Astrophotography did not start in color. Various chemical techniques culminated in using glass plates with chemical films, which still produced a black and white image. A technique still in use at professional observatories in the 1970’s when the original Star Wars was released. My most unpopular advice about astrophotography today is to start with monochrome sensors and do monochrome imaging. Monochrome (black and white) sensors are far more sensitive than color sensors. Yes, CMOS is great kiddies, but CMOS mono is still even better than CMOS color! An ongoing project of mine is “Backyard Galaxies”, where I shoot galaxies from my light polluted back yard outside Orlando Florida. I use a monochrome sensor, with no light pollution filter. Color is very hard to do in light polluted skies, but I find monochrome works quite well. Yes, you have to take short exposures so as not to saturate your sensor, and the raw image is awash with light. Curves and levels however will bring that image right out. I might have to do a longer piece on why this works sometime, but for now, I encourage you to give it a try. The image below is only 38×90 second exposures. I used a Sky-Watcher Esprit 150 refractor with the 0.77x focal reducer and a Player One Poseidon M camera and a Chroma Luminance Filter (necessary even for monochrome images).
Oh, this by the way is Messier 33, the Triangulum galaxy. It’s a fairly large galaxy in apparent size as it’s not terribly far away. Only 2.7 million light years!
What are you waiting for? Got get yourself some backyard galaxies for too!