Stuf1978

Well the thread has certainly prompted some discussion on the merits of astrophotography as a whole but I think we can all agree when it all comes together there's nothing more rewarding. There's opinions going both ways so it hasn't really helped my dilemma 😂 I guess I should really see what this winter brings and take it from there unless I have an overnight epiphany 😂

There's some great responses here chaps, it's all greatly appreciated. I've never know a hobby that's so equally rewarding and frustrating in equal measures. As others have mentioned this year has been particularly awful which hasn't helped with my mojo in the slightest.

Love it 👍 That's really good going. I'd consider a good 6-8 hours per night on a single target a success so managing 194 for the year is a fairly healthy number. Kudos 👍

Mark that really is a great post, thank you. I still am passionate about it and still find it incredible that we can image what we do in our own back gardens with relatively modest equipment and I knew full well the weather was crap when buying all the gear but seeing it sitting there not being used is disheartening. However, maybe I do need to be more relaxed about it and learn to play the long game. Family life has taken over in the last couple of years which has lead to guilt in missing out on the occasional clear night.... but do you know what, it doesn't really matter. If I miss out on shooting something one year it's not like it won't be coming back round the year after 😄

I don't want to throw more money at the problem if I'm honest. This year has been woeful. Unfortunately I don't have the space for an observatory so setting up and dismantling is a necessity.

Yeah doesn't take too long. Maybe 45 minutes as everything needs to be set up from scratch everytime. Set up time doesn't really concern me when I only get 4 imaging sessions in a year 😂

Thanks Steve, good to hear the interest is starting to return. Maybe I should look at alternatives, remote imaging could be one solution to plug those cloudy gaps as I still do enjoy the processing side of it 😄

Yeah I've found that over the last couple of years too. Oct to Feb seem to be ok(ish) but the rest of the year is a write off

I can count on one hand the number of imaging sessions I've had this year and non at all in the last 6 months. It's either constantly cloudy or other things getting in the way (which isn't anything to do with geography) but, it's got to the point where I'm considering selling up as I'm sitting on several thousands of pounds worth of equipment that barely gets used. It would be fine if you could guarantee several clear on the trot on a regular basis but this just never happens and I guess I'm becoming a little disillusioned with it all. Does anyone else ever get like this and how have you managed to snap out of it? Or has anyone sold up their gear and regretted it or conversely found selling up has liberated them from the need to not waste a clear night? Guess I'm just venting my thoughts but would like to know what others think. Thanks Stu

Stunning, not an easy target at all

Brilliant work, looks great

Thanks 😁

Thank you, really appreciated 👍

Shot over the course of last week from my bortle 8 garden, combining 14.5 hours of narrowband data with 1.5 hours of broadband data for the stars. WO Redcat, HEQ5 Pro, ZWO ASI294MC Pro, Optolong L-eXtreme and UV/IR cut Critique welcome :)

That is exactly what I found, I had the basic structure at 5 hours with OSC but I had to really push the data and it looked awful. I reckon I'd need to gather 20 plus hours of OSC data from my location to get a presentable image which I just wasn't prepared to do. Tough target for sure