The guy at the star party totally wrecked my opinion on phone astrophotography

I was out at the local dark sky site near Flagstaff last weekend, and this older dude with a huge telescope setup asked what I was shooting with. I bragged about my $2,000 DSLR rig, and he just laughed and showed me a photo of the Andromeda galaxy he took with a 3 year old iPhone on a cheap tripod. He said the best camera is the one you actually use, and that spending hours stacking and editing is fine but it kills the joy of just looking up. I argued back for a minute, but then he pulled up a single 10 second exposure he did that night with no processing, and it honestly looked better than my first attempts. It made me rethink all those nights I spent fiddling with settings instead of just watching the stars with friends. Has anyone else had a moment where some random person made you drop your expensive gear and just enjoy the sky more?

3 comments

3 Comments

hayden_rivera25d ago

That old dude with the iPhone is the reason I now own a $40 tripod from Amazon and use my phone 90% of the time. I spent six months tweaking flat frames and darks for a Milky Way shot that looked worse than a single 8 second exposure my buddy got with his Pixel. Now I bring a cheap pair of binoculars and a lawn chair, and I actually talk to people instead of cursing at a laptop in my trunk. Your mileage may vary, but that guy probably saved me from another $500 on a mount I'd barely use.

troy_scott25d ago

You ever spend $500 just to learn you'd rather sit in a lawn chair?

aaron70823d ago

$500 is nothing compared to the time I wasted learning that same lesson. I dropped almost $800 on a star tracker and spent three nights in the cold only to realize my phone does good enough for what I actually use the photos for. Now I bring a cooler with some drinks and just enjoy looking up instead of fighting with equipment. That guy with the iPhone is honestly doing it right for most people.