SteveNickolls

4 hours ago, parallaxerr said:

Yes there is Fil, I've just found it and I am re-stacking with frames under a score of 1000 ignored.

Definitely think I'm missing something. After developing and wiping in ST I've got a B&W image. Not sure if it's DSS or ST settings that I need to adjust, will have to play around a bit. ST does offer 3 options on loading a new image that mentions debayering so will look there.

Also, ST wont open the autosaved TIFFs from DSS, but WILL open a TIFF if I save it manually. However, in the latter case the file size is about half?

The size of the file will depend on what you specified in DSS's Stacking Parameters-'Standard', 'mosaic', 'intersection' or 'custom rectangle' will all produce different final FITS file sizes. Standard mode usually produces for me a file around 200Mb, whereas mosaic could be a very large file indeed. Intersection mode will create the smallest size. When I have attempted mosaic ST just hangs, maybe out of my 8Gb system memory limitation.

Regards,
Steve

1 hour ago, parallaxerr said:

Yes there is Fil, I've just found it and I am re-stacking with frames under a score of 1000 ignored.

Definitely think I'm missing something. After developing and wiping in ST I've got a B&W image. Not sure if it's DSS or ST settings that I need to adjust, will have to play around a bit. ST does offer 3 options on loading a new image that mentions debayering so will look there.

Also, ST wont open the autosaved TIFFs from DSS, but WILL open a TIFF if I save it manually. However, in the latter case the file size is about half?

I recall I had a similar issue when I was saving TIFF files not FITS in DSS. Using TIFF files gives a bleached out final image when you process in ST. Only use the autosaved FITS file out of DSS and you should see colour in your final processed image when using ST's! Hope this helps you.

Good luck.

Steve

12 hours ago, Goldigger said:

I've been watching this thread with great interest, some lovely photos here.

I've just bought a Celestron 6 Evo. Would love to take some astrophoto's but don't have a DSLR. What do I need to look for in a DSLR? Don't want to buy the wrong camera...

Hi, I would +1 what happy-kat said. Canon cameras are well used in the astro-imaging community. However 'The Admiral' here has what I would consider a superior Fuji DSLR with a better native red light response and no usual Bayer array. However he has a convoluted process to perform each time he images.

Going back to the Canon DSLR's the articulated 'Live View' screen on the Canon 600D  has proved very helpful when framing images when the telescope is positioned at odd angles. The 700D saw the introduction of a touch sensitive 'Live View' screen and also has a setting allowing a red background as a night view and the more recent 750D has wi-fi control. I can see the usefulness and application of the touchscreen capability for changing settings in the dark, red back ground and the wi-fi ability. I think all of the more recent (and reasonably cheap) Canon's have wi-fi capability. Perhaps go on Jessops site or similar and do a comparison? Astronomiser still sells a range of the new Canon cameras modified to allow a more sensitive hydrogen alpha capture but I recall he has stopped recently doing mods of sent in cameras.

Perhaps a pertinent consideration affecting your choice of equipment will be the option of some 'remote control', whether by wire or wirelessly over proceedings. I'm currently investigating options for controlling my 600D 'at a distance', and while we Alt-Az imagers tend to have to physically set up our gear each session our control of camera/mount will at best be partially manual. However imaging and controlling the Alt-Az mount can be partly remotely done with the definite benefits such as being able to review each light frame as it's taken in Back Yard EOS, or using an suitable android tablet (with DSLR controller) to have a larger 'Live View' screen for focus control than using the 3" one on the camera. I'm still undecided over adding more technology to something that works manually but it's fun finding out. I'm going to see if I can contact Guy-BackYard EOS (BYEOS) to ask when BYEOS will have compatibility with Stellarium and if it will enable Alt-Az mounts to be controlled through BYEOS.

Good luck with your choice of camera.

Cheers,
Steve

That's a very decent first attempt with StarTools indeed. You can download ST and try it for as long as you want but you can't save your images (though you can do screen grabs). 

BTW regarding the wireless intevalometer, I do like the idea of keeping more warm while imaging this winter-brrr :-)

Cheers,
Steve

A good start, very well done. Will be interested to see how both your mount and telescope perform for you. Some tweaks ought to get you results at longer exposure lengths, that's the fun of experimenting of course. :-)

I'm currently looking into controlling my camera at distance so your wireless intervalometer is interesting and I will check up on the Internet later this morning. I take it you find it works very well?

Hope you get some clear, dark sky for another go soon.

Best regards,

Steve

1 hour ago, Filroden said:

That's stunning. You really captured the Ha regions in the arms. I made the same mistake as you. I started imaging when it was still not quite astro-dark and it was also lower in the sky giving a double whammy of background but as the night went on my images also improved. It's so tempting to just start imaging as soon as you're aligned and it looks dark but I guess 30 minutes back inside with a coffee might make the night last longer!

This imaging business is young folk stuff (unfortunately). I guess SWMBO has never actually complained about me coming in during the wee hours so I ought to image later but it is the getting up a few hours later in the morning that really does for me. As the Young Mr Grace used to say on 'Are You Being Served?', "You've all done very well".

Cheers,
Steve

3 hours ago, parallaxerr said:

Scope balance/weighting.

Guys, when seting up for Alt/Az imaging, are you biasing the weight of OTA and camera one way or another? I have read the EQ guys weight towards the East, I'm guessing to keep the mount geartrain loaded in the direction of tracking.

Thus, I assume biasing the weight toward the objective end is preferable as the Alt axis is driving up when pointing East? Would you bias toward the rear when pointing West?

Interesting point, my quick answer would be that it doesn't seem to matter much practically as Alt-Az mounts are quite rugged. I'd always previously tried to balance my equipment (an EQ mount) as told I should but when (ahem) I upgraded to the Synscan Alt-Az and Startravel refractor it was nigh on impossible to balance things as I thought was needed, instead with everything connected the equipment is back heavy. I think this may actually help in adding some inertia into the system resisting slight wobbles and indeed I have been able to get the mount to track very well for over 60 seconds for what is otherwise quite a light weight set up. I recall reading Joe Ashley having thought along a similar line. When I use the camera piggybacked on the OTA I alter the centre of balance yet again but have not noticed any fall off in performance. Perhaps the best thing is to experiment and let us know how you get on?

Cheers,
Steve

28 minutes ago, Filroden said:

I wonder if unchecking that option might make a difference?

I think it may well change this for the better.

Cheers,
Steve

Here's the results of imaging NGC 1499 (California Nebula) over the last two nights. I manged to take 90 images on Monday and 90 last night but heavy dewing resulted in only adding 35 light frames to those of Monday. Still 125 minutes of imaging albeit at quite low altitude range (between 14 and 30 degrees) and local light pollution. The images were taken with my Canon 600D DSLR, piggybacked on the Startravel 102mm refractor and Synscan Alt-Az mount. The images were taken at a FL of 200mm (ISO 800) and together with x50 bias and x50 flat frames were stacked in DSS and subsequently processed with StarTools. No dark frames were used.

Cheers,
Steve

1 hour ago, parallaxerr said:

Hi everyone,

Well, I've just finished reading the contents of this thread and I must say I'm thoroughly impressed with the quality of images here! I never thought it would be possible to creat images like these with the sort of equipment being used, I have obviously been brainwashed by the EQ only crowd

I was pointed in this direction when @happy-kat put me onto @The Admiral after disussing something about my Nexstar SE mount in another thread (I forget exactly what, now). Having spoken to Ian via PM I found myself being gently encouraged to have a go at Alt/Az imaging.

So...this is to say hello and I hope to join the party soon, as I've placed an order for all necessary bits to get my camera on the end of a scope (highlighted blue below)!

My setup will consist of:

• Celestron Nexstar SE 6/8 mount
• William Optics Zenith Star 66SD doublet Apo
• Baader SCT to 2" click-lock
• Baader Multi Purpose Coma Corrector (proven to work rather nicely with the 66SD here - http://www.stark-labs.com/craig/WO66SD/WO66SD.html)
• Nikon T-ring
• Nikon D3200 DSLR

Here's to hopefully contributing my first images before too long and quizzing you all on exactly where I'm going wrong! Looking forward to this little foray into imaging!

Jon

A very warm welcome to you Jon, these are exciting times for imaging using Alt-Az equipment. The different cameras, telescopes and mounts used adds to the melting pot along with the different processing software used.

If you haven't already had a look at the book by Joseph Ashley, "Astro-photography on the Go Using Short Exposures with Light Mounts" it's well worth getting as he explains the advantages and limitations of lightweight mounts very well. Many of us have been able to get 60 seconds or more light frames to produce the images you have seen. As an introduction to imaging I don't think Alt-Az work can be beat and for a number of people it is the difference between reading about imaging and actually getting outside with a portable set up. You will soon know if imaging is for you.

Best Regards,

Steve

42 minutes ago, happy-kat said:

I've been looking back at the image graph with direction, altitude and duration and I though that generally the higher the altitude the shorter the duration and even shorter in N / S but these recent targets have been high and getting 45s and don't seem impacted by focal length either. Yes it is clear but not able to get out side tonight.

Interesting observation, I've been following the guidance charts on avoiding field rotation in Joe Ashley's book as the maths is way beyond me. I guess there's some leeway in the figures and having a shorter FL wide view as from a piggybacked DSLR ought to help out somewhat too. I tend to round my exposure times down, maybe I ought to try increasing them a shade :-)

Sorry to hear you can't get out to image tonight. The weather forecast is looking generally good this week so another opportunity should come your way.

Cheers,
Steve

The gear in operation last night. Look at that night sky, the perfect shade of muddy coffee.

Good luck everyone who is imaging tonight.

Cheers,
Steve

Hi Ken,

Thanks for your update of how things have gone from last night. Really looking forward to seeing your results :-) I guess any new gear is going to throw up new matters to take account of and luckily none of yours are problems that there's not a work around for.

I have been otherwise occupied this morning but did manage to take a quick look at the image coming out of DSS and the California Nebula is definitely in there. Will post ASAP though I'm again busy this afternoon with painting outdoors.

Cheers,
Steve

He, he you have street light problems and I was worried NGC 1499 would be hidden behind a tree :-) Luckily it missed.

Ought to try taking a night shot of my gear when working. Will see what I can do.

Cheers,
Steve

3 minutes ago, Filroden said:

Can't wait to see your results. It's just starting to attain a nice altitude.

Thanks Ken,

I'm hoping to get x90 sixty second light frames tonight and process tomorrow. I trust the M33 imaging is going well? I tried looking for M33 in my binoculars tonight but it's too light polluted here to see it. Only ever saw in the 15x70 bino's when on holiday in Cornwall three years ago.

Cheers,
Steve

Yes I'm imaging NGC 1499 and watching the auroral display in Shetland on the Internet http://www.shetland.org/ Worth a look :-)

Good luck imaging tonight.

Cheers,
Steve

5 hours ago, Filroden said:

Look's like I might have a clear night on Sunday. Any thoughts on which of these might be good targets?

The California Nebula would need to be a two panel mosaic so I think that might be one too many complications for me to attempt so soon with the new camera. Has anyone tried for the nebula/clusters in Auriga?

P.S. I've just found out that you can double click your images when creating your post and reduce their sizes!

These all look good subjects to image Ken, the Flaming Star Nebula will be at 30 degrees Alt around midnight and 70 degrees or so in Az, well past my bedtime but maybe not yours of course. I'll try imaging later in the year. The California Nebula is higher in Alt of course and better placed to the East but a wide field shot and maybe one others will want to capture on Sunday. Thanks for these suggestions.

Cheers,
Steve

37 minutes ago, Nigel G said:

Hmm, somethings gone wrong , might need a new camera ? I'm seeing red but only in frustration. 

Oh my Nige, so sorry to hear that.

Cheers,
Steve

Hi Ken,

I wouldn't be disheartened with what you have achieved, you have learned a lot about your gear and it shows a great deal of promise.

Cheers,

Steve

1 hour ago, Herzy said:

I haven't been able to test out star tools yet because our family is moving houses and everything is packed up. Is it easy to remove halos? The AT72ED gives slight blue halos on bright stars (generally only 3-4 pixels wide) that might annoy me if I was shooting something like the Pleiades with lots of bright stars. Could you go into more detail on how you manage to tame the halos? 

Hi Herzy,

When I have an image with stars with blue/purple halos in StarTools I usually do this after the COLOR module. You need to click on mask and there use the lasso tool to circle all the stars you want to treat. I then take the mask into the FILTER module and select the option for 'fringe killer'. You need to select a good star with a nice purple halo and click a few times on the purple, after several clicks the colour is removed (you can compare using 'before' and 'after'). When you are happy with the result 'keep' the image. I usually then proceed into the LIFE module. There is a manual with all the modules etc. obtainable from here-http://download.startools.org/StarTools Manual V1_3_5 Unofficial.pdf that will go into more detail for you on this and other aspects of the software. As you see from this thread on SGL were discovering new things every day!

Good luck with the house move and with your new telescope and using StarTools.

Best Regards,
Steve

1 minute ago, Nigel G said:

Well filter removed, camera back together,  no screws left or lost, just going to turn it on and see if it works, I'm scared ☺don't want to turn it on!

 

Nige. 

Blimy, Nige you do work quick. You aren't a surgeon by any chance? The big knife looks too large unless you stir your mug of tea with it :-)

Double dare you to turn the camera on!

Cheers,
Steve

Wow Ian,

That is absolutely gorgeous, the colours are brilliant and the image has a glass like quality-very well done. Splendid. Will see if the main monitor shows even better detail (I'm on the tiny Hudl right now).

Cheers,

Steve

17 minutes ago, Herzy said:

I recently bought an AT72ED. It fits in my SLT mount holster and is pretty light so it should do well. I have an EQ mount, but the thing is so heavy and I get fed up with taking it out to a dark site (I have to separate it into many pieces and wrap them all in blankets), so being able to use the alt/az, which is much lighter, will be nice. 

As for CA on the scope, it's not that bad. It's an ED doublet refractor (not fully apochromatic). I would highly recommend this to anyone wanting to get into refractor astrophotography on an altaz mount.

---

Just a short review incase someone reading this thread was thinking about getting a refractor.

Hi Herzy,

Thanks for this post. I sometimes muse over getting a 'better' telescope to replace my achromat 102mm Startravel if just to remove the purple halo around brighter stars in my images. StarTools does a good job of altering the colour so my discontent has not been sufficient to make me move towards a replacement. I will be interested then to see how your 72mm ED doublet performs for you and good look with your future imaging. Alt-Az gear generally has the edge being lighter and more transportable.

Cheers,
Steve

21 minutes ago, Nigel G said:

Steve, that's fabulous I love it. Got to start saving ☺

I'm just about to remove the infared filter in my camera, got clear sky's tonight and it's Friday.  Hope it goes well otherwise I'll be observing. 

Nige. 

Thanks Nige, I wish I had the capability to remove a IR filter from a DSLR, it would worry me what all the left over screws were meant for :-) Good luck with your mod. Hmmm, there's mostly cloud up here but things look promising Sunday night so my fingers will be crossed.

Enjoy imaging tonight.

Cheers,
Steve

42 minutes ago, happy-kat said:

I just want to add that Steve to me that is a super image we shouldn't also lose sight that this is a star travel refractor and the processing has removed any obvious CA, your improvements in processing are leaps and bounds forward I have much to catch up with.

Thanks for your very kind comments. I must in fairness admit that the Heart and Soul Nebulae image was taken with my Canon Camera piggybacked on the Startravel so the CA of the telescope doublet wouldn't have been an issue.

Cheers,
Steve