Want to try something different for your winter photography? The frosty season isn’t best known for it, but astrophotography would also be a good choice. This is actually a good time for beginners since there are plenty of deep sky targets to choose from. But, for starters, you can narrow down your winter astrophotography targets to seven that you can find in the night sky from December to February.

In the Astro Escape video above, amateur astrophotographer and visual astronomer Daylon Burt lists down his top seven deep sky picks to keep an eye out for. Some of these objects will be bright enough to see with the naked eye. However, keep in mind that you’ll need to be at a dark sky location to get the best results.

Burt also included some fun facts and useful tips for photographing these celestial subjects. The famous Orion Nebula for example, is excellent for various focal lengths from 135mm to 400mm. Of course, just in time for the holidays, make sure you don’t miss capturing the Christmas Tree Cluster (NGC 2264)!

He also demonstrated how you can use tools like Stellarium, a free open source astronomy software, to track these objects and plan the shots you want. You can preview what these objects and their surrounds will look like at different focal lengths. This way, you’ll see how many of them you can fit into your compositions if you decide to get as wide as 50mm.

Need more winter astrophotography tips and tricks like this? Don’t forget to drop by our group discussions if you’re already part of the Photofocus Community!