Commonly, when one thinks, imagines, talks about the Sky and the firmament, what comes to mind are the shining stars, the Milky Way, the bright and reassuring Moon. The most romantic among us, gazing at the vault of heaven, will remain in contemplation of such natural beauty.
But with what methods and with what means can one capture the beauty of the Sky? How can one venture into the world of amateur astronomy?
There are well-known amateur astronomers in the field who leave a mark because they pass on something constructive to the amateur-astronomy community. One of these is certainly Cristian Fattinnanzi who, with the invention of his Minitrack, has enabled hundreds of photographers to track the sky at affordable costs for everyone.
For a long time riding the wave, Cristian has gathered in this interesting book his passion for astronomy, his knowledge, and has shared the desire to feel amazed every time in front of such wonder. With this book he manages to convey to the reader, thanks to a skillful and simple writing style, the emotions of astronomical photography. The undertaking was not among the easiest because it meant presenting one’s life under the stars without slipping into self-celebration. He succeeded in an exhaustive and non-trivial way in expressing complex concepts simply, so as to attract even the curiosity of beginners and of those not versed in technical language. The photographic aspect also proved up to the task.
The author has never hidden his techniques and this is precisely the book’s greatest merit. Every image of his has a story and Cristian shared without fear the secrets, the ingredients that made it up.
The Book describes the stages of his path as an amateur astronomer and, by revealing the tricks of the trade, helps the reader avoid making his mistakes.
“I try to describe what you feel during the observation of the starry sky to those who have never had a chance to do it…” these are Cristian’s words and it can well be said that the attempt succeeded fully. I believe that “What star is it?” is an indispensable tool for those who are beginning to approach amateur astronomy and it cannot be missing from enthusiasts’ libraries.
The book is made up of the chapters: My story, Recognizing the sky, The equipment, Basics of astronomical photography, Shooting and processing astrophotographs, Wide-field images with sky and landscape, Deep-sky processing, High-resolution planetary capture and processing, Photo-stories.
It is enriched by the preface by Daria Guidetti and by dozens of top-level images that rekindle the desire to photograph the starry sky.
The level of photographic printing is high, but personally I would have appreciated a more modern layout, a hard cover and a smaller format such as 8x10 or 8.5x11 inches in order to be easier to handle.
The 286-page manual can be purchased by contacting the author, or downloaded in digital format with a free donation from the site:
http://www.cristianfattinnanzi.it/
Marco Meniero
