Complete beginner to astrophotography — not sure where to start
Hi everyone,
I’m a photography enthusiast, but I’ve never tried astrophotography before. Earlier this year I visited McDonald Observatory in West Texas, and after spending some time there — and browsing through a lot of posts here — I’ve become increasingly interested in giving astrophotography a try.
Here’s the gear I currently have:
- Sony A1
- Sony A7r3
- 24-70mm f/2.8
- 16-35mm f/4
- 50mm f/1.4
- 70-200mm f/2.8
I’ve done some research and also asked AI for advice, and it suggested that a Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer 2i Pro might be a good first purchase.
For now, I’m mainly interested in Milky Way / wide-field astrophotography, especially since I have relatively easy access to the dark skies of West Texas. However, I’m not sure whether I might eventually become interested in photographing galaxies and other deep-sky objects.
Given the equipment I already have, what would you recommend as the best way to get started?
Would the Star Adventurer 2i Pro be a good choice, or would you recommend something else if I want to leave myself some room to eventually explore deep-sky astrophotography?
Any advice for a complete beginner would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!