Adventures in Amateur Astrophotography

Amateur astrophotography has undergone a profound transformation over the past twenty years, driven by the advent of digital cameras, along with increasingly affordable large-aperture telescopes. Amateur astronomers today use backyard equipment to produce stunning images that surpass those taken at big observatories only a few decades ago, while some use very modest equipment to produce work of soaring creativity. Some amateurs use their imaging systems to do research, sometimes as part of pro-am collaborations, while arm-chair astronomers process photographic treasures lying untapped in professional archives. In this talk I'll cover some of the many varieties of amateur astrophotography, from the perspective of a theoretical physicist whose personal life was transformed by adventures in this hobby.