WestCoastCannuck

Fantastic BIG flyover! I like the more saturated one best myself. Some tremendous areas of view packed in here all over. A lovely high rez mosaic. 😎

Nice work! (and a lot of it!)

Lots of work here! Nicely done!

The weather is continuing to confound me. A little before dark there were misty holes in the cloud cover..... was hoping to manage a two piece mosaic - but about 25% into the first panel was completely socked in by the clouds. Sky was a bit brighter than I would have liked and the "whitish sky" played hell with contrast. This was my first try with my recently purchased Antares 1.5X Barlow, on my also "new to me" Skywatcher 120ED. Really need an extension! lol It works fine as is though, I have the scope prebalanced - let the mount do its thing THEN put the scope on. Happy with results given shooting conditions. Can hardly wait for decent sky with no clouds! (socked in again as I write this in AM) Also tried a new external SSD that seems really good. Samsung T5 500gb. Copied over 100GB of data from my cheapo HP laptop at 280mb/s steady on the laptop's USB3.0 connection. Happy with THAT! Been a bottle neck for me in past. Its so fast, next time I will attempt to run Firecapture straight from the external. I doubt it will run well, but worth a try! Firecapture, AS!3, IMPPG and LR6 Full file uploaded. Very best regards Mike

Lovely work as always!

Thanks much for this Wouter! I do a similar process to you though I do some of your last step, in the third (unsharp mask, done in the same program as deconvolution, after). I use AS!3, and then Astra Image or sometimes IMPPG. My final touches I do in Lightroom. I have thought before that Photoshop might do better given what I have seen, and now I am convinced. I cannot make my file that looks like your third.... look like your last. After many, many years as a digital photographer you would think I would know how to use PS, but I don't. Perhaps, this post of yours may finally convince me to learn the beast. (I know nothing of levels and curves.... and "high pass" filters!!) Again, thanks much!! Clear Skies!! Mike

Seeing was crappy... and shot through wispy clouds, but still OK for the 4 inch refractor! Reduced in size to 2048 pixels (61% original) for a more pleasing image. For purists here is the full rez file: https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-k4DQk9j/0/e3c960e9/O/i-k4DQk9j.jpg Thanks for checking it out! I am going crazy waiting for clear windows.... wettest winter ever!! I JUST managed one quick clip last night, and the clouds rolled in. The above shot though light clouds. Back to rain again all weekend.

Lots of work!! Nicely done. My seeing last night could just barely support 4 inches aperture. lol

Nicely done with great processing!

You are very welcome for the settings! And thank you!! I have also used the more powerful "deconvolution" settings and I think that perhaps after lots of trial and error I surpassed my faster work with the "simple" menu a couple times, but now I just stick with the "simple". The 610nm helps for larger aperture for sure - I just put it on for this shot because my seeing can usually benefit. It is possible, given the resolution that I achieved, that I COST myself resolution using the filter - it reduces angular resolution, but steadies seeing. If the seeing did not require steadying, then I should have tried without, or even tried a green filter which I believe INCREASES angular resolution..... at the cost of seeing steadiness. I also have an IR filter... a ZWO 850um. It REALLY cuts the light though requiring a lot of gain, and as of yet I have not had much opportunity to play with it. I would only ever try it on my C8 and don't have any results yet (given the previously mentioned DISMAL winter) Always learning!! Best regards Mike

First off... thanks to ALL for the nice comments. I am so happy with these first results and optimistic I have found an aperture that my seeing will generally support - with the bigger guns to bring into play when the seeing is above the average here. @CraigT82 I love the 183, though I confess it has not been quite the beast I was hoping. For Hi Rez needing lucky imaging the full size output for my system is just not fast enough. On my HOME computer, I get about 15 frames per second on tests. In warmer weather in actual use connected to my slower laptop (USB3 + SSD) I get about 10fps. For my work above I got 6fps. That is fine when the seeing is good and I can use a large proportion of the frames. By reducing the frame size quite a bit it will do as well as any good smaller cam - 150fps or so I think? I forget now. Its been a while... . I quite love Astra Image. It really is a beast!! I have been using it for a few years now, and frankly am no expert and have just learned what little I know on trial and error. It has vastly more capability than I have. LOL I have found a few ways and settings I generally use depending on the quality of the data. I redid my stack and recorded my settings to share - this was a very good stack of data needing little to bring out the goods. Here is my redone image now done completely with Astra Image (including contrast and lights and darks work) - I used Lightroom only to add the watermark and crop out the extra dark sky. My deconvolution before and after screen shots are included after my re-done image. Very best regards!! Mike

Wow! Lovely work! Totally enjoyed having a close look at the details you captured. Best regards Mike

Been a dismal winter here in Victoria, BC. I picked up a 100ED two MONTHS ago.... and got my first look and images through it last night. Its a keeper... SO happy with it. Seeing was lousy with my C8 (though may have not acclimated long enough... it was COLD! ) .... but just FINE with the 100. Full file uploaded. Please check full view! Looks kind of MEH at cropped size. lol Very best regards! Its been a while! Skywatcher 100ED, ZWO ASI183MM, Baader 610nm long pass, iOptron AZ Mount Pro Firecapture, AS!3, Astra Image and LR6

Absolutely fantastic work Marty!! Gods I love your work. :) Mike

Stunning.

Here is my lunar imaging set-up - just in my driveway... I am finding it hard to persuade myself to go to better places for my imaging since I bought all this stuff - though I deliberately made choices for portability. I know my driveway is not the best place but its so much easier on my limited time budget! Been a while since I have been able to shoot - moon will be low, but a convenient time for me the next few days - hoping I can at least get out with one of my lenses (I have adapters to fit my ZWO ASI183MM camera), I doubt the C8 will be worth setting up and my 6 inch Newt you can see in background is out of collimation. (I have given up for now on getting that sorted without having someone that actually knows what they are doing right next to me. haha 😏 ) Cheers all Mike

Thanks so much for the encouragement! I hope I don't have to wait too long for another chance!

Seeing 4/10 + shooting over lots of heat emitting houses unfortunately. Still, I am happy. Had an hour out in my driveway this morning and while my C8 was cooling down I shot a series with my 400mm camera lens plus a 2X TC. (ZWO ASI183MM camera) This is a stack of the best 250 of 1700. Full file uploaded. PIPP, AS!3, IMPPG and LR6. Seeing was wildly changing, so the mosaic is not a great example... but I am still thrilled I managed to make this mosaic work at all. 5 panels that are each the best 300 of 1700 frames. C8, iOptron AZ Mount Pro, ZWO ASI183MM. Firecapture, PIPP, AS!3, ICE, Astra Image and LR6. There are some soft spots in image, so reduced to 2/3 of full size. These next three are 100% files that I thought came out pretty good. The first two are crops from the last shot, which is the bottom section of mosaic reworked and shared at full size. Two panels. Thanks much for looking! C and C MOST welcome and appreciated. Clear Skies!! Mike

Well... an update. I bought the iOptron AZ Mount Pro, with the 2 inch tripod. So far, happy with purchase..... though skies have NOT cooperated. And being a lunar addict, the angles and times to shoot just have not worked out when it was more or less clear. Having pretty much blown the budget on the mount and the ZWO ASI 183MM camera I still managed to scrape some pennies for two great used deals. A 6 inch/F5 Newt, and just yesterday I took delivery of an older C8 (Celestar 1997ish). Just have a few odds and ends on my wish list now, but they can wait. I am pretty much set for Sept 20-23 when moons will be nice high partials and I am more or less off work! (please co-operate Mother Nature) I did manage what might have been a decent night (although it did NOT seems so while shooting) with my 300/2.8 lens (plus Kenko 3X TC) ..... but I blew all the highlights - a learning curve. I adjusted exposure BEFORE getting focused and did not notice that they blew up as I was zoomed in on the terminator and was not watching the histogram. Would have been a lovely full disc stack. Here is what I saved (cropped) I can hardly wait to look and see and image on a good night with the scopes! This is a stack of about 160 best of 1600 files from ZWO ASI183MM. With iOptron mount. AS!3 and IMPPG.

Wow!! Thank you so much for all the information! I will SO look at these scopes carefully when getting my first of my own - and will see what my RASC has that I can borrow. Yes, scope I end up getting will be mostly used for lunar imaging .... and viewing with my kids hopefully. I am pretty excited to get out there! Now just have to order the last bits... Very best regards Mike Thanks! That does help.... I am already over budget, and would also need a battery solution in addition to the items you listed. Nope.... all in, I am now pretty much decided on the iOptron. Thanks so much everyone!! Very best regards Mike

And a question I really hope to have answered is this... Is the IOptron as fast and easy to set-up as the Evolution for lunar imaging? (seems like it?) Is the now 3rd option, the AZ-EQ5 as easy? Minutes matter to me - if I find it takes too long and I am doing LESS imaging sessions because of it, then having a better mount is kind of pointless. At moment, still reluctantly leaning towards IOptron - a bit more than I hoped to spend but possibly best compromise IF it is as fast to set-up as Evolution.

Thanks so much for input thus far!! 😎 Budget pretty stretched.... but I might be able to manage the AZEQ5 if I am convinced I need it. Might have to sell another kidney.. errr LENS. haha It is true, I may very well on occasion want to try for a hi rez mosaic and I totally get the issue of field rotation when taking so many panels..... but you mentioned the size of the sensor and I had thought about that at least a bit in my choice - the sensor I have ordered is a 1 inch so I would hope I could still do big ones with either of my first two choices? I doubt I will ever have bigger than an 8 inch SCT. Possibly a 9.25....... but I doubt it. It is quite likely I will be happy with a 6 - though I will borrow bigger and play a bit. As I understand it I could do a moon in four panels with the 6inch F/10 SCT at prime and my 20mp 1inch sensor. Thanks so much again! Mike

Hey all. Been a while since I have shared any images. This is my first "advice" post. I have been happily doing full disc shooting with my regular camera gear - seriously love it. I have pushed the limits of what I can do and am ready for more serious gear. I have on order a ZWO ASI183MM camera. I don't own a scope yet - I plan on imaging with my current lenses still for now. (adapters sourced and one ordered already) Now... some context. My interest at present, and likely always, is Lunar imaging. Maybe some planetary one day if I have the aperture. Would be nice to LOOK at some DSO at some point, but I don't foresee wanting to image - I just don't have the time for one thing. I NEED a fast easy set-up. More than hlaf of my sessions are very time constrained - I have a busy family and work life and sometimes I need to be done in less than an hour - I currently aim for 30 minutes when skipping out from work or doing an after work session on the way home at midnight. (Gun and Run) I want to have either both my lens set-ups (300/2.8 and 400/4.5) or one lens setup and a scope on the mount at same time. After taking up TONS of much more knowledgeable friends' time recently I have come down to these two options (I will not rule out others, but I will admit to being pretty overwhelmed with the whole thing at this point.) I live in Canada so prices are CDN. Option one (more mount than I need?) iOptron AZ Mount Pro GoTo Alt-Az Mount with Tripod ($2028 CDN all in shipped from B and H) or Option 2 Celestron NEXSTAR EVOLUTION 6 ($1880 CDN all in from a Canadian source) Cheaper.... and with this I get a 6 inch scope. I will add to this, that I can and plan to borrow scopes from my local RASC where I am a member. They have several apparently. Thoughts??? Much Thanks in advance Mike Oh... here is a recent fave with my old kit. (dslr now sold) Sony A77ii + Minolta 400/4.5 + 3X TC + 1.4X TC. Lots of single shots, lots of stacking, lots of processing. lol Two part mosaic.