Astrophotography in May 2023: what to shoot in the night sky this coming month

Crescent moon, Venus (planet) and lenticular clouds
May 2023 will see a crescent moon pass close to a dazzling bright Venus after sunset (Image credit: Getty Images)

For those in the northern hemisphere, May is the last month until September when the night sky gets properly dark after sunset. It also brings your best last chance to grab a post-sunset photo of Venus high in the sky and, if you time it precisely, close to a slender crescent moon.

• Make sure you're using the best lenses for astrophotography

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Jamie Carter
Astrophotography expert

Jamie has been writing about all aspects of technology for over 14 years, producing content for sites like TechRadar, T3, Forbes, Mashable, MSN, South China Morning Post, and BBC Wildlife, BBC Focus and BBC Sky At Night magazines. 

As the editor for www.WhenIsTheNextEclipse.com, he has a wealth of enthusiasm and expertise for all things astrophotography, from capturing the Perseid Meteor Shower, lunar eclipses and ring of fire eclipses, photographing the moon and blood moon and more.

He also brings a great deal of knowledge on action cameras, 360 cameras, AI cameras, camera backpacks, telescopes, gimbals, tripods and all manner of photography equipment.