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Marky1973

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  1. Marky1973

    cloud...cloud...cloud...cloud...cloud...cloud...cloud...cloud...cloud...cloud...rain...cloud...cloud...cloud...cloud....cloud...cloud...chocolate...cloud...cloud...cloud...cloud...cloud

    1. Show previous comments  1 more
    2. Marky1973

      Marky1973

      So do ! - current forecast suggests two hours clear on Saturday night bewenn 8 and 10!!! and then Sunday morning at 5:00am....11 minutes before sunrise!!! :mad:

       

      :icon_biggrin::icon_biggrin:

    3. Uranium235

      Uranium235

      spam & chips, spam & egg, spam, spam, spam, spam..... :D

    4. Marky1973

      Marky1973

      Baked beans are off!

  2. Marky1973

    I may be struggling to get any decent planetary images from my C9.25 but, it has to be said, the quality of the observing on the moon is, literally, out of this world....

  3. Marky1973
    Just wanted to note some great service from Juan at Cheapastrophotography. I bought a modded EOS 100D from him a while back and recently sold it on via SGL. There were a few issues with the camera that were explained in the advert, but which the buyer needed some help with. We contacted Juan for some information regarding the faults and he helped identify the potentials issues and offered solutions that went above and beyond the call of usual customer services. If I am ever in the market for a modded DSLR in the future, Juan will be first choice without at doubt.
  4. Marky1973
    Just another thumbs up for the usual excellent service from FLO. Ordered a C9.25 yesterday morning and it is currently sat at home waiting to be ogled over. As ever, the absolute best price and service, and Steve has been incredibly helpful with info and communication...it won't be the last time I place an order! Already looking at accessories!
  5. Marky1973

    Just received this photo by text along with the "What the hell have you bought now?" question. :icon_biggrin: Pity I am not going to be home from work until 7 tonight.... just hope opening the box doesn't negate the potentially clear night we have forecast tomorrow!

    IMG-20170222-WA0003.jpg

    1. Ant

      Ant

      Might negate the possibility of your dinner not being in the dog :) Enjoy! 

       

    2. Marky1973

      Marky1973

      I was hoping to eat BEFORE sitting down to open the box..... :-)

    3. bottletopburly

      bottletopburly

      lols woops

       

  6. Marky1973

    C9.25 OTA ordered....now to work out how to explain it when it turns up..... Thanks FLO! :-)

    1. Knighty2112

      Knighty2112

      You could say you are actually saving money with the discount you would have got on it off FLO at the moment, so that should soften the blow a little! Fingers crossed anyway! ;) 

    2. Marky1973

      Marky1973

      That's my current plan.... :-) "Well, look it WAS this price... but there is a sale on....." she loves a bargain!

  7. Marky1973

    First clear night since I got my camera back and, yep, its a full moon! :-)

  8. Marky1973
    Just a quick post to thank FLO and ATIK for sorting out my ATIK 414EX that I was having trouble with. Sent off and purged of any moisture and re-sealed by ATIK and all facilitated by FLO, so big thank-yous to Vince and Steve - great service as ever. I mean, I was slightly disappointed they didn't say it was beyond help but, unfortunately, they were only able to replace it was an Atik One, but you can't have everything I guess.
  9. Marky1973

    Well, first night out with CCD since May... 4 hours with nothing to show for it other than everything that could go wrong....going wrong...still, at least I know everything works after the summer lull... here's to many long dark nights!

  10. Marky1973

    First decent clear night in ages.... Hello Moon! Guess I'll be imaging you tonight then.... :-)

    1. Uranium235

      Uranium235

      Whats wrong with ya man?! Get some Ha shades on and do some NB :D

       

    2. Marky1973

      Marky1973

      I'll need to sell a child to pay for the filters! Have an IDAS P2  LPF on the way though so will be out again soon! Not much time tonight in all honesty, so a quick play while I check stuff still works! :-) Although there is some annoying wispy cloud around....

  11. Marky1973
    If there had been something to stare at I would have been there - took the day off work specially... but the Sun made an appearance around 10am and then wasn't seen again! Still, gave me the chance to do some electrical work around the house and replace some bits and pieces that haven't been working for months!
  12. Marky1973
    Didn't see a sausage.... or Mercury... or the flippin' Sun to be honest, what a miserable day. Hey ho... maybe next time... :-)
  13. Marky1973

    Didn't want to see Mercury anyway.... 

  14. Marky1973

    Note to self - next time I'm imaging the BLUE Channel....remember to change the filter... it was going so well....  :-)

    1. gnomus

      gnomus

      You should have got an electric wheel instead of that manual one .... Cheapskate!  :icon_jokercolor:

    2. Marky1973

      Marky1973

      Yeah, it's your fault for tempting me with it by putting it up for sale! :-)

       

  15. Marky1973

    Guiding Calibration almost done.... ssssshhhhhh......

    1. Show previous comments  11 more
    2. Marky1973

      Marky1973

      okay, we're up and running again.....

    3. Uranium235

      Uranium235

      Best of luck! Im going to give mine two more 900s subs then im off to bed, gotta try and get 6 hours sleep if poss.

    4. Marky1973

      Marky1973

      Yeah and you! I'm nearly finished  - hopefully in bed by 2!

  16. Marky1973

    The big problem with ordering new toys is the reminder of just how impatient I am! :-)

  17. Marky1973
    I have only used FLO for fairly low-cost orders in the past as I have often been lucky enough to source the more expensive items elsewhere. However, this time around, I didn't think I was going to be able to find a "cheap" ATIK camera, so entered into an email discussion with Martin over the last couple of days asking all-sorts of annoying questions about Cameras and Filters etc. Martin has been the guy that I have pestered on many occasions before, even when I ended up buying elsewhere. Always found the service to be excellent and the advice very helpful. I have just pulled the trigger on a 414EX after chatting with Martin so will be looking forward to that turning up next week. Just thought I would mention the great service (as usual) and the speed of reply from Martin. I know people are often quick to complain about the speed of response from online retailers, but FLO were back with answers within minutes, so there was no hanging around at all. Nicely done and helped me make my decision. Now all I have to do is figure out how to use the thing..... :-)
  18. Marky1973
    Not even light can escape.....
  19. Marky1973

    OSC/MONO....? OSC/MONO....? OSC/MONO....? OSC/MONO....? OSC/MONO....? OSC/MONO....? OSC/MONO....? OSC/MONO....? OSC/MONO....? OSC/MONO....? OSC/MONO....? OSC/MONO....? OSC/MONO....? OSC/MONO....?

    Aaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrgggggggggghhhhhhhhh!

    1. Show previous comments  16 more
    2. Marky1973

      Marky1973

      Hi Rob

      Well, I pulled it - 414EX and power supply coming from FLO, scored a manual (yes, I know) filter wheel from Steve on the forum and sourced LRGB Baader filters from Astro Buy and Sell. That will be enough to get me going and saved me a few quid that I will keep aside to get an IDAS LP filter/Ha filter in the next month or so, once I know what I am doing with the kit.

      Thanks again for all your help - I may not have gone with your exact advice, but it has been very helpful in knowing where I am heading!

      Clear Skies!

      Cheers

      Mark

       

    3. Uranium235

      Uranium235

      Sounds like a plan to me! Im just wondering why you chose an additional PSU - and chose not to run it off a bench supply? (all my stuff is powered by one big phat PSU).

      As long as you get the Ha by May/June you wont miss much. But Cygnus should be your first stop when you do get one, its an easy place to get lost in for a few months. But for your first hit, M13 is a good choice - it will give you a chance to work on your star handling & focus, and a chance to practice layer masking (for the core).

    4. Marky1973

      Marky1973

      Hi Rob

      Do you mean like the one's Maplin do - or on the FLO site (Although that is not available at the moment)? Power is one of the things next on my list but, again, something I need to look into before I start trying various options. With your bench supply, can you connect several things to one unit- the ones I have seen only have one pair of binding posts. BUt, presuming you have enough AMPs I guess you can run several items if you can connect them all.

      Yeah, hope to get Ha sorted in the next month or two, and was looking at M13 as a possible target to cut my teeth on yesterday when playing around with FOV calculators... so at least I am on the right wavelength with something.

      How do you chose your targets? Do you have a "guide" or is it just years of experience, looking up and getting used to the night sky?

      Cheers

      Mark

  20. Marky1973
    Just catching up with this thread and that is an amazing image Rob....
  21. Marky1973
    Just wanted to post a quick note about my experiences with Juan at Cheap Astrophotography. I've been wanting to get a better camera for a while and decided I would go with a modified DSLR as I am still learning the ropes, especially with processing, and would likely put myself off completely if I tried jumping up to full-blown CCD imaging. I spent several days looking at Juan's site, trying to decide between a secondhand 1000D, or the secondhand 450D...although there were also refurbished and new 100D/600D models that I could have pushed myself to. Essentially, I couldn't decide. I emailed Juan to ask about the differences between the 100D and 600D and received some great advice and suggestions on what to buy. BUT, Juan also offered me a 100D that he had been using at an even greater bargain price than the ones on his site. It was fully modded but, as I was intending to use for purely astro, he kindly offered to restore the camera to normal astro modding and included that in the price. Juan even did all this while he was away in Spain and even offered to post from Spain if I wasn't able to wait... but I was able and it arrived today. Complete with battery,charger (plus UK adapter), strap, USB lead, instructions and software - he even chucked in an 8gb Sandisk Memory Card. The shutter count was very low at just under 250 and the condition of the camera was as new. I have to say I was shocked at how pristine it was. I am probably harping on, but I really can't fault Juan's service and would have absolutely no qualms about using him again if I felt the need to upgrade - nor to recommend him to others looking for an astro camera. Emails/communication throughout the transaction was fantastic - great stuff!
  22. Marky1973
    Ah temptation gone... in the immortal word of Shaggy, "It wasn't me..." - someone got a nice bargain though.
  23. Marky1973
    sssssh.... you'll convince me if you're not careful....
  24. Marky1973
    I'm not affiliated with them, but Astroboot has one for £110 at the moment - full 12 months warranty.....
  25. Marky1973
    Hi Julian, D4N has sorted you there, but I just thought I would add that I have just found that option myself and find that selecting the rectangle allows me to stack an area of interest pretty quickly even with x2 Drizzle applied - whether that does any good, I have no idea! But it is really handy with "small" galaxies on a large sensor as you can focus in on the particular area you are interested in.
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