Four galaxies close to Ursa Major are favourite targets of amateur astrophotographers. They are all relatively close to us. The galaxies in question are: M51, M101, M81 and M82. The first is actually in Canes Venatici, but it is still close to Ursa Major. We show how M51 contains a lot of evidence of M51A’s having collided with its smaller neighbour M51B. I was lucky enough to witness a supernova in M101, and publish one of the first images in the UK from this supernova. M81 is easy to photograph in monochrome, but rather more of a challenge to photograph in color. In radio astronomy images, it can be seen to have collided with neighboring galaxies in the past, including M82. This unusual galaxy shows some very interesting features in hydrogen-alpha light and in infrared light, which are discussed. The emphasis, however, is on obtaining good photographs.