History of Astrophotography
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'Catchers of the Light' is the Website devoted to Astrophotography and its History
'Catchers of the Light' - A History of Astrophotography eBook or Printed Book
History of Astrophotography - Catchers of the Light Origins of AstrophotographyLunar AstrophotographySolar AstrophotographySolar System AstrophotographyDeep Space AstrophotographyPhotographic Astronomical SpectroscopyPhotographic Sky SurveysAstrographsModern AstrophotographyHistory of Astrophotography
A History of Astrophotography
'Catchers of the Light' is the first fully detailed and professionally researched History of Astrophotography. It is available as an eBook or Printed Book through our online store of the same name. CLICK ON THE ABOVE PHOTOGRAPHS FOR MORE INFORMATION.

It tells the story of the ordinary men and women, who did such extraordinary things, overcoming obstacles as diverse as war, poverty, typhoid, death, unfriendly natives and even exploding donkeys, succeeding against all the odds to bring you the magnificent images you will see in its 1500 or so pages and its 1800 or more photographs/illustrations. If you like are interested in the History of Astronomy or the History of Photography, or Astrophotography in general then this is the eBook to buy.

Who were these pioneers of the History of Astrophotography  known as the 'Catchers of the Light? Here are three of their stories:

Bernhard Voldemar Schmidt was an Estonian optician who single handedly built a telescope whose optical design is used in the Kepler Space Telescope, which has recently discovered 'Earth' like planets orbiting another star. What is remarkable about him is that as a young boy he lost his right hand when an experiment with gunpowder went wrong and blew it off.

Milton Lasell Humason used to be a 'mule skinner' driving these often stubborn beasts to the top of a 5715 foot high mountain, where a 'Great Telescope' was being built. Several years later he had become the night assistant to Edwin Powell Hubble and together they put a 'yardstick' on the size of the Universe.

John William Draper, the son of a Methodist minister from St. Helens, Lancashire, travelled to America as a young man, where he became a Professor of Chemistry at New York University, as well as being the first person to take a photograph of an astronomical body, when in 1840 he successfully imaged the Moon; something the legendary, Louis Daguerre had failed to do, the previous year!
 
The 'Catchers'
Below is a 'Gallery' of the pioneers of the History of Astrophotography, known as the 'Catchers'. If you 'hover' your mouse over a picture you will see their name, if you 'click' a picture you will be taken to a page which will tell you more about your chosen individual, and also where you can buy their eChapter from the 'Catchers of the Light' eBook.
Pioneers of the History of Astrophotography Andrew Ainslie CommonProsper HenryLeon FoucaultHenri ChretienWilliam Parsons, 3rd Earl of RosseBernhard SchmidtLouis DaguerreMax WolfJames Edward KeelerWilliam Cranch BondEdward Charles PickeringLewis Morris RutherfurdNicepehore NiepceJulius ScheinerMilton HumasonEdward Emerson BarnardMaurice LoewyAlfred RordameMarcel De KerolyrGeorge Phillips BondFrederick Scott ArcherRichard Leach MaddoxAngelo SecchiAmedee MouchezHenry DraperHippolyte FizeauWilliam UsherwoodDavid GillBenjamin Apthorp GouldWilliamina FlemingIsaac RobertsWilliam Henry PickeringEdwin HubbleWilliam HugginsGeorge EastmanJohn Adams WhippleWarren De La RueEugen Von GothardWilliam Edward WilsonJohn Edward MellishJohn William DraperPaul HenryGeorge Willis RitcheyOswald LohseGeorge Ellery HaleJules JanssenPierre Henri PuiseuxHermann VogelMargaret Lindsay MurrayCharles Edward Kenneth Mees
Astrophotography Website
'Catchers of the Light' are now proud to announce that it has its own Astrophotography website where Astrophotographers will find the largest set of FREE resources, catalogues and tools for the modern day astro-imager, including:
  • Complete Messier, Caldwell, Herschel 400 and 'Hidden Treasures' Observing Catalogues as well as our own Astrophotographers' Target List
  • Deep Space Object (DSO) List containing over 25,000 Imaging Targets;
  • Bright Star Catalogue;
  • Object Search Database of Imaging Targets;
  • 'What's Up' Wizard to help you find Imaging Targets where you are;
  • CCD Calculator with a database of hundreds of CCD and Telescope configurations built in;
  • Eyepiece Calculator with a database of hundreds of eyepiece and telescope combinations built in;
  • Astrophotography Software Database for image acquisition, image calibration, image processing, etc;
  • Lunar Features Database containing over 2000 craters, mountains, seas, bays, oceans, lakes, marshes etc
  • Astrophotography Timeline of important events in its history;
  • Early Astronomical Photographs Gallery;
  • Famous Astronomer and Astrophotographer Biographies
  • Famous Astrograph/Camera, Telescope and Observatory Galleries
'Catchers of the Light' Our Astrophotography Blog Our eBook Shop Our Astrophotography Site
Buy the eBook - from the 'Catchers of the Light' shop with special editions from $0.00 - YES FREE (conditions apply)
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