camera to eye level of animals
• This creates a much more natural and engaging image

Make sure your image is not crooked

• Except if you do tilt it on purpose
• Water should not look like it would flow over the edge of the image
• Water reflections should mirror the objects/subject in a straight vertical line
  • This is useful, if the horizon cannot be seen in an image, but water is visible
• Trees usually grow straight up (except if they do not)
• Many cameras nowadays have an artificial horizon or lines that can be displayed in the viewfinder or display
  • I always have the artificial horizon active
• If the image is unintentionally crooked, fix it in post

Photograph during morning or evening hours

• The best photos often are taken during golden or blue hour
• Many animals are especially active in the early morning, before most people are up and about
  • If you stand up early you are basically guaranteed to see some large and small mammals, like deer and hares (no guarantee though)
• This can require hikes in the dark to get there in time
  • I have had many memorable encounters during early morning hikes, from a group of wild boars (a sounder) to a fox interacting with a deer

Do not disturb nature

• This is especially true during breeding season, where wildlife is the most vulnerable
• Learn to read animal behavior, so you know when they get stressed
• Do not try to get a picture at all cost, it is not worth it
• Try to stay on paths, where animals are accustomed encounter people
  • Always stay on paths in nature reserves

Display your best images

• Post your images to dedicated sites or social media to get feedback
• Make sure to remove image metadata you do not want leaked (like GPS coordinates)
• Choose a license you want to publish your images under, I recommend creative commons
• Warning: Everything you post will be downloadable and usable by other people and AI, if you allow it or not
  • I add watermarks, post in lower resolution and add extensive metadata to mark my images

Don’t get fooled into the “professionals need Adobe” crap

• There are plenty of alternatives, some of them even free and open source
• I have not used Adobe products for many years and use open source software instead
• I will make a separate post about my workflow at some point, until then, here is a brief summary
• If you opt for open source, remember to support the creators with bug reports, donations and publicity

Back up your photos

• Some cameras allow in-camera backups during shoots via a second storage card
  • Very helpful as SD cards are known to fail
• Reduce SD card failure chance (unproven tips, but they have worked for me so far)
  • Avoid removing SD cards and use the camera’s USB connection to get photos from the SD card
  • Always copy the images, not move them
    • I use Rapid Photo Downloader, an awesome tool
  • Do not use any in-camera editing and image deletion
  • To remove all images from the card, use the in-camera format option
• The best backup scheme is one where you have one backup onsite (at home) e.g. on an external HDD and one external backup (cloud, friend, family)
  • I use a Syonology NAS, multiple external HDDs and a private, encrypted cloud backup
    • I know, I am paranoid
• Every photo that is not backed up can be lost at any time

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It’s going to be legen…

Early days

Taking photos has been part of my life since school. The first camera I used was a 5 megapixel Minolta DiMAGE F300 that came with a tiny screen and a 32 MB SD card. The image quality was worse than most cheap smartphones today. But it was enough to document where I went and what I did.

In 2006, I got my own digital camera, a Panasonic DMC-FX8, also with a whopping 5 megapixels. It was the ultimate small point and shoot camera. It travelled with me nearly everywhere. In 2013, I upgraded to a Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ41 with 20x optical zoom and up to 480 mm effective focal length (full frame equivalent). I really liked to be able to get close to things, even though they were far away. But I was not completely happy with the image quality. And holding the small camera steady was proving difficult at long focal lengths.

DSLR magic

For 2016 we planned a trip to the other side of the world: New Zealand. This time I wanted to take home higher quality images. During the preparation in 2015 was the first time I wanted to go beyond point and shoot cameras. The first time I wanted to learn how to properly use a camera. So I bought my first DSLR (digital single-lens reflex) camera, a Nikon D3300 with the AF-S DX Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR II kit lens. I had read, that, to learn how to photograph, you should do so in manual. So I started without any assistance and automatic features and played around with the different settings. By reading about what button does what and looking at the results of experiments I got familiar with the camera.

This investment of time and money was totally worth it. The photos from the trip were great, and I had learned a lot about photography. I also took home a new fascination with birds because of some close encounters we had with them. One of the most memorable ones was with a fantail, hovering directly in front of me and looking at me, as if trying to communicate. New Zealand is special regarding birds because there were no predatory mammals until humans brought them. As a result many birds do not have the strong instinctive fear to fly away from humans. While I also took the TZ41 as a second camera, I was wishing for a longer lens for the D3300 to better capture these (for me) exotic birds.

At home, one of the first things I did was research and then buy my first (affordable) long telephoto lens. A AF-S DX Nikkor 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR. I was into planes at the time and initially got it for plane photography, but quickly noticed that it is much more fun to photograph birds. It is like trying to catch and collect Pokémon, and just as rewarding, only that you suffer instead of the Pokémon (sunburns, mosquitoes, sore arms, wet and frozen feet). As before with the TZ41, telephotography was very fun. But it was a relatively cheap zoom, and I was not satisfied with the image quality. I had also started to study pictures of other photographers and I wanted to get even closer to the wildlife. So I went into a research frenzy to find a better lens.

More equipment, please

In mid 2017 I upgraded to the Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM | C I still use to this day. It is relatively light, has good image stabilization and combined with the smaller APS-C sensors it has an effective focal length of 900 mm.

As any aspiring photographer I added more and more equipment: A flash, two tripods, gimbal mount, filters, bags, backpacks, cheap and basic studio equipment, lens cover, rain cover, camera straps, and so on. It aided me in figuring out what worked for me and what did not. I also got a few other zoom and prime lenses, and continued to experiment. By 2018 I was not happy with my D3300 anymore. The autofocus could not keep up with birds, and the shutter speed was too slow for action scenes. The next research time for a new camera began. I already had an assortment of DX (APS-C) F-mount lenses and I did not want to have to buy new lenses, so I opted for the Nikon D500. It is fast, has good autofocus and lies well in my hands. Just like the D3300 the D500 is an APS-C camera with a smaller sensor. In combination with the Sigma 150-600mm it is perfect for even the smallest songbirds.

Nowadays, if I am on a photo tour, I have both the Nikon D500 with the attached Sigma 150-600 mm and a Z50 (as a D3300 replacement) with attached Nikkor Z 17-28mm f/2.8 with me. The 150-600 mm is good for animals of all kinds, including “macro” shots of insects, and the 14-28 mm is good for landscapes. I also have a wider Tokina AT-X Pro 11-20mm f/2.8 DX I sometimes use on the D500 for landscapes and nightscapes. I will talk about my equipment in detail in another post.

Achievements

Two of my photos were selected to be displayed during the annual photography exhibition at the Museum Koening Bonn.

In 2024, three of my photos were selected as splash screens and as a background image for digiKam and showFoto 8.4.0.

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Gut Licht!