Dazzyt66

19 minutes ago, paulkerr66 said:

I managed to borrow a proper controller and it works ok, as  said in another reply i suspect the hc didn't work for the previous owner. I’m just trying to get the WiFi dongle, which also came with it, to work with my iPhone but but think there may be too many networks in the neighbourhood.

I wrote this a few years ago now, but may help with you getting it set up...

+1 for the dslr and lenses on the HEQ5 which is what I’m using now and having a great experience with minimal faff 😊

You cant really rely on anything but your eyes. I tend to use at least 3 different weather apps just to get a kind of idea. IMO I've always found Clear Outside to be pretty inaccurate if the weather is 'changeable' (I've had all reds on CO and yet its been perfectly clear outside when I've looked). They all are, after all, a forecast. My advice would be use several to get a general idea of whether its going to be suitable or not (clear, semi clear, not) and then have a look as it gets darker. 

Sorry, I know that doesn't help much but the weather (particularly in the UK) rarely does what anyone expects 🤔

Looks great!! - there is lots of data there - be prepared to reprocess again and again and again and... well, that's my experience anyway! 🤣

Although I quite like this version - redone in ST and tweaked in GIMP...

Using StarTools for the first time after stacking images from my Bortle 7 skies from a few nights ago. I'm amazed how much colour is there but need to work on how I don't over do it though methinks? 90x60s lights with 20 darks iso1600 - best 80%

1 minute ago, FenlandPaul said:

I have to say I sent an email to cheap astrophotography a couple of weeks ago (their web form is broken, so this was the suggested alternative) and I’ve heard nothing (nor have I chased yet). 
 

But hoping that’s a blip. He has an excellent reputation. 

I had my 1100d done by Juan earlier this year. It must be a blip as he got back to me really quickly and turned the camera round in about 4 days

And today I tried StarTools for the first time with the same subs. Which might be a bit TOO colourful...

Thanks all for the replies but I can now do this via Filezilla, which is working brilliantly. Thanks again 😀

12 minutes ago, StuartT said:

interesting that you don't use darks. I wonder what the order of importance of the various types of calibration frames is? i.e. which type are the most important to get?

I just made a judgement - a few people say that darks don’t add as much to an image as would bias and flats especially when shot at ‘optimal’ iso for the DSLR - in my case 1600. But hey, I’m only after average/good rather than ‘magazine quality’. I’ve found flats to be the most beneficial for removing dust etc. As with everything it will come down to personal preference in the end and what you perceive as acceptable.

9 hours ago, astrochumak said:

So I was browsing through the AstroBin and found a ton of stunning pictures taken with Canon 70-200 L lens, which is obviously a marvelous lens by itself (for those wondering: https://www.astrobin.com/search/?q=Canon+70-200&d=i&t=all&date_published_min=2011-11-09&date_published_max=2021-09-25 ) There is a cheaper analog to it, Sigma 70-200 f/2.8, which seems to not be as popular, but quality-wise is said to be +- the same 

Also, I was comparing the photos taken with DSLR + lens to the ones taken with Z61, and I gotta tell you that there's not that big of a difference that I can tell (although it mostly depends on the one who takes the photo)

So what do you think, is it worth to spend extra money on a fancy glass scope when you can buy similar gear, at least specifications-wise, for 60% of the price? 

P.s. Yes, Z61 has more focal length, but there's also Sigma 100-300, which is closer to refractor's FL, but still cheaper

 

 

 

Although relatively new to AP, I'm a definite lens convert. There is plenty of info out there on how to get some decent images with a lens DSLR combination rather than spending considerably more on dedicated AP equipment, here is a great example:

https://astrobackyard.com/budget-astrophotography-lens/

As I've just said in another thread, it really depends on what you want from your images. If you are happy just exploring whats out there to a modest level, then a DSLR and lens combo is hard to beat (IMHO). Having read up on it quite a bit, its also worth trying to stick to prime lenses rather than zooms as there are less optics to contend with (as mentioned above). I'm having the time of my life with just cheapo 50mm, 135mm and 200mm primes - and thats what having a fulfilling hobby is all about isn't it? 😀

8 hours ago, StuartT said:

yes, I'm beginning to wonder if calibration frames are all they're cracked up to be.

I think I might try my next few targets without any and see how I get on

I guess it all depends on what you want from your images. If, like me, you are just interested in getting something nice to look at, rather than winning awards/earning money from, then go for whatever works best for you. Following this thread I've redone some of my most recent images without calibration frames and had a bit of a mixed bag tbh, but I think from now on I'll do both versions to check what gives me best version. I only use bias and flats anyway so its no extra time really to knock up 30 of each after each session. Good thread! 👍

Agree with that - nice one! 

Another +1 for ICE - never had a problem with it

35 minutes ago, astrochumak said:

These are great images, Daz! Whenever it'll be comfortable for you, could you please specify the exposure time and light pollution level for M81 with ST80 and North America with 200mm lens?

Thanks! That means a lot!

All the images were taken from my back garden (Doncaster, UK) which is Bortle 7/8. Right by my back garden is an LED streetlamp and various neighbour security lights that pop on and off during the night, so never really dark at all.

All the images were taken with my Canon 1100d (astro modded) at iso1600. The ST80 subs were done over 3 nights before my camera was modded (around 500x30s in total - probably used the best 85%) using just bias and flats. The M31, after camera mod, was just 2 hours of 60s subs again with bias and flats around 90% useable with the lens wide open at f3.5. NGC7000 was just a few nights ago with 180x60s again 80% used with just bias and flats but with the lens at f5.6. I don't use any kind of LP filters.

Hope that helps 😀

1 minute ago, astrochumak said:

@Dazzyt66 that's good news, thank you! Do you have some examples on AstroBin, maybe? 
 

Heres an example of M81 from my ST80:

And M31 from my 200mm prime with no auto focus:

And also NGC7000 using my auto focuser with the 200mm

Forgive my processing skills as I'm still learning!

Hope that helps.

Daz

+1 for the prime lens suggestions. I'm now only using lenses for AP - and using vintage 135mm and 200mm primes sourced from eBay (M42 fit). I'm finding that they are great for my needs from a Bortle 7 back garden where I do most of my imaging. I used to use my ST80 but get far better results from the lenses. If you look around the images on the forums you'll find examples of loads of different types from cheap to very extravagant!

I remember having some of these when I was a kid! I remember I couldn’t wait until we got a new tea packet!😂 Great find! 👍

As others have said, a tracking mount will give you the opportunity to take longer exposures (and therefore more information).

One thing I found useful when looking at astrophotography was this:

What is the best ISO for your DSLR for astrophotography? | DSLR Astrophotography (dslr-astrophotography.com)

Every camera has its own 'sweet spot' where you get best information v low(er) noise. In my case its 1600iso. Check your camera in the link above.

Hope that helps.

Daz

Just now, JonCarleton said:

Sorry you are having an issue.  Contact me if you have questions.

Not your fault at all. I think I will revisit it at some point as the tips you've provided have already helped - plus its in my nature to find out how to get it to work 😊

Well, I'm giving up on the Waveshare driver (again). It still crashes on startup (which is weird cos it didn't do that before). At some point I may do a full reinstall and read through everything but for now, Ive got a working focuser and thats good enough for me... 😀

3 minutes ago, JonCarleton said:

Gad!  Sorry for all the edits.  I apparently have lost any typing skills I once had.

😂 I feel ya! Same here. So, I've just tried the Waveshare driver again and whilst I can now select it from the dropdown I get a 'driver has crashed' error - I'm just rebooting the Pi to see if that fixes it. I did read through A LOT of the thread on the indi forum before I started to lose the will to live! 😂 

2 minutes ago, JonCarleton said:

I just looked at my notes from back then.  Another issue with that driver is the need for the stepper delay to be set at least at 50 us.  Any less and it won't turn.  

I definitely going to give it a try again then.

And then I might have to create a 'dummies guide' for others as reading through some of the install/build stuff needed a degree in engineering to understand - and I actually DO have a degree in engineering and still didn't always understand! 😂

13 minutes ago, JonCarleton said:

I'm glad the Astroberry Focus Driver works for you, that's interesting.  I use the indi_wmh_focuser with good success on both my scopes.  The trick is to download it from github and compile per the instructions there, but the compile puts it in the wrong place on your machine.  It installs the executable in /usr/local/bin instead of /usr/bin, where the rest of the indi drivers live.  The easy solution is to just put a symbolic link to the compiled program:

sudo ln -s /usr/local/bin/indi_wmh_focuser /usr/bin/indi_wmh_focuser

If that isn't the issue, get back in touch with me and I can help you sort it out.

You can get away with running the Pi from the  WaveShare 12V HAT port =if= it is a Pi3.  It will boot a Pi4, but you'll get perpetual low-voltage alerts and it can fail on occasion.  I run my scopes with Pi4 8G boards, and it just won't work.  The USB ports are underpowered to start with and cameras will fail if I don't provide solid 3 amp power to the main power port.  I seem to remember when I was sorting the power issues out that I had to turn off the HAT "supply power to Pi" switch as well to get things to stabilize.

Hey Jon this is interesting - the install location was indeed wrong which I figured may have been causing me the issues I had - I may revisit it now that I know its all working OK - and I'll try the symbolic link.

I'm using a 4gb Pi4 - I haven't had any power issues yet so I'll keep that in mind. I am only using my Canon 1100D and the mount from the Pi and I dont believe either need much power in that respect? If needed though I assume all I would need to do is turn the Pi power off on the HAT and then just power the pi as usual (as well as the HAT at 12v obvs)?

I know little to nothing about the Pi, although I am pretty computer savvy, so everything is a learning curve for me in that respect.

Cheers

Daz

1 minute ago, fozzybear said:

just for your info there is an indi driver for the waveshare hat if you want to have a look at albeit you have yours working with @RadekK astroberry focus driver, If not already seen.

https://indilib.org/forum/focusers-filter-wheels/6038-indi-focuser-driver-for-waveshare-stepper-motor-hat-for-raspberry-pi.html?start=0

Great job done by the way

Andy

Thanks Andy. This was indeed the driver I started with - I just couldn't get it to work with my stepper. I do think that was probably me though as I learned a lot as I went along. The main thing I couldn't do with it was to see it in the dropdown unless I used the indi web server (which I guess is because the driver is not in the right directory for Ekos to see it). The Astroberry driver however was already there and is working great. I am really pleased with how its turned out and how its working! 😀