We’ve long stopped being satisfied with just watching the stars. (Though that alone is still a lovely activity.) We want to be able to capture them too, so that the Milky Way becomes ours alone in that fleeting eternal moment when we’re lucky enough to witness it through our lens.

If your fingers are itching to try astrophotography but you don’t know how or where to begin, now is the perfect time for your first lesson. Photographer Mihail Minkov, winner of numerous awards from prestigious international competitions for astro and night photography, will hold a special workshop for 8 participants as part of the FotoFabrika Festival 2025.

The workshop is completely free. To participate, you need to fill out this form and be available on the evening of July 21.

Registration will close once all spots are filled.

Where and when will the photo session take place

The location is the chapel of Sv. Petar i Pavel near the village of Kovachevtsi in the Plana region, about an hour's drive from Sofia.

The date is July 20, 2025. Meeting time is 21:30 in the village square of Kovachevtsi. The workshop will begin at 22:00.

Participants are expected to reach the village using their own transportation. The chapel is about a 15-minute drive from Kovachevtsi via a dirt road that is accessible by car, if it is not too low to the ground.

How the workshop will unfold:

The session will focus on photographing the core of the Milky Way with the chapel in the foreground. Mihail will explain the appropriate settings and how to compose such shots. Then there will be two hours for shooting, during which he will offer individual advice and guidance.

What participants need to bring:

• Tripod
• Camera
• Lens with at least f/2.8 aperture, between 14–24mm
• Headlamp
• Warm clothes (fleece and windbreaker)

Recommendation: It’s important to be familiar with your gear so you don’t waste time navigating menus and settings during the shoot.

And if you haven’t yet seen Mihail Minkov’s exhibition, which adorns the fence of the Battenberg Mausoleum in Sofia, you can still catch it over the next few days and steal a moment of inspiration from the cosmic imagery in 20 Seconds of Light.