Doberamus

Those are great recommendations, thanks!

A couple of questions about choosing targets: Is there any handy rule of thumb, or guide, about how long you should image a given nebula for, to start getting a decent image? And, similarly, is there anywhere you might find a list of "gettable" targets for a given night? Thanks!

Yes, the guide camera is an Altair 290c so that might be the issue. I didn't get a chance to try many other permutations...

Hmm. Tried bringing the guidecam through the USB hub on the imaging camera but Astrophotography tool would only recognise one or the other. This may need more working out...

Ah that's good to hear. So basically camera info IN through one USB port, and then mount guiding info out through the other... Will give that a go later. Thanks!

This might be a really simple question.... I just purchased my first "proper" CMOS camera, after using a DSLR for the last while, but I hit a snag while setting up the cabling. I have been using a Guide cam with PHD2 and then sending the pulse instructions to the mount, which was working fine. (I couldn't get the ST4 to work).That's both of my USB ports on my PC used though. Now I need another USB port for the new Camera (an Altair 269C). so, do I just buy a USB 3.0 hub and plug the 2 cables for the guide set-up into that, and then into one USB port on the PC, and leave the camera in the other USB port; Or, can I connect some of this "through" the Usb ports on the back of the 269C? (i.e. connect either the mount, or the guide cam, to those Usb ports on the 269c and then through the USB 3.0 already connecting the 269 to the PC) Am I missing something obvious here? Thanks! D

OA does support the camera, but doesn't have colour balance and, again, when I try to view the frames in GIMP, on the Mac, they are monochrome and upside down. Does anybody out there have a workflow for using an Altair Camera to APP?

I have not! Nor Sharpcap, yet. Will look into it. I've been using Macs for years so I find PCs a pain to use, but you need to for this hobby, I have learnt... It does mean I have no idea where to find anything on a PC....

Have tried to use an Altair GPCAM290c in the past and found the interface so exasperating that I kept racing back to my DSLR, and kept it for the Guidescope instead. But the DSlr is a bit "wide-view" with my F8 refractor for galaxies, so I'm going to brave Altair capture again... So, for those who have mastered this: I have set the file to RAW and saving as FITS, but, when saved, in the folder the file-type says GIMP (presumably since this is the associated program). I presume when I transfer them across to my MAC to use AstroPixelProcessor they will just be FITS files? Is there another program I should be viewing them in, other than GIMP? since... When I open them in GIMP, they are monochrome (even when I change the mode in GIMP to RGB) and, bizarrely, upside down? I presume this is something to do with the Bayering process? How do I correct It and do I have to correct it in APP as well, before I process them? Thanks for any help, the internet isn't coming down with videos about file types...

Just about to start using a guide camera and trying to set-up PHd2 on a Mac. The choice of cameras seems really limited. I'm trying to use an Altair 290c, which isn't particularly exotic. Am I missing something really obvious? is it clarified under "INDI"? Do I need to download a driver? I have Altair capture working, but again the Mac version is missing some functionality (e.g. where is the reticule button?). I get that PCs are better than MAC for AP, but surely there is some workaround? Thanks!

Newbie question. Have been using a Celestron 8" evolution on a Alt-Az mount this year, but wanted to get more wide-field images. Therefore I was wondering If, rather than buying a star-tracker, if I can just attach my Sony A7 with a 135mm lens on to the telescope mount to get images? If I align with the OTA, and then replace it out for the camera, will the alignments match up? Will the tracking match at all? Will the weight of the lens cause any damage to the camera mounted like this? And yes, I know my exposure time will be limited by the mount being Alt-Az. AN Eq mount is next year's adventure!

Thanks Alacant, that was great help! Have done that process repeatedly to get a much more satisfying result...

Newbie, so any help would be gratefully received! Trying to stack images in SiriL on a Mac, and when I click on Histogram view there is clearly a detailed image of The Hercules cluster buried in there somewhere, but it all disappears in the linear view. How do I extract the good stuff? Shooting 30\60 short exposure images (15-20 sec) on a Sony a6000, btw.

Trying to image Jupiter and slowly moving in the right direction. Have a Celestron Evoluton 8", and an Altair 290c through a 2x barlow. Took a minutes video, and stacked the best 600/800 images. Very nervously have been trying to post-process using Lynkeos and SiriL on a Mac. Getting a lot of haze in the way initially though. Is there anything external you'd recommend to sharpen up the images as I get them? Specifically, would either a filter, a Crayford focuser, or an atmospheric disperser be with investing in? Which delivers the most improvement? Thanks again!

That's great everybody. Will get to work on looking at all of those suggestions, much appreciated!