Posted: June 11, 2020

Fascinated by both photography and the natural world from an early age, Blackhurst received his BA in Industrial-Scientific Imaging from Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, CA in 2002. Following graduation, he returned to OPT (Oceanside Photo & Telescope, Inc.), where he had worked during high school and college. Eric was excited by the challenge of imaging the unseen and the un-seeable. Gaining understanding and practice in astronomical imaging quickly became a consuming mission. In the years since, he has been an operations manager, technical-sales agent, and support technician within the astronomy industry. Blackhurst has a long history of field work, with a wide variety of telescopes, tracking systems, and related instrumentation. This has led him to influence and support purchases and use of astronomical systems by countless educational institutions, private individuals, and both US and allied agencies.