Jerry Lodriguss has been an amateur astronomer and astrophotographer for more than 35 years.

He first became interested in astronomy at the age of seven when he looked through a "spyglass" at the Moon and was amazed to see that it had craters. He discovered his love for photography when he was 17 years old when he bought a camera to take pictures through his home-made 10-inch reflecting telescope.

His professional career began in 1974 working part time shooting high school sports for $5 per picture at a small suburban weekly newspaper in New Orleans.

He then worked as a staff photographer for the Times-Picayune in New Orleans, and as Louisiana Newspictures Bureau Manager for United Press International. After leaving UPI, he freelanced for Sports Illustrated, Time, Newsweek, The New York Times, Washington Post, and USA Today.

From 1987 until 2009 he worked at the Philadelphia Inquirer as their staff sports photographer.

His astronomical photographs of objects such as nebulae and galaxies have appeared in publications all over the world and he has written five books:

• A Guide to DSLR Planetary Photography

• A Beginner's Guide to DSLR Astrophotography

• A Guide to Astrophotography with DSLR Cameras (This book)

• Catching the Light - A Beginners Guide to the Wonders of the Cosmos

• Photoshop for Astrophotographers - A Guide to Digital Correction and Enhancement Techniques for Astrophotos