alacant

Hi. Ok. Could you describe how you would like the image to look? The stars, the corners, the colours... Cheers

Hi. Yes. No problem. You can have any background shade you like, but you may not want to go for black. You can adjust the background easily in gimp using colours - levels. But don't forget the flat frames or other method for treating the corners first. Unless you choose black of course. HTH

Yes, I think so; they should both fit in the same field. I'm with @geoflewis on this. I think dithering and the sigma thingy stacking would lose all the hot pixels. The more frames, the better is the rejection. At least that's what we find on a cheepo dslr. Cheers

Hi Nice shot. There's also a smaller, more distant cluster which I think fits the fov if you were going to return to have a go at those hot pixels. Cheers

I wonder if indi_webcam supports it? It needs a recent version of Linux -IIRC it cites a minimum of Ubuntu 18.04- but maybe worth a go? Cheers

Hi. Yes. We use an eq6 to take astro images. The -ones we used- teflon spacer washers are thin and you need more than one of them. They then distort and snap. This is an image we took last night. The guiding is usually below unity RMS. But of course, look at the images, not the numbers. It is the the atmosphere which plays the biggest part in, and ultimately decides, the RMS, not the mount;) HTH and good luck.

Hi Following @spillage's description. A plastic container washer on both sides works well and gives just the right clearance. However, any drag is almost always due to the conical bearing at the base of each axis. HTH

Hi Should be OK. You may want to expose a little longer to move the histogram to the right a touch. HTH

Hi Choose your zoom then autofocus on the moon. Tape the lens to stop the focus ring moving. Now switch the lens to manual. That will get you to where the lens thinks is infinity. Unfortunately, CA may mislead it and you'll have only the blue and green in focus leaving red fringes on stars. If you've a good lens you may however be lucky. HTH

Excellent; imaging rather than 'testing'. I still haven't worked out why there is so much of the latter!

Hi Backlash or rotational resistance; the horizonrtal-ish bit at the top- Can you feel any backlash in DEC? Try to rotate the axis with the clutch tightened. If you can, take up the slack until it's minimal. Otherwise, loosen until you can feel it's just free. The other culprit for DEC sticking is the cone bearing at the base of DEC where the cw shaft slides. Cleaning and tightening the collar finger tight only usually solves any sticking. Remember it's a cheap, mass produced mount. If you want to go further, you'll probably have to strip it bare, replace bearings and convert to belt drive. Cheers

What does the ga recommend? That will give an idea of the seeing.

We found that on a geared eq6, a fixed 122s period -without adjustment- had almost immediate effect. But start imaging immediately anyway. If the first few frames aren't as good as the rest -they usually are- then you can always discard them. Cheers

No. It's magic!

We never got vspec to do anything against the pe either. You could try loosening RA until you can feel backlash. That may go some way to lose the spikes. But hey, if your images are ok, I'd leave it. Cheers.

Hi Even better we find is the PPEC RA guide mode in PHD2 instead of hysterisis. It should help you lose the PE and -hopefully- the sawtooth with it. HTH

Hi Excellent shot. I agree with @tooth_dr that it's a bit dark. Here it is within a mm of its life. The nebula is showing a bit. Add more frames and you're onto a winner. Cheers

Hi If the images were OK then leave it. Otherwise... DEC looks as if it could be sticking. Usually it's the cone bearing at the base of DEC where the counterweight shaft fits. Clean and regrease it but don't tighten more than finger loose. Then there's the usual EQ6 periodic error in RA which PHD2's PPEC will all but eliminate. Don't forget to polar align to around 5' of the pole but remember that, IMHO, the most important factor in guiding, we have no control over; the atmosphere. Cheers

Hi Phew. To get started in astro-photography with that telescope and stand a chance of getting results, I think you'd need to imitate one of these. OTOH, I'm almost certain @laser_jock99 may be able to help with alternative ideas. Good to have others on board with big reflectors:) Cheers and good luck.

Hi Yeah. That quite often happens here, especially early on after sunset. Best to start imaging anyway; it seems to take a while to settle and the graph can look awful. After an hour or so seems to be the time by which to gauge how well you're doing. One factor you can't control are the atmospheric conditions and I think that that that plays the biggest part in all guiding. One night you can be great, the next, all over the place. Nothing equipment wise has changed, the seeing however has. On nights with steady sky -and there' aren't many- maybe, but remember to look first at the the sky, then the images. Try to avoid looking at the numbers (or the graph!). Cheers and good luck. EDIT. EQ6 geared? Try the PPEC algorithm for RA with a fixed period of 120.

Thanks. Yes.

Hi. I think we fare better than those further north and it's definitely warmer, but it's not all clear skies. Take last night. Started around 21:00 with good visibility. 2 targets, m50 to warm up and then m96. We were progressively attacked by Saharan dust. I don't think any of this is worth processing! **EDIT: and here's what it looked like from Alicante, around an hour after sunrise. Here's hoping for some rain to clear it and leave everything covered in non-telescope-friendly red mud...

Amazing and so much simpler than a B. mask. I wonder if this is the answer to focusing between the red and blue fringes? Must have a go.

Ok. Remove the t ring and unscrew the part in which you had it inserted. This part is only for visual use if you are going to look through the telescope. It is for inserting an eyepiece. Remove it. next, look back at this post: Attach your camera and insert the assembly into the focuser of your telescope. That's it. HTH

Hi everyone Managed 6 frames before this went behind the mountains to the west, early hours. Never expected anything like even though it did seem exceptionally dark last night. Main problem with camera lenses; the focus... Do tell us how you do it. Takumar 135 + 450d ISO400