Astrophotography on a budget: The best Black Friday cameras, lenses, tripods and trackers
Setting up an astrophotography setup can seem terrifying from the outside. Scroll through social media and it seems like everyone you follow has cameras, trackers, and a tripod that cost more than your first car. Add up the cost of all three accessories and astrophotography, it seems, requires an astronomical expense before you can even take your first image of the Milky Way.
But on the ground, you quickly learn that you don’t need everything. An old full-frame camera, a prime lens, and almost any tripod will give you images you’ll cherish. However, at some point you’ll find yourself under perfectly clear and dark skies while your flimsy tripod struggles, and without an intervalometer handy, you’ll spend a frustrating few hours pressing the shutter button every 30 seconds just to get a basic photo of a star trail. It’s at these parties that you realize what small, affordable improvements could really improve your results and your enjoyment.
