Roy Foreman

It's not really the best time of year for chasing slim lunar crescents, but what the heck I gave it a go. Taken at around 6.15pm, so in broad daylight, I could not see the moon with the naked eye, even when I knew where it was. But with a Pro Planet 642 filter fitted it was visible for imaging, although contrast was very low. This is a three frame mosaic taken with the 16" Reflector - 20% of 2000 frames at 19 fps and 2.5ms integration. Processing was really tough and I didn't think I would be able to produce anything presentable, but here it is. Thanks for looking.

Thank you. I'm hoping for a clearer night where I can take the time to really do it justice. Forgot to mention in the details that I used an IDAS NB1 nebular filter which must cut out some of the light, but at F/3.4 there are still lots of photons coming through !

I was originally enticed by the Sharpstar 150 f/2.8, looks great but I was put off by reports of floppy mirrors and collimation issues. Then I looked at Takahashi Epsilon 160. Guaranteed quality but silly money. So I opted for Skywatcher's new Quattro 150p. I already have the 10" version which performs well, especially with the dedicated F/4 coma corrector. Couldn't find any reviews of the Q 150p, so it was a bit of a leap of faith. The Q150p is typical SW build quality and, like all my other SW scopes, is well put together and has no mechanical or optical issues. It arrived almost perfectly collimated - just a tweak to the secondary required. These are first light results for the benefit of those who are also considering this imaging scope. A bit rough and ready as I only had a one hour window between darkness and clouds rolling in. First off - the Cygnus Wall, using the coma corrector that comes with the scope. This is just 2 x 60 sec at F/3.4 with an ASI 294MC at gain 300. No flats or darks, and no guiding so star images are not brilliant. Second is the Sadr region, using SW's F/4 coma corrector and a full frame D810a DSLR. 5 x 15 sec at ISO 6400 unguided. I'm sure the scope could do better given more subs and autoguiding, but I was pushed for time. Hope these are useful for anyone interested in this scope.

I know these have probably been done to death, but end of July / early August when the nights are not dark and I want some bright easy targets to ease myself back into the new season, I start with these three. Hazy skies and moonlight didn't help, and I need to add more data when time and weather permit. Scope- 16" F/4.5 Reflector Camera - ZWO ASI 6200 MC Pro Filters - UV-IR cut (M11, M57) IDAS Triband (M27) Exposure - 32 x 15s (M11), 35 x 60s (M57, M27) Hope they are of interest and thanks for looking.

Love the colours ! I have a Samyang 135 but have yet to use it. Roll on autumn !

It happens. Stick with it !

Ouch ! Hope your observing eye recovers soon. 20 years ago I got poked in my left eye with a twig and, although it didnt affect my sight, it does get sore sometimes. Nice image !

Nice detail you've captured there.

That's very good considering the low altitude. Well done

Well done with the moon so low and in daylight. From my location it disappeared behind the trees a couple of days ago !

Thank you. Glad you like my images. Even after a lifetime of imaging I'm still learning and these daytime shots are something of a new venture for me ! Keep practising with your imaging and remember, there is a wealth of knowledge here on SGL with plenty of people ready to help if you need it. All you have to do is ask ! Good luck.

Nice colours and contrast. I like it.

Thank you for your comments, glad you like the images. Oh to have a more southerly location. Enjoy those stars while you can ! A few years ago I took a trip to the Sahara Dessert. So many stars, I had difficulty identifying Polaris. And the stars and milky way were all the way down to the horizon undiminished. Made me very sad that I had been missing out on so much. Enjoy your cruise !

Thank you. They are not easy to produce but the responses from people like you who appreciate them make all the effort worthwhile.

With the moon at declination -8, and the telescope tube grazing the base of the observatory shutter door, this will probably be the last lunar imaging session with the 16" Newt for a while ! At this low altitude seeing wasn't great but that didn't stop me from trying. All images taken with the 183MM, PP642 filter and 19fps. 20% of 2000 frames. 6.30 - 7.00pm Hope you enjoy and thanks for looking.

Great detail.

Thank you much appreciated. Processing was a pain as the sky was not entirely dark and I kept getting strange artifacts. Come the darker skies and the Mak 180 will out perform the Newt, but until then .....

A selection of images from yesterday evening around 7.30pm 16" Reflector, 183MM camera, PP642 filter, 19 fps. 50% of 1500 frames. Also some close ups using reduced sensor area and 70 fps, 25% of 1200 frames. Thanks for looking.

Lovely to see in colour. Very nice.

Glad you like it. Thank you for your comments

Nicely done. Great images. Keep up the good work. Yes, I'm getting used to this summertime daylight inaging. No late nights !

I am still experimenting with different camera settings and processing and hope to find the optimum soon. It's certainly great to image the moon in daylight. That PP642 filter is excellent. Hope your shots turn out well. Post them for us to see if they do. I have never tried finding or imaging stars in daytime but I might have a go one day to see how it turns out. Thanks for your comments and glad you like the images. Like you I have another batch from last night to process after work !

Yeah I'd like one of those as well ! Maybe take up radio astronomy, eh ?

A day later and another daytime imaging session. Much the same as yesterday - 16" Reflector, 183MM camera, PP642 filter, 50% of 1200 frames, 4ms integration, 6.30pm. The short summer nights are a pain for us all - more so when you have to be up at 5am for work ! Late nights are out of the question. So with this PP642 filter enabling me to image the moon in full daylight, I can still do my imaging after a fashion. Now, if someone could just come up with a filter to enable me to image DSO's in the daytime .........

We've all been there I'm sure. I certainly have. You head off out for an imaging session knowing you have the wrong setup but you do it anyway. Then wish you hadn't, or at least that you'd taken more care. You are not alone ! Below is the PP642 image stacked at 15%. As expected it is a bit sharper but on close inspection has more noise. Maybe 25% would be a good compromise. Below that is the Ha image. It required more aggressive adjustments to levels and contrast, and more aggressive sharpening. The sky background was significantly brighter than the PP, and the lower light throughput (7nm vs 200nm) required a longer integration time (80ms vs 5ms) I am now looking forward to bagging those ultra thin crescents when they are high in the sky as opposed to skimming the treetops. Only time will tell if it works !