We are excited to announce that PARI, AstroBrevard, and the Asheville Astronomy Club will be hosting our first beginners’ astrophotography class on Thursday, October 23rd, 2025.
Throughout the sky, hidden among the stars, are wonders just beyond what the human eye can discern. But with a camera, tripod, and a little know-how, you can learn to find, reveal, and share fascinating objects from within our own solar system and others much, much further. Planets and moons that orbit our Sun will pop into view. Nebulae and super nova remnants will show intricate patterns and colors of swirling gas and dust. Even distant galaxies, more vast than our own Milky Way, can be captured.
If you’ve ever seen those gorgeous pictures of the night sky and thought “I want to do that”, here’s your chance to get your feet wet with the best possible hobby! But we warn you, it’s addictive 😃
The one-day class will be led by two experienced astrophotographers, David Krause and Tommy Wilkinson, both of the Asheville Astronomy Club. The class size is limited to allow hands-on, individual attention. The sample pictures you see here are actual astrophotography images taken by David Krause and Tommy Wilkinson, course instructors.
Topics will include:
- Introduction to Astrophotography Equipment
- Data Acquisition
- Image Capture Software
- Image Processing
This day-long class will include meals and and an evening portion after dark to try out your new skills. Instruction will follow this schedule:
- 9:00am to 12:00pm – Classroom instruction
- 12:00pm to 1:00pm – Lunch, provided by PARI
- 1:00pm to 4:30pm – Classroom instruction
- 4:30pm to 7:00pm – Dinner and break. (Dinner is not provided)
- 7:00pm to 10:00pm – Evening viewing & photography and/or practice time
Here are some frequently asked questions about learning astrophotography:
- Do I need to know anything about photography to take the class.
- A basic knowledge of how to use a DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera would be helpful, but not required.
- Do I need to know anything about astronomy to take the class?
- A basic knowledge of the objects that you’ll be shooting (planets, nebulas, galaxies, etc.) would, again, be helpful, but not required.
- What equipment to I need to bring for the class?
- For the daytime, classroom portion of the class, you don’t need to bring your own equipment – instructors will be using their own equipment for demonstrations. If you intend to stay for the nighttime shooting sessions, feel free to bring whatever equipment you have. However, we will have a few cameras and telescopes for those who don’t bring their own.
- What if it’s cloudy that night?
- If conditions don’t allow for a shooting session, we will provide you with data and work through processing it with you.
Two ticket options are available:
- Full Class ticket – includes the entire day of instruction sessions, lunch, and evening photography session.
- Full Class plus Overnight Lodging – adds overnight accommodations in the PARI cabins and breakfast the following morning. You will have a private room with private bathroom, giving you the opportunity to continue to enjoy PARI’s dark skies as long as you like.
