orion25

Excellent work! Thanks for sharing your wonderful image! Absolutely love the animation! Reggie

That's great news! I look forward to future reports Reggie

Thanks for the heads-up! Reggie

Thanks. I was pleased to get the colors and the Trapezium. I experimented with different settings on the camera until I found a nice balance between a clear Trapezium and bright, colorful nebulae.

I've been taking one off shots of M42 with my Orion SkyMax 127mm since 2015, first with the classic Nikon D50 and as of 2018 the Nikon D3200. I found that I could get a pretty good image at ISO1600 at 20 seconds. But that is what works well with my scope. I suggest, like others here, to experiment to see what settings work best for your scope. I don't spend much time stacking and like the spontaneity of one-offs, but undoubtedly stacking will add more depth, color and detail. Here is one of my favorite images of M42 from 2019 with minor tweaking of levels in Photoshop, no stacking: Regards, Reggie

I agree with Adam. Nice work! Love the color and texture of the nebula! Reggie

Looks good. What don't you like about it, Anthony?

Good start! Isn't it exciting getting your very own images of the cosmos? I like the more monochrome one, too; I can make out more detail on the nebula. Congratulations on your first nebula; I wish you many more Regards, Reggie

After a couple of weeks of clouds and rain, the sky finally cleared and I had an opportunity to take some new photos of the Orion Nebula for 2020. This time the focus was better as you can more easily make out the Trapezium. Again, I included shots from 2019 and 2018 for comparison: 2020 2019 2018 I think this is a better set. I'm not a big fan of stacking individual photos and enjoy taking one-offs so I can spend more time observing Clear skies! Reggie

Amazing photos, Taman! I don't often stack my images but you really show the benefits of doing so! Beautiful color and detail! Regards, Reggie

I managed to see it through my 127mm Mak-Cass with a variable polarizer to dim the glare of Sirius A. Yes, excellent seeing is a must, as well as high magnification (around 250X plus). I waited until Sirius reached maximum elevation to cancel out any atmospheric effects. I didn't use any tracking and just let the star system drift across the field to make sure I wasn't seeing a ghost image. I read recently that the separation between Rigel A-B is similar to where Sirius A-B is right now. Thanks for the info, Stu! Regards, Reggie

Beautiful Mars, Avani! This autumn promises to be spectacular! Regards, Reggie

Brilliant animation, Tim. I was thinking about going through my old photos of Orion and comparing them to now to see the difference. Regards, Reggie

Thanks! I wish I could have seen the eclipse

Thanks! I wasn't sure if I could get it all in one frame, lol.

Nice work , Ant! Glad you were able to see the eclipse. Couldn't see it here in the Americas, plus it was cloudy, too Regards, Reggie

Clouds took over but I managed to get a cool shot of a refraction ring around the first full moon of the 2020s. Couldn't see the penumbral eclipse from my side of the pond, and I was lucky to get a peek at Luna at all, so here it is: Clear skies! Reggie

Here is shot of the waxing gibbous moon as it crosses the Winter Circle/Hexagon/Sacred Hoop this month. The moon will cross this region again on February 3-5, March 1-6 and March 29 - April 1. Each photo is a composite of two wide-field shots since the winter circle covers such a large swath of celestial real estate! Clear skies! Reggie

Thanks, Michael. This is one of my favorite nebulae to image

I agree. I think the 2020 shot got slightly out of focus. I may try again on the next clear night, but so far I consider the 2019 image the best!

Thanks, Adam. Actually, I was using GCENTRAL exclusively for my astro photos before but decided for the new decade to use my observatory name as a tag instead. Do you have a particular favorite of the images?

Since 2018 I have been taking prime focus astro photos of M42 (Orion Nebula) with my Nikon D3200 and Orion 127 Mak-Cass. Here is the series so far: Orion Nebula 2020 Orion Nebula 2019 Orion Nebula 2018 Cheers! Reggie

Thanks, Pete, and same to you

Thanks, buddy! All the best

I couldn't resist photographing the beautiful elevating Goddess of Love as she looked down over Lake Tobesofkee this Christmas Eve! Seasons Greetings! Reggie