So - you're interested in astronomy and have decided to start observing. Maybe you're going to start off naked-eye, or perhaps you've just bought your first instrument. Now what?
For my first few observing sessions (at home) I was happy to just point-and-shoot - looking for anything interesting naked-eye, and then using a telescope to zoom in on it. During my first couple of dark sky nights I relied on the kind eagerness of other, more experienced, observers to guide my observing. Pretty soon though, I started feeling that I needed some kind of plan or goal to fully appreciate observation opportunities.
For most of us, observing time is limited to a few hours per session, with sessions sometime as much as a month apart. To make the most use of this limited time, I focus a lot on any preparation I can do before the time, and any analysis I can do some time after the session.
Preparation starts with getting to know your instruments. Whether your instruments are binoculars, telescopes, or even just your eyes, spend some time at home learning how they work. Use some daylight time at home to practice setting up and breaking down your 'scope - first-time setup of a new tripod and mount just has to be done in daylight if you don't want to lose any of the fiddly bits! Learn how to adjust and focus your binoculars. Learn about your eyes and how they adapt to the dark (and particularly how to keep them dark adapted).
Once you know how to observe, it's time to decide what to observe.
It seems to happen to everyone at some time or another. You drive all the way to a dark site, the weather is great, you have your new 'scope (and have learned how to use it). You assemble your scope and settle in for the night to darken and for your eyes to adjust. Completely ready, you approach your 'scope and decide to point it at... what? You don't have any plans or goals, so you just end up looking at all the same stuff you looked at last session, and the session before that, and the session before that.
You can choose targets in two different ways. One is two choose particular targets as part of your preparation, and then try to find them during your observing session. Lists such as Charles Messier's catalogue, the ASSA Deepsky Observing Section's "Top-100 Deepsky Objects" and guides such as Auke Slotegraaf's Southern Sky Almanack are great resources for choosing interesting objects.
The alternative approach is to select an area of sky that you haven't studied yet, and see what you can discover there, rather than looking for a list of predetermined objects. Auke's "Discover!" star charts are wonderful for this. Take along a printout of some of his charts, and search the sky for new and interesting objects. Sketch each one and note its position on the Discover! Charts, and when you get back home (and after a good night's sleep) use star atlases or charts to identify what it was that you found.
Many good star charts and atlases are available. You can buy some as printed books, and others can be downloaded from the internet and printed. Whatever format you prefer, take dew into account. If you buy an off-the-shelf book, try to get one that has dew-proof pages. If your favourite atlas doesn't have pages protected from dew then you may need to make photocopies of each page that you might need for a session and take those along instead. Photocopies and print-outs can be laminated, or just placed into transparent plastic sleeves.
Software such as Stellarium (free virtual-planetarium software) and Cartes du Ciel (free charting software) are also great sources of printable charts as well as allowing you to test-run your observation plan before going out.
Last - but by no means least - is the actual observing itself. What use is all that preparation if you don't go outside and look up? To enjoy observing, make sure that you are comfortable. Dress warmly - hats, scarves, gloves, jackets are all good ideas. Take along some snacks and warm drinks to keep your strength up. Find a chair or step-ladder that can be used comfortably at different heights so that you don't hurt your back using your telescope at different elevations.
Make sure you have a dim red lamp for reading your notes and charts. A cheap red lamp can be made by taping some red balloon rubber to a cheap torch. More expensive options include head-mounted lamps, but please avoid those hiking and camping lamps that have to be cycled through bright white beams and strobes before reaching their red lamp modes. (Even when they are in red lamp mode, many of these lamps are far too bright for observation use anyway as they will not only affect your dark adaptation, but also the adaptation of other observers around you.)
Preparing before your observation - and being comfortable during the session - allow you to achieve the most important aspect of amateur astronomy. Enjoy yourself. Enjoy the experience, the growth and the company of like-minded friends. Clear skies!
Look at resources mentioned in this article.
With thanks to Gavin Lock