Vroobel

Thanks.   I think I'll stay with the 3 minutes at least for a while.

Hi,

I have had the AP v.1 for around two years and like it. Of course, when they announced v.2 I tried the trial version and the first thing I failed with was importing Russell Croman's plugins and even James Ritsons' plugins for astrophotography. Maybe I did something wrong, but I didn't decide to pay for v.2 if v.1 was good enough for retouching which I presently use the AP for. I use PixInsight for stacking, other processing tasks and post-processing which I think many imagers recently prefer.

Excellent! 🤩

It depends on your F ratio, if it's very fast optics than small dust moths aren't visible (aren't sharp), so matching the FoV may work well enough. Retouching (PS, Affinity Photo, Gimp) also may help. Alternatively, you can try something like synthetic flats. 

Quite good image as the first one. 👍

Did you take flat frames? 

Three rigs in action. Actually four, one is capturing this picture (smartphone with tripod, 8s, ISO3200). 😁

Edit. 

Unbelievable, it looks like 4.5h of uninterrupted imaging with quite good seeing tonight. 😲

Usually, I was taking 5 mins subs, but this time I made an experiment and worked with 3 mins subs. Maybe I'm wrong, but as the 6.5/7nm filters allow to pass the unwanted light more than the narrower ones, I figured out that a higher number of shorter frames should improve the SNR. I would be happy if someone wiser than me shares their opinion. 😊

Thank you ☺️

They are Optolong SHO 6.5/7nm (and LRGB for stars). 

Thanks. 😁

Thank you, Goran 😊

I'm going to grab some SII photons too, but have to make a break and image any galaxy for the change. The Fireworks matches my sky and horizon now. 🙂

I love this blue. ☺️

I've used my 2600MC with 10" F/5 Newtonian, 4" F/7 and finally F/5.6 APO, 2" F/4.6 Askar and recently with Sigma 40mm @ F/2.0. As it's easy to calculate, it means oversampling or undersampling, but thanks to a modern software all pictures CAN BE great, it mostly depends on processing and post-processing skills. Good sky and/or good filters may help, but they aren't essential. 

Thank you. It's another image containing a 3D-like gas structure. I like it. ☺️

Crescent Nebula (NGC 6888) - 2024.05.19-07.23 - HOO

Altair WAVE 102EDT APO Triplet, 0.8x reducer (F/5.6), Optolong 2" SHO (+ RGB stars), ASI 2600MM-Pro @ Celestron CGX;
13h of HOO integration time: 75 x 180s Ha, 73 x 180s OIII Bin1, 113 x 180s OIII Bin2; Gain 101, Offset 50, -10°C;
3 x 60 x 30s of RGB stars
NINA, PixInsight, Affinity Photo;
Liverpool, Bortle 9(+).

https://www.astrobin.com/pnmmb9/B/

New posts in this thread have become rare. Two cameras are looking sadly somewhere at the Cygnus through the clouds. 😕

It looks like your optical train is too long. Try to replace something like the filter drawer or the OAG, if you have any guiding scope, with something a few mm shorter, e.g. 15mm M48 spacer. 

From my experience: be careful with cheap spacers from popular shopping platforms, they may stuck and you will have a big problem to unscrew them. 

Edit. 

My advice probably will affect your back focus. 

Hopefully, the last missing thing in my nighttime photography setup: a powered from USB adjustable 240mm long heating band perfectly matching my Tamron 17-35mm. Perseids ahead! 🤩

Waiting for another Arca-Swiss plate, apart from that it's fully operational. 🙂

On 18/07/2024 at 14:55, wookie1965 said:

I have just got one of the these and it's brilliant. 

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/tripods/astro-essentials-2-tripod-leg-grips.html?_gl=1*lrqb1t*_up*MQ..*_ga*MTUwMTk5MzU2LjE3MjEzMTA4Nzg.*_ga_F6VGWQ0MW9*MTcyMTMxMDg3OC4xLjAuMTcyMTMxMDg3OC4wLjAuMA..

Sorry, I couldn't resist. 😁 Just printed using PET-G filament. Will test it when a time-lapse ends. 

That's sad, of course, but cables should be hung safely, they shouldn't pull the socket down, it's also easy to tear the socket in a case of tangling. I don't want to say that it's your case, but I have a lot of cams, all of them are from ZWO and nothing happens to the sockets thanks to proper cable management. 

Good luck anyway. 🤞

I have to admit, I'm impressed. 😲

Thanks for that. I would try with PoE. What lens did you use? 

Hi, 

I think there is misunderstanding. 

It's about a Sigma 40mm F/1.4 Art, the same like my one but equipped with the L mount bayonet. It has the manual focusing ring and allows changing the aperture if you have a dedicated body (we both have them). 

The extension tubes from the link would work as parts donors, the idea is to get female L bayonets from them and join them with an M42x0.75 barrels. At least one is doable, should be 8.5mm long in total and should allow to use the lens with e.g. ASI 533MC Pro. Another idea is related to e.g. ASI 2600MC Pro, which is much more difficult. 🙂

Nice and neat! 🤩

Could you please share a list of components and a website which you based you project on? 

29 minutes ago, wookie1965 said:

I have just got one of the these and it's brilliant. 

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/tripods/astro-essentials-2-tripod-leg-grips.html?_gl=1*lrqb1t*_up*MQ..*_ga*MTUwMTk5MzU2LjE3MjEzMTA4Nzg.*_ga_F6VGWQ0MW9*MTcyMTMxMDg3OC4xLjAuMTcyMTMxMDg3OC4wLjAuMA..

That's clever, I have to print a similar set. 🤔