Astro Photons

  • News
  • Astrophotography
  • About
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Beginner’s Guide
  • Night Sky Objects
  • Astrophotography
  • Skywatching
  • About

search icon
Homepage link
  • Beginner’s Guide
  • Night Sky Objects
  • Astrophotography
  • Skywatching
  • About

×
Home » Astrophotography

5 Best Astrophotography Books for Every Astrophotographer

Published: Feb 12, 2019 · Last update: Jun 19, 2020 · Author: Paweł Białecki · Leave a Comment

Are you looking for astrophotography books? You can indeed find a lot of astrophotography tutorials on the Internet. It's also true that you can learn astrophotography on your own, discovering things your way. But if you want to make fast and steady progress in your imaging and processing skills, books are your best friend. In this post, I will show you my favorite astrophotography books.

1. The 100 Best Astrophotography Targets by Ruben Kier

The 100 Best Astrophotography Targets by Ruben Kier book
A mandatory title in every astrophotographer library.

This reference book is a must-have title for every astrophotographer on the world, and every astrophotography book list should start with this volume. If you were to choose only one book from this list, pick this one. With this book, you don't have to think about what to photograph tonight - finely selected astrophotography targets are there. You just open the table of contents, check today's date, and voila - you instantly know where to point your telescope tonight. The author gives you hints about where to find your target, how to image it, and finally suggests the processing workflow.

Besides 100 astrophotography targets for every day of a year, at the end of the book, you will find some basics of astrophotography - things like how to choose equipment, how to acquire an image, what's the order of post-processing, etc. If you are just starting astrophotography, this is the basic knowledge you have to obtain.

It's a fantastic book for both beginners and advanced imagers. Do yourself a favor and take a look at it, it's just worth every penny.

No products found.

2. The Practical Astronomer: Explore the Wonders of the Night Sky by Anton Vamplew and Will Gater

The Practical Astronomer: Explore the Wonders of the Night Sky by Anton Vamplew and Will Gater
My Polish edition of the book.

This is not an astrophotography book per se. It's rather a complete introduction to astronomy in general written in understandable language. If you are completely new to astrophotography and astronomy, this title is your friend. You will learn the basics of those things around Earth (like stars), astronomy and astrophotography equipment, constellations on the night sky, and planets in our Solar System. If you have never listened to your physics and astronomy teacher in school, don't worry - all the basic knowledge is here.

No products found.

3. Inside PixInsight by Warren A. Keller

Inside PixInsight by Warren A. Keller book

PixInsight is probably the best astrophotography post-processing tool that exists. It has an opinion of being software that is very hard to learn and master. Although it's not completely true, the program is not so straightforward and has some learning curve. Thanks to this manual (an unofficial one), things are simpler. Besides YouTube videos, this book was the most helpful resource for me to learn (not master - yet) PixInsight processing. If you are serious about your astrophotography, learn PixInsight.

No products found.

4. Treasures of the Universe by André van der Hoeven

Treasures of the Universe by André van der Hoeven book

A beautifully composed and published book that you can use in two ways:

  1. To immerse yourself in fantastic images of cosmos
  2. To see how your images should look like (you can treat André van der Hoeven's pictures as reference images)

5. 1,001 Celestial Wonders to See Before You Die by Michael E. Bakich

How many have you seen yet?

When you are done with your first 100 astrophotography targets, get 901 more! This is for serious imagers only. Like in The 100 Best Astrophotography Targets, this book is also divided into twelve sections for every month of the year. It's hard to find an astrophotography target that is not covered in this book. Check by yourself.

No products found.

What other astrophotography books would you add to this list? Tell me in the comments below.

Bonus - Start Your Astrophotography Books Collection For Free With my Free Ebook The 10 Best Deep Sky Astrophotography Targets for Beginners!

More Astrophotography

  • astrophotography acronyms dictionary. Overhead view of astrophotography gear on a dark starry background, including telescope, filters, guide camera, and red flashlight. flat lay of astrophotography equipment on dark starry background, labeled items like telescope, filter wheel, guide camera, star chart, red flashlight, clean overhead view, no text, high detail, night sky theme
    Astrophotography Acronyms: A to Z Astro Imaging Dictionary
  • Astrophotography Targets by Month Full List
    Astrophotography Targets by Month – Best List for Beginners
  • Fall Astrophotography: The 7 Best Autumn Targets for Beginners
  • Dumbbell Nebula (M27): How to Photograph with a DSLR Camera

Comments

No Comments

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Paweł Białecki, the author behind Astro Photons
Paweł Białecki

I’m Paweł Białecki — an astrophotographer and indie app developer who’s been exploring the night sky for over a decade. Here on Astro Photons, I share practical guides, cosmic insights, and deep-sky photos to help you enjoy and understand our universe — no telescope degree required.

This blog is part of my personal mission to make astronomy more approachable. I write for beginners, hobbyists, and curious stargazers who want real, useful advice — not just textbook definitions. All guides are based on hands-on experience, actual night sky photography, and a genuine love for the cosmos.

I also build simple, helpful tools for fellow science enthusiasts — like UnitToolbox, a universal unit converter made to work beautifully on any device.

More about me →

As seen in:

Footer

↑ back to top

About

  • Author - Paweł Białecki
  • Astrophotography Gallery
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Legal, Privacy Policy, Cookies

Contact

  • Contact


© 2017–2025 Paweł Białecki · Astro Photons. This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse, you accept our use of cookies. Some articles may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Sponsored content may also appear from time to time. Astro Photons is owned and operated by Paweł Białecki, os. Orła Białego 48, 59-920 Bogatynia, Poland, EU. Apple and App Store are trademarks of Apple Inc. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners.