Of all the deep sky objects visible from Earth, one stands apart – a soft, hazy oval in the constellation Andromeda that, once photographed, reveals itself as a sweeping spiral of stars. The Andromeda Galaxy, or M31, is the closest large galaxy to our own. And it’s one of the most rewarding first targets for anyone starting out in astrophotography.
This guide is written for beginners – whether you’re using a DSLR on a star tracker, a telescope and astro camera, or just a camera and lens on a tripod. No specialist gear is needed to start.
Why Andromeda Is A Perfect First Target
Andromeda is:
- Bright. You can see it with the naked eye from a dark location.
- Large. It spans over three degrees of sky – six times the width of the full Moon.
- Visible for much of the year. In the UK, it rises high from late summer through winter.
- Forgiving. It can be photographed with a variety of setups and still produce good results.
You won’t see its spiral arms clearly through an eyepiece – but with long exposures, its shape and structure come to life.
When And Where To See It
Andromeda is best viewed in the autumn and early winter months in the Northern Hemisphere. From August to January, it climbs high into the eastern and southern sky during the evening.
Look for it by:
- Locating the Great Square of Pegasus in the east.
- Tracing out to the constellation Andromeda, which arcs from the top left of the square.
- Spotting a faint, elongated smudge – that’s M31.
Tools like Stellarium, Sky Guide, or PhotoPills can help pinpoint its location and track when it will be highest in the sky from your location.
What You’ll Need To Photograph It
You don’t need a telescope. A wide-aperture lens and tracking mount can be more than enough. Here are three common approaches:
1. Camera and Lens on a Tripod (No Tracking)
- Lens: 50–135 mm prime lens.
- Settings: 5–15 second exposures at ISO 3200–6400, f/2.8 or wider.
- Result: You’ll get a small but recognisable Andromeda with some detail, ideal for stacking.
2. Camera and Lens on a Star Tracker
- Lens: 135 mm or 200 mm prime lens.
- Exposure: 1–2 minutes at lower ISO (800–1600).
- Result: Great balance of size and detail. You’ll resolve the core and dust lanes.
3. Telescope and Dedicated Astro Camera
- Scope: 250–500 mm focal length refractor.
- Camera: Colour astro camera or DSLR.
- Accessories: Field flattener, filter, T-ring if needed.
- Result: A highly detailed view showing the two companion galaxies (M32 and M110).
Framing The Shot
Because Andromeda is so large, many telescopes with longer focal lengths won’t fit it entirely in the frame. If you’re using a camera and lens:
- A 135 mm lens on an APS-C sensor captures the full galaxy nicely.
- Framing it slightly off-centre often works best – try aligning the long axis diagonally.
- Andromeda’s companions (M32 below and M110 above) are often visible in the same frame.
Tools like Telescopius or NINA framing assistant let you preview your field of view.
Suggested Camera Settings
These depend on your setup, but here’s a rough starting point for DSLR or mirrorless users with a star tracker:
- Shutter speed: 90–120 seconds (tracked).
- Aperture: f/2.8–f/4.
- ISO: 800–1600 depending on sky brightness.
- White balance: Manual (around 4000K–4500K).
- Focus: Manual, using live view on a bright star.
Take at least an hour of exposure time in total. More is better. 60–120 frames stacked will give a strong result.
Calibrate And Stack
To improve your final image:
- Take dark frames (same settings with lens cap on).
- Take flat frames if possible (uniform light source at same focus).
- Use DeepSkyStacker or similar to align and combine your frames.
Even if your individual shots look noisy or faint, stacking them reveals detail and suppresses noise. You’ll start to see the galaxy’s true shape emerge.
Processing Tips
After stacking, process your image using:
- Lightroom, Photoshop, Affinity Photo, or GIMP.
- Adjust curves and levels to pull out faint structure.
- Boost contrast carefully to enhance dust lanes.
- Fine-tune colour balance to avoid oversaturating the core.
Don’t worry if it takes time – post-processing is its own part of the learning curve. Reprocess the same data again after a few months and you’ll see how far you’ve come.
Final Thoughts: Our Neighbour, Captured From Home
The Andromeda Galaxy is 2.5 million light years away – and still visible with a basic camera and a clear sky. That’s a staggering thought. With nothing more than a lens, a tracker, and some time, you can photograph a galaxy not with a telescope in a dome – but from your back garden, your rooftop, or a quiet hillside nearby.
Andromeda makes a perfect target for new imagers. It’s bright, it’s forgiving, and it’s deeply rewarding. More than anything, it shows you what’s possible. Once you’ve photographed another galaxy, the sky feels different – more connected, more reachable, more real.
And that’s just the beginning.
