Capture the Atlas has released the winners of its 2025 Milky Way Photographer of the Year awards.
25 images from different photographers were selected – including Petr Horálek, Rositsa Dimitrova, Vikas Chander and Burak Esenbey.
The gear used by each photographer was shared so we have done some analysis to give us insight into the camera, lenses, trackers and tripods being used by some of the best nightscape photographers in 2025.
You can download all the data from the past two years here or you can watch the analysis in this video:
Cameras
In terms of brands, the cameras were from
- 48% Nikon
- 34% Sony
- 17% Canon
Key characteristics:
- Every single camera used was full frame
- 83% were mirrorless, versus 17% DSLR
- Two-thirds were astro-modified
The top five individual camera models used were (in order of most used):
Lenses
The lenses used have the characteristics of:
- Wide-angle focal length
- Fast apeture
The top manufacturers being:
- Sigma – 31%
- Sony – 31%
- Nikkor – 19%
- Samyang – 13%
- TTArtisan – 3%
- Viltrox – 3%
The top individual lens models used were (in order of most used):
- Sony FE 14mm f/1.8 GM
- Sony FE 20mm f/1.8 G
- Sigma Art 20mm f/1.4
- Samyang 24mm f/1.4
- Nikkor Z 14-24mm f/2.8
- Nikkor Z 20mm f/1.8
Star trackers
The top star trackers used were (in order of most used):
Tripods
The tripods used were ALL carbon fiber, from manufacturers like Benro, Innorel, Leofoto, Peak Design, Surui and Sunwayfoto.
Models used include:
Final words and methodology
This is not a particularly scientific study, it’s just 25 photos, which is a too small number to draw too many conclusions, and the winners are selected by the site’s editors, rather than any formal application and judging process.
However, they are all great images from great astrophotographers who are active in 2025 and so is hopefully of interest to you.
You can download all the data from the past two years here.
Head over to Capture the Atlas to see all the photos: Milky Way Photographer of the Year and let us know if you have any comments or questions below.
You can see last year’s analysis here. We’ve also published our Milky Way Photographer of the Year 2026 gear analysis. Plus our popular Astronomy Photographer of the Year Gear Analysis.