Activity areas: Astrophotography, Video-astrophotography
Specialists & Collaborators: Liam McDermott
Contact us: [ astrophotography
assa.saao.ac.za ]ASSA Photo Gallery: Astrophoto Gallery
Archives: AstroSocSA on Flickr
How to do astrophotography
If you have never taken photos of the night sky, or would like to understand the processes behind astrophotography, consult our Guide to Astrophotography for advice. This is an evolving resource and you are welcome to propose areas of improvement.
Share your photographs
Photographers are invited to share their images with the ASSA Astrophotography Section. All images will be added to the ASSA Image Archive (on Flickr), which can be browsed on the Gallery page. Send an e-mail to [ astrophotographyassa.saao.ac.za ] containing a description of the equipment used, settings, a description of the processing process, and any other relevant information. Don’t forget to also describe target, and include the image as an attachment. Make sure that the image is as high a quality as you can fit in an email, so as to best show off your work!
Astrophotography Section Contact List
Stay up-to-date by subscribing to the Astrophotography Section Contact List. This is a low-volume mailing list, that is used to share relevant Astrophotography news and events with the Astrophotography community in southern Africa.
Astrophotography Challenges
The Astrophotography Section regularly challenges its members to capture specific images. Some of these challenges are meant to push your skills, others are meant to establish a record of interesting events, and others are just meant to be fun! New challenges are periodically announced, sometimes in partnership with outside organisations.
Current challenges
The 2025 ASSA Astrophotography Competition
Previous challenges
- The 2024 ASSA Astrophotography Competition (2024)
- 2023 Optolong Deep-Sky Astrophotography Competition (2023)
- Big 5 of the African Sky (2023)
- Conjunction of Mars, Venus and the crescent Moon (2021)
Older challenges can be found in the Website Archive.
Awards and Certificates
Every year, the Director has the option of recognising the efforts of South African astrophotographers by bestowing awards and certificates. Browse the gallery of past recipients.