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The AAVSO and Project Panoptes are two citizen science astronomy projects that are welcoming to all levels of experience. I think like with all hobbies you can spend a lot or a little, although for good astronomy equipment you either have to have machining/engineering skills or deep pockets for the best stuff. You can't really cheat the laws of physics when it comes to lenses, cameras, and mounts. What interests me is the science behind the data processing of photometry. That and the engineering behind building a remote observatory without spending a fortune. You definitely can find things that the pros can't because you will be able to get way more telescope time than a pro does. Things like verifying exoplanet candidates, or observing variable stars and eclipsing binaries and recording the light curves. All stuff that amateurs can contribute to.