You don’t need a dedicated meteor camera to photograph meteors. You can do it using a digital camera.
You don’t even need an expensive camera to start out with. I acquired a 2nd hand Canon EOS 400D for £40 and along with a tripod I picked up for free, a RGBS LCD shutter release remote control I brought for £16, and a NEEWER USB Lens Heater for £20, I now have all the equipment I need.
Here is my practice set-up looking out of the dormer window my meteor cameras are attached to.
If you want to learn more about how to photograph meteors using a digital camera then check out this article, it is what I used to get started. I’m using a simple Canon kit lens (EFS 18-55mm), which I got with my camera. It’s not the best lens to use but this article helped me use it to take this photo of the aurora borealis on the 10/05/2024 at 22:40 (UTC).
Photo taken at 22:40 (UTC) 0n 10/05/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth.Camera settings: ISO-1600, f/3.5, 15 sec. Increased the contrast post shot using Microsoft Photos.
Meteor Showers
The best time of year to spot, and photograph, a meteor is during one of the many meteor showers that happen each year. More information about meteor showers and when they will occur in 2024 can be found both here and here.
The summary diagram below is from the GMN meteor shower flux website (downloaded on the 7th April 2024) and should act as a quick guide to what meteor showers can be seen when, and what the lunar cycle, which can impact upon viewing conditions (as well as clouds), is at that time.
Finally, it should be said that even during a meteor shower capturing a photo of a meteor is all about the numbers… Set your camera up to take as many photographs as it can on repeat while keeping your fingers crossed. Yes, there is a lot of luck involved in getting that ‘perfect’ shot.
My Meteor Photos
Below are some of the digital photos I have captured of meteors. Each one is corroborated by cross-referencing the time of capture with the UK-GMN achieve database.
PINNED to top of the list as this is my favourite photo –Photo taken at 22:13 (UTC) 0n 06/06/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/3.5, 25 sec. Contrast and Brightness adjusted post shot using Photoshop. The UK-GMN record for this sporadic meteor can be found herePhoto taken at 02:43 (UTC) 0n 13/08/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-1600, f/3.5, 15 sec. Contrast and Brightness adjusted post shot using Photoshop. The UK-GMN record for this sporadic meteor can be found herePhoto taken at 22:08 (UTC) 0n 12/08/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-1600, f/3.5, 15 sec. Contrast and Brightness adjusted post shot using Photoshop. The UK-GMN record for this Perseid meteor can be found herePhoto taken at 22:44 (UTC) 0n 11/08/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-1600, f/3.5, 20 sec. Contrast and Brightness adjusted post shot using Photoshop. The UK-GMN record for this Perseid meteor can be found herePhoto taken at 01:56 (UTC) 0n 02/08/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/3.5, 25 sec. Contrast and Brightness adjusted post shot using Microsoft Photos. The UK-GMN record for this sporadic meteor can be found herePhoto taken at 02:06 (UTC) 0n 01/06/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/3.5, 20 sec. Contrast and Brightness adjusted post shot using Microsoft Photos. The UK-GMN record for this sporadic meteor can be found here
My Other Photos
When trying to photograph a meteor you end up taking thousands of photos, the majority of which you delete. Some photos though contain other interesting features other than meteors and as a result are worth keeping. Below are some of these photos
The Aurora Borealis – Below is a time-lapse of images I captured of the aurora borealis from Plymouth on the night of the 10/05/2024.
Another Aurora Borealis display, albeit much shorter this time. This one from the morning of the 12/08/2024.
And yet another Aurora Borealis display. This one from just before midnight on the 12/08/2024.
Moonrise over Plymouth
Photo taken at 20:22 (UTC) 0n 20/08/2024 looking East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/5.6, 0.5 sec. Post shot adjustments made using Photoshop.Photo taken at 00:17 (UTC) 0n 29/06/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/3.5, 25 sec. Post shot adjustments made using Photoshop.
Stack of around 400 photos taken from my garden 0n the night of the 29th August 2024 looking up towards the North-East. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/3.5, 20 sec per photo. Stacking, along with image adjustment, done in Photoshop.Stack of around 500 photos taken 0n the night of the 16/08/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/3.5, 20 sec per photo. Stacking done in Photoshop.What appears to be a meteor heading towards the celestial pole is more likely to be a satellite flare.Stack of 400 photos taken 0n the night of the 14/08/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/3.5, 15 sec per photo. Stacking done in Photoshop.Stack of 200 photos taken 0n the night of the 27/07/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/3.5, 25 sec per photo. Stacking done in Photoshop.Stack of 400 photos taken 0n the night of the 13/07/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/3.5, 25 sec per photo. Stacking done in Photoshop.Stack of 200 photos taken 0n the night of the 10/07/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/3.5, 25 sec per photo. Stacking done in Photoshop.Stack of around 200 photos taken from my garden 0n the night of the 3rd July 2024 looking up towards the North-East. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/3.5, 25 sec per photo. Stacking, along with image adjustment, done in Photoshop.Stack of 200 photos taken 0n the night of the 28/06/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/3.5, 25 sec per photo. Stacking done in Photoshop.
Satellite Flares – At first glance you would think that each of these photos contain a meteor, but they do not. The reason being, is because none of them could be cross referenced with the UK-GMN achieve database. All of them instead are more likely to contain what is referred to as a satellite flare .
Photo taken at 22:05 (UTC) 0n 29/05/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-800, f/3.5, 20 sec. Contrast and Brightness adjusted post shot using Microsoft Photos.Photo taken at 21:17 (UTC) 0n 06/05/2024 looking East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-1600, f/3.5, 15 sec. Contrast and Brightness adjusted post shot using Microsoft Photos.Photo taken at 21:08 (UTC) 0n 04/05/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-1600, f/3.5, 15 sec. Contrast and Brightness adjusted post shot using Microsoft Photos.Photo taken at 21:29 (UTC) 0n 19/04/2024 looking North-East over Plymouth. Camera settings: ISO-1600, f/3.5, 15 sec. Contrast and Brightness adjusted post shot using Microsoft Photos.
Sunsets over Plymouth
Taken on the evening of the 14th July 2024 on my Samsung mobile
