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Icesheet

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Everything posted by Icesheet

  1. Outstanding! Thank you for making it, and well worth the effort. 👏🏻
  2. The depth the RASA has achieved in this image is amazing. Given it's a significant crop, the level of detail is very good too, but I wonder if you plan to use the TEC140 data you have here? Whilst I appreciate the depth the RASA has achieved I'm more drawn to the level of detail in TEC image,but why compromise when you can have the best of both worlds? Give the people what the want @ollypenrice!
  3. Comet 12p/ Pons Brooks, Andromeda, M33 and some Aurora in Samnanger, western Norway. I used the PlanItPro app to find a location where the comet would be near the horizon to the NW. On the night of 8th March I had clear skies so headed out. As I was capturing my foreground shots some Aurora appeared, which although exciting for my composition, made it difficult to process. Very happy with the final outcome (after lots of revisions!) Final composition is a crop. Canon EOS R and Sigma 40mm Art Sky tracked with Bemro Polaris 62x30s f2 ISO1600 Foreground 1x30s f2 ISO1600 Stack processed in PixInsight and PhotoShop then blended/ merged with foreground shot.
  4. Thanks for the kind words everyone 😊 I do quite like both versions but in hindsight my composition could have been better as M33 was actually caught by accident. My only other annoyance is the trees in the foreground that have caught the nasty orange glow of some nearby street lights. A friend suggested using a radial filter and trying to bring the warmth down. Will give that a go. I think you’ll have more opportunities to capture it @FenlandPaul! Also, I read it may be naked eye visible soon too @Paul M
  5. Ok, so I’ve looked one last time 😆 It’s pushing the resolution of the image but maybe an even more aggressive crop is cleaner and gives more emphasis to the galaxies and comet?
  6. Looking at it again, does cropping in from the right give more balance on the landscape shot?
  7. Here’s a couple of recent images I took of the PonsBrooks comet in western Norway, framed with Andromeda and M33 in the case of the landscape shot. That was nearly not to be as at the point of my composition the comet was washed out by some unexpected Aurora. In the end I couldn’t not attempt a blend of the comet stack and the foreground with Aurora. I think it still looks good? The landscape shot was with an EOS R and Sigma Art 40mm. Sky was tracked with 30s exposures with 30mins total exposure. The foreground was a single 30s exposure. The final image was blended and cropped. The other image was shot with the same EOS R and a Samyang 135. Sky tracked with 15s exposure for a total of 26min. All images were processed in PixInsight and Photoshop
  8. Thanks! Thanks! Hoping to get more before the nights get too light here.
  9. Icesheet

    M51

    Fantastic result and I'm amazed the AM5 is carrying that beast with such results!
  10. First light for my Tak TSA120 with flattener at f7.3 883mm FL. Well, technically it was second as I basically had to throw away all my subs from first light. Probably not the best target for me at 60deg N as it’s pretty low throughout the night and I really noticed that in subs at the lower altitude. Then, issues with guiding and particularly poor seeing on the first night left me with only 3.8hrs stacked out of over 10hrs over the two nights. A little noisy but some got some detail in the galaxies and fairly happy with the outcome considering the integration time. This is a crop and there’s just the slightest hint of the tidal tail but I would probably need the full 10hrs to bring it out.
  11. Managed to integrate the differing exposures. Here is the result. It doesn't look like it's added much but hasn't affected the resolution either it seems.
  12. I recently got first light with a Tak TSA120 with flattener on the Leo Triplet. The first night wasn't the best, initial teething problems with the set up, poor guiding and poor seeing. The second night was better. In the end I stacked ~3hrs data from each night. It wasn't until WBPP spat out two master lights that I realised I had shot 300s sub-exposures the first night and 180s the second. I had a quick look at each stack and it was apparent that there was a huge difference in resolution between the datasets. I'm wondering if there is any value in the data from the first night at all? Could I integrate it to get a little more deeper and higher SNR without losing the detail from the good night? Here's a crop on M66 that shows the difference between the two. I am at the moment trying to work out how to integrate data with two different sub-exposure lengths but in the meantime if anyone could comment it would be appreciated! Both data sets have had AutoSTF-->GraxPert-->SPCC-->BlurXT-->NoiseXT
  13. This is a warning for anyone located outside the EU that may be considering using Astroshop.eu. If you will, or ever have made an international order please read on as you may be due a significant refund. Before I outline my experience I’ll give some background for those that are not familiar with making international orders. Any retailer located in the EU and delivering out of the EU should not collect their respective VAT. Same applies for UK retailers delivering out with the UK. So, using the UK as an example, if you order a product that costs £500 including VAT then an international customer should not pay UK VAT @20% meaning a total of £416.67. You will then likely pay import taxes and VAT in your home country on delivery. The vast majority of companies I have made international orders with do this automatically at checkout or update prices if they detect you are browsing from abroad. To my experience. I had landed on the Astroshop.eu site a few times and finally decided to make an order on a couple of items. I noticed while going through the checkout process that German VAT was not being removed, even when providing a delivery address outside the EU. I delayed making the order and sent an email to their customer service. I received a response within 24hrs advising that I should write in the comment field when ordering that this delivery is out of EU. I would then receive a refund of the German VAT and the customs invoice for delivery would be updated. The day after making the order I received notification that the order had been processed and was being prepared for delivery. I checked the invoice and noticed that German VAT had not been removed. I contacted customer service by phone and they apologised and said they would correct this immediately. I then received an updated invoice which showed no VAT but the total amount was still the same I.e. they had zero’d VAT but just added the equivalent amount to the non VAT total. I contacted them again and they apologised again and this time I received a correct invoice with VAT removed and I was notified that the difference had been refunded to my card. I was assured this was also correct in the customs documentation provided to the shipping company. The shipping process was smooth and I revceived the product within 72hrs (Germany to Norway). However, when I received my import invoice from DHL I noticed that the declared amount included German VAT meaning I had now paid 25% extra Norwegian VAT on that German VAT. Essentially, paying VAT in two countries and then some! Fortunately, in this case that was not a significant amount. I have contacted the company again and I expect I will receive another refund. For me it’s likely to be nothing more than a frustration that will eventually be rectified. What is more worrying is that it seems unlikely this would have been noticed or corrected unless I was aware of the tax rules. With a more significant order this could easily run into a significant over payment. I have no idea why their website and payment system do not automatically correct for this with international orders. I have asked why this is the case. The cynic in me says it’s by design. Whatever the reason if you have made an order please check back and ensure the invoices are correct. If making an order please stay vigilant to it to ensure you don’t overpay! Open to DM’s if anyone needs clarification on this.
  14. Thanks for going to that trouble. Very illustrative and helpful! Clearly, when unscrewed the 76 (along with the FS60) would be difficult to beat for portability but I’m still surprised how compact the FC100 is there.
  15. Thanks. Makes sense that the 100 bests the 76, even with the Q module. Wasn’t sure how much of difference but it seems you both agree it would be worthwhile. I picked up the 2015BCR second hand, so hopefully just a case of an extension tube if reaching focus is an issue.
  16. Apologies for hijacking your thread somewhat @Mumia. Lovely set up you have and one I am looking at in the future. I recently sold my Tak FS-60 with reducer. I had a feeling I might end up regretting it so I kept the Q extender, visual adapters and FT 2015BCR that I never got round to putting on the FS-60. My thinking was I could buy the 76DCU objective in the future and have a 76DCUQ on the ‘cheap’. However, looking enviously at the photo of@Stu scopes, I am struck by how little there seems to be size wise between the 76Q and FC100. I also didn’t know the 2” FT’s were compatible with the FC100. I’m now wondering if it might be worthwhile skipping the 76 altogether and jumping to the FC100. What’s the thoughts on the improvement of the FC100 v 76DCUQ on planetary and lunar? Would I miss much on portability and cool down time between the two?
  17. Yep, and from the image it looks like round stars right to the edge! Also, it looks like it’s fully correcting the 3.76um pixels of the IMX455 (ASI6200) which seems to be the holy grail for widefield refractors at the moment. Wish they used a more appropriate box size for the spot diagrams but to put it into perspective it’s the same scale as the FRA400. Just look at that difference! Not sure how much of that would translate to a final image but you’ve got appreciate the design.
  18. More details have been released now. The VSD70SS in particular looks like a Tak FSQ-85 basher. Wonder if the VSD90 and 70 will push Tak into redesigning their FSQ range. https://www.vixen.co.jp/activity/cpplus2024/vsd70ss/ The SDP65 looks like a big upgrade of the FL55SS too. https://www.vixen.co.jp/activity/cpplus2024/sdp65ss/ Looks like we’re startIng to see highly corrected lenses on wide field scopes. Likely will be a higher premium for it though!
  19. It looks like Vixen are going to release two more scopes following the introduction of the VSD90SS https://www.vixen.co.jp/post/240216k-2/ In Japanese of course but it seems they will announce a VSD70SS and an SDP65SS. Very interesting. The few reviews I’ve read of the 90 are favourable and seem to correct for small pixel cameras to full frame as well as supporting a medium format imaging circle. FSQ106 prices though. Really interesting to see the specs of that two and where they pitch the price.
  20. Ah, ok. Misunderstood you. I thought you meant there were native flat field f4.8 scopes. That TS110 looks interesting though if it corrects as well as it says. No, the reducer on the FRA doesn’t interest me. Although the stars are round, it bloats them even further so I’ll likely get an even softer image. I get this should be less of an issue than longer focal length galaxy type imaging but I see it and it bugs me 😆 So, if I’m staying refractor I would like something that has tighter, sharper stars. I think, I’m just about settled that a fast reflector is what will give me the results I want. Weight is a consideration for sure and I think the RASA is the upper limit. Worst case is two trips out but it’s literally just outside my door so should be fine.
  21. Quite amazing detail given how close the crop is! I suppose this is pre BlurXT too?
  22. Thanks for the informative, detailed reply. I guess my main interests at this focal length are nebulae, both in broadband and with a dual narrowband filter, and the dark dusty nebulae that have become more popular recently. As I write that, it’s obvious I should prioritise signal over everything else. Especially, since I’m rarely collecting more than 4-6 hours on one target. Also, I notice I’m pushing my images too far when processing. The remedy to that is likely more integration time or something that collects signal faster. Interesting comments on the Tak star shapes. I was aware of the reverse lighthouse effect and it’s not something that bothers me in terms of an aberration or artefact (halos are my pet peeve). Hadn’t heard about cats eye bokeh though. Had a look online and see its inherent of the Petzval design. Is that what the new flattener was/is trying to correct? I’m curious to hear of the other refractors that operate at f4.8 that you think are better than the FSQ-85. And those designed like the AP 110? (I’m in that lottery!). I’ve learned that I’ll likely be a OSC man with dual narrowband filters. Tried the mono route and had so many unfinished images. I’ve also learned that weight and complexity of set up hinder me. Had an EQ6R and could never be bothered to take it out. Now have a Rainbow RST and with the Askar FRA400 I’ve never been so productive, albeit I feel I’m lacking something in my images. The comments here are largely pro RASA, or fast reflector of sorts. I think my main worry is that if the set up ends up being a nuisance I’ll give up. However, won’t know until I try. I think I’ll probably just sit on this until later in the year as come April the night will already be short. That gives me a chance to keep an eye on the market for a deal.
  23. You certainty are prolific with it and produce cracking images! It’s not so much primarily imaging for stars. It’s the work involved getting them good enough and if the process would defeat me before I get to that point. I would love to see 6hrs on a range of targets from both scopes with comparable conditions to see what the difference in a final image would be. Maybe I should buy both and test 😂
  24. Not off topic at all! Where are they available? I’m on a waiting list at Kyoei in Japan, where the Tak gear is available quite a bit cheaper than Europe. Since I have to deal with customs wherever I order from it makes sense for me to order from there.
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