Hey, I’m Paweł Białecki, a passionate astrophotographer from Poland. I’m a 29 30 31 full-time professional astrophotography blogger and amateur astronomer. I like stargazing, astro-camping, and my astrophotography gear!
I don’t know how exactly you have found this website, but as you are here, I have one suspicion – you are interested in astrophotography. If so, you have come to the right place!
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What's This Site is About
Do you want to shoot amazing astrophotography pictures with your DSLR camera?
I do. And this site is all about that.
At some point in my life, I wanted to start taking those beautiful astronomy pictures.
Milky Way, galaxies, nebulae, star clusters, constellations. I knew that there are people around the globe who photograph them from their backyards, without having access to the Hubble telescope in space. I have been wondering for a long time how do they do that. I don't see any of those colorful things with the naked eyes on the night sky, so how do they do it?! I started to dig online.
Forums (Cloudy Nights, Stargazers Lounge). Blogs (Lonely Speck, AstroBackyard, Astropix, Galactic Hunter). Reddit. Books. I read every single available resource about astrophotography that I found. There was a lot of knowledge available, yet not really easy to absorb for a total beginner like me then. People were using confusing words like tracking, stacking, or guiding, just to mention a few. They were communicating efficiently between themselves, but to understand those astrophotography terms for a total newbie, was a challenge.
Then I decided. I'll create a beginner-friendly astrophotography learning place - the Astro Photons.
Do you want to know HOW to take pictures like these with a DSLR (or mirrorless) camera?
Orion Nebula (M42) 
Andromeda Galaxy (M31) Pleiades Star Cluster (M45) 
North America Nebula 
Rosette Nebula Winter Milky Way
Fun fact: only three pictures from this mini-gallery are taken with a telescope (that SkyWatcher Evostar 72ED above). From the rest left, two I captured with a telephoto lens (Rokinon/Samyang 135mm f/2.0), and one with a wide-angle lens (Rokinon/Samyang 12mm f/2.0).
Astro Photons' goal is to provide the most comprehensive, detailed, objective, and beginner-friendly tutorials and resources about deep-sky and Milky Way astrophotography.
If you want to start your journey into astrophotography, you are in the right place!
Astro Photons blog is the place for you if:
- You are interested in astrophotography (mostly Milky Way and Deep-Sky)
- You are a beginner (and maybe you don’t even have your astrophotography gear yet)
- You want to improve your photons-gathering and processing skills
- You love the beauty of the night sky
- You are looking for astrophotography tips, tricks, and first-hand gear reviews
Who am I
I'm a 29 30 31-old guy born and living in Poland, Europe. I bought my first astrophotography gear in September 2017 (Fujifilm X-T20 camera, Rokinon/Samyang 12mm f/2 lens, and a Vanguard tripod). I started untracked-astrophotography (without a star tracker) but upgraded quickly to tracked-one by buying my first equatorial mount - Fornax Lightrack II.
I live in the small city of Bogatynia (twenty thousand people) next to Poland - Czech - Germany t
Outside of the astrophotography world, I'm a father, husband, and self-employed iOS developer. My wife is really cool by letting me spending whole nights on our balcony taking astro pictures - and sometimes taking a trip to the dark-skies areas.
As a non-native English speaker is not easy to write a blog in English, but a language barrier should not be the reason not to share your true passion with others.
My Astrophotography Gear
This is my most recent equipment list. I update it every time I buy or sell something.
| Mount | Fornax Lightrack II (with the dedicated wedge, polar scope, and counterbalance kit) |
| Camera | Fujifilm X-T20 |
| Telescopes | Sky-Watcher Evostar 72ED |
| Lenses | SMC Super Takumar 200mm f/4 Rokinon/Samyang 135mm f/2 Fujifilm Fujinon XF 35mm f/1.4 Fujifilm Fujinon XF 23mm f/2 Rokinon/Samyang 12mm f/2 |
| Autoguiding | Lacerta MGEN II Stand Alone Autoguider |
| Filters | NiSi Natural Night Hoya Red Intensifier Orion SkyGlow Imaging Baader H-alpha 7nm |
My Goals
Astro Photons is my main project now. I spend a few hours daily working on new astrophotography materials for people around the globe.
I run this site for people like me - amateur astrophotographers looking for astrophotography tutorials and resources. It's fueled by the pure passion for the night sky. If you want to start doing or improve your astrophotography skills, let's do it together.
Newsletter
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Social Media
Find me on:
Instagram (I post there the most)
Contact Me
Send me a message about astrophotography, astronomy, space, or stargazing
