After the purchase of my first digital compact camera (Canon S2 IS) in 2006, my ongoing but still background interest in astronomy led to some experimentation and a realisation without any research that even these low-end digital cameras provided capabilities worth exploring further. This was boosted further in late 2008 when my wife Helen found an advert for Volunteers for the WA governement (Perth) observatory's public outreach program which I applied for and joined. This put me in contact with a few volunteers with astronomical interest and recent experience of the state of the art of amateur astrophotography.

The involvement with the Perth Observatory in a volunteer capacity working with the public, particualy students, gave me an opportunity to not only share the beauty of the night sky but also some history of science and the scientific method giving hope that a few of them would further their interest in science in general, if not astronomy. The potential of getting back to a personal involvement in astrophotography opened the prospect of sharing this with others as well.