CKP

Thanks for the replies guys. I was just trying to wrap my head around it, but I guess that's why its called an illusion!

When manually observing, the target goes out of view quicker when using higher eyepieces. When tracking would I need to change the speed to compensate for this? Thanks.

Thanks for the update @Penumbrella It seems you got on great with your first light, especially seeing more than you have ever seen before! It sounds like you were fully loaded too! Sorry to hear about the clutches on your mount, was they tightened up too much? At first it sounded like a load issue, but if it happened with no scope on it, I guess not. If its new I'd send it back, opening it up would void your warranty. Hopefully you'll get it sorted easily enough.

Nice present! I bought myself the az gti for my birthday too! How does the ota feel on the mount, I'm thinking of doing the same. I use the heritage 130p at the moment but don't like having to make light shrouds and the crappy focuser!

I forgot about this thread and should of posted this here. My apologies. Hi, If I do the eq mod on the SkyWatcher az gti, would I need to use tube rings? I've heard you need to be either a contortionist or move the OTA in its rings? I've no experience with eq mounts so I have no idea. Currently I'm using the fixed vixen bar on my heritage 130p without the eq mod. Thanks.

Hi, If I do the eq mod on the SkyWatcher az gti, would I need to use tube rings? I've heard you need to be either a contortionist or move the OTA in its rings? I've no experience with eq mounts so I have no idea. Currently I'm using the fixed vixen bar on my heritage 130p without the eq mod. Thanks.

How do I check if the mount is on daylight saving? I use the app on my phone (galaxy s9) and my phone is on automatic time settings. When I put it in manual mode it is gmt + 01:00 british summer time. The connection between the mount and tripod is solid, I will try using a real spirit level on the tripod to compare it with the built in bubble.

Thanks for the support

I'll have a look next time I'm connected.

Is there a way to improve the traffic accuracy? I guess the only way to do a more accurate polar alignment would be to do the eq mod?

Is autoguiding when you piggy back another camera and smaller scope on top of your original scope? I don't do this, I just line up the target on the live view screen and then hit live stack. When using the synscan app, when I've typed in the target and found/centralised the target does it automatically track the target?

I do centre the target before starting the live stack. What is dithering? Do you pause the stack and recentre the target?

I do have a range of bst eyepieces and a x2 Barlow. Hopefully these will be enough, took a while to get this set, I don't really wanna start a new set 😬

Ah, I'll stick to my reflector until I'm ready to go bigger then.

Hi, They say aperture is king, it seems quite obvious when looking for fainter objects. They also say focal length is better for double star observing. I have the heritage 130p reflector but was wondering whether or not a skymax 102 would be better for double star observing based on the above calculations? I look forward to hearing peoples thoughts on this. Thanks.

I was taking 30 second exposures last night with the az gti and the heritage 130p ota. The tracking was great with no trailing, but at 9 minutes worth of stacking sharpcap stopped stacking saying it couldn't align? Does this mean the tracking has started to drift off course? Thanks.

I had another go last night, practice makes perfect and all that. I went for 30 second exposures, but after 9 minutes it started ignoring frames saying last xx frames couldn't align. Is this to do with tracking? Also, I saved the raw files but when I loaded them onto sharpcap they were black and white, there was no histogram to play with? I did also take an image of Albireo, just to see if it would show the split and the colours too.

There is alot more to it than just point at a target and hit the stack button! So, the best option would be to start with a lower exposure and gain and run a few stacks. See how it looks and then try adjusting gain and exposure before playing with the histogram? A quick look on google says that my camera doesnt have unity gain, so I guess it's going to be a question of trial and error.

I'll have to save the next attempt using every save option. What is OSC? Do you play with the different colours until you get the desired result? I do have a fair bit of light pollution living in a built up town and having a lamppost close by. EDIT : would you recommend extending the exposure from 20 seconds to 30 seconds and add more stacking as well as lowering the gain?

I've had a look for the fitts files and found the spec info. I have also added the photos for reference. I think the less stacked image come out better, I guess I messed up badly on the second attempt! Stack_16bits_13frames_208s.CameraSettings.txtStack_16bits_13frames_208s.fitsStack_33frames_440s.CameraSettings.txt

Is the fits file the written file that has these setting values inside? I think I still have the file, I'll have a look when I get back home. How do I save the images on sharpcap? When I press save it saves a single image? I need to save the individual images so I can learn how to do it.

@Martin Meredith Does your image have darks? i played around last and i seem to be going backwards. I have to do post processing to see details. I think I did 33 stacks and tried to play with the mid level as well as the black level, but I couldn't bring out any detail? Should a short exposure have a higher gain and a longer exposure have a lower gain? When I processed it, the brighter the image the more detail has come through. The image seems to get brighter on a higher gain, if I remember correctly.

I'm also going to start one target at a time I think. The image of m57 I did a few nights ago was beginners luck I think!

@M40 or anyone using asilive... When you open up the software and turn the camera on, after the first exposure does the image on the screen show stars on a dark background? When I do it, the screen looks like white noise and I can barely see the stars behind it. This does not seem right, I'm sure its the settings but I gave up on it simply because I also have sharpcap. I watched a video with someone using it and showing how simple the userface is, but he started with shining stars on a black background. I would like to use it but don't know where to start?

Thanks Martin, I'm using sharpcap. I haven't really played with the histogram much as I don't really understand yet. The one thing I did do was move the black level up to the start of the peaks. The way you've explained it makes it seem like thats the direction I need to be going in.