The Backyard Astronomer

An amazing book for the amateur, covering everything from types of telescopes, F-stops, aperture vs magnification, eyepieces, accessories, fundamentals of astrophotography, eyepiece sketching, observing basics, tips and techniques, etc...

Although a little outdated as far as equipment goes, this book has nevertheless helped me a immensely. It still remains on of my favorite cloudy night reads.

Available from Amazon.com

The CCD Camera CookBook

I'm NOT paying $1000USD to take pictures with my LX50. At least not for the time being... So I've ordered the Cookbook, and I'm very impressed. The only techically difficult thing for me is re-doing the power supply for 220V instead of 115V. All else is explained, re-explained, and if that's not enough there are several PC programs that walk you through the testing sequences for the interface cards etc... And guess what? One day, when you buy that serious CCD camera, you can turn your CB211 or CB245 into an autoguider for your LX50 or LX200. Not bad eh? I'll be adding a CookBook section to the page as soon as I start putting this baby together...

A final word of warning: DON'T order this from Amazon.com unless you are prepared to wait 4 MONTHS for the thing to arrive!!! Go straight to Willmann-Bell, the publisher, and save yourself some time and money!

Available from Willmann-Bell

AIP4Windows

Everything you've ever wanted to know about CCDs and image processing but were afraid to ask! I've so far found this a fantastic rescource. I was honestly expecting a tough textbook like text but Berry and Burnell have actually managed to make this a great read. I'm learning great new stuff every time I turn a page. As for the software - MaximDL eat'cher heart out! There's no CCD control as it concentrates on pure image processing and that it does astoundingly well. For about 80 bucks for the book and software its an amazing deal.

Available from Willmann-Bell

Messier Marathon Field Guide

I hands down simply adore this book! I don't think any other book or software I own had helped me more in learning the night sky. The charts are great for the beginner with loads of pointers and info on how to find Messier objects with Telrad and drawings of what you should expect to see in the FOV of a 8x50 finder. Another thing I loved bout this book is the pencil sketches of all the Messier objects showing you very clearly what you should expect to see in the eyepiece.

Available from Willmann-Bell

Star Testing Astronomical Telescopes

I'm finding this a great book despite the fact that a lot of it goes way over my head. There is a stunning amount of information about optics and optical systems in the book. I'm still wading through it but it has helped me learn a lot about my SCT. Mainly the fact that its quite healthy! :o)

Available from Willmann-Bell