Clarkey

On 26/05/2021 at 01:09, The Lazy Astronomer said:

Lastly - and very importantly - before you start buying any astrophotography gear, take one last look at your bank balance so at least you'll remember what it was like to have any money! 😉

Could not agree more. I've gone from affluent to poor in 18 months thank to Astrophotographyitis. 🤣

I'm not an expert, but could you not practice on some lunar images? As far as I am aware the processes are pretty similar. I'm just starting to do the same as my normal targets are DSO's but I fancy trying a bit of planetary later in the year. No shortage of moon to play with!!

May sound like a daft question, but can you calibrate with a simulator? To carry out the calibration the mount has to move away from a star in the FOV - is this possible with a simulator? Maybe try with a real (or artificial) star.

20 hours ago, david_taurus83 said:

If you put the light source for flats on top of the tube you risk light bypassing the mirror route and entering the focuser directly which will give you uneven illumination

That is a very interesting point. I have the kit to image with my newtonian but as yet only used the RC8 and ED80. I was thinking of trying the newtonian as it is F5 whereas the other two are >F6. Looking at this I may need to re-think my flats before proceeding🤔

I would agree with what has been said. I have an HEQ5 and AZ-EQ6 and the larger mount is definitely better suited for an 8" scope. Have you considered the AZ-EQ6 as an option? Similar size to the EQ6 but has the benefit of AZ use which I prefer for visual, especially with the newtonian. I am a bit old for ladders and contortionist tricks to look through the eyepiece😄

Most of the information you need regarding set up can be found on the ZWO website.

https://astronomy-imaging-camera.com/

Anything else the forum here is as good a place for information as anywhere.

I have used an A4 AGPtek one from Amazon that is pretty good and even. It is just about big enough to do the RC8 but the A3 version would probably be better. Fine for up to 150mm.

Having purchased a scope and mount in January 2020 (with not intention to image for a while), I got bitten by the bug and within a couple of months was looking to start photography. The first is the first DSO I imaged in April last year. Single 3 minutes exposure with a SW 200p, unguided using a Canon 600D (unmodded at the time) on an HEQ5 (again unmodded at the time). Not see what I was imaging, just pointed the scope and hoped it was in the right place. To give a comparison the second image is one I took at the beginning of March - less than a year later. This was using an ASAI1600mm with an RC8 guided on an AZ-EQ6 and about 20 hours of data. Just goes to show that with a bit of work (and money) things do improve.

13 minutes ago, Saganite said:

observing into the small hours in just shorts and a loose shirt instead

I only get the chance for shorts and a shirt for a couple of days in July. That's called 'Summer' in Cumbria😆. 

1 hour ago, Astro Noodles said:

Thanks for the suggestion. I don't know if the 40mm/180mm triplet f4.5 will offer me that much more than the camera lens that I'm using

Yes you are right. Should have looked more closely at your signature.

I think the Redcat would be similar to your current set up at 250mm. I'm not sure how the Zenithstar doublet stands up in terms of colour correction. Another doublet option is the SW 72ED with a few upgrades - such as the focuser. I have an ED80 and have found it pretty good.

On 16/05/2021 at 19:03, Detec said:

When I'm guiding, should the power light on my HEQ5 pro mount be flashing on and off?

Probably power related but I believe on some of the skywatcher mounts power LED flashes while it is learning through a PEC routine. Could this be some thing to do with it?

On 17/05/2021 at 18:14, Grant Fribbens said:

Sharpstar 61 EDPH II is great but the only issue is you would have to use it with a flattener/reducer 0.8 for a focal length of 275mm

I am looking at similar options and I have read some less than flattering reports about the Sharpstar - but I have no first hand experience. However, I guess this depends if you get a Friday afternoon model and also your expectations. I was seriously looking at the Askar FMA180 which has everything at a good price and appears to give pretty good results at F4.5. Also it is designed to take a T-ring. It depends on how 'wide' you want to do.

I think anyone 'up north' will share your frustrations. I reckon on average of one or two clear nights per month - and for the next 3 months it does not even get dark.

20 hours ago, AstroAndy said:

Awesome pic of one of my favorite galaxies (and go to object when troubleshooting equipment). Details is amazing, background sky is good, and the roundest stars you ever did see. Maybe the core is a bit overblown , and on my screen it has a pinkish cast.

Thanks Andy.

Thanks for the feedback - always appreciated. Yes it is a little pink - but as I said I really struggled to get any decent colour and I think I just accepted it as it was better than all the other iterations! The core is slightly overblown - when I get a chance I might try to do some thing about it. To be honest this one was giving me such a task to get anything decent I just 'cut and run' at this point🤣

I shared the same experience as John above. I did try using predictive PEC on both my mounts but found the benefits very minimal - if any. I ended up using the PPEC option in PHD2 which does seem to give a benefit after it has run for a while.

14 hours ago, AstroAndy said:

@ Clarkey, it kind of looks like that, but here's a little confession, when trying to shoot the ha, my filterwheel, unbeknownst to me, was at position one (Luminance), even though 2 softwares reported it on pos. 6, where my ha filter is, hence one more hr. of Lum. instead of ha

Not the first time the wrong filter has been used. I did nearly a whole night on M51 with a blue filter. Although in that case it was self inflicted incompetence!

Cracking result none the less.

That's my excuse too! Just some advice if you go down this route. Firstly I have covered all the chipsets to keep moisture out. The cable readily gets covered in ice and dew. Also I have added a small (30cm) extension on each end - again taped on - to reduce the risk of damage to the plugs on the active unit. As the cables are expensive I would rather risk damaging the plug on a cheap extra extension when I trip over it in the dark....

I have a 10m USB 3 active cable with 2 intermediate chipsets linked to a 12v powered 7 port USB hub. I've not had any problems. I also have another 12v hub with 4 USB ports and 3 charging ports that run USB dew heaters. Works well. Don't forget the hub is only one device.

Really great image. This will be on my 'to do' list when I get a chance.

I'm also jealous that you still have some dark skies. Mine are gone until August☹️

Nice detail with good stars. Almost looks like its had some Ha added in the outer galaxy.

Maybe a tad too much blue?

I am looking into OAG for my RC8 which I currently guide with an ST80. It's OK, but at full FL it would be better with OAG. I was doing my research and the general responses seem to suggest the 120 has too small a sensor and is likely  to limit the stars available for guiding. I don't think the pixel size is too much of an issue. I think the QE on the 290 might be better which will offset any pixel size benefits.

There is a discussion about it on Cloudy Nights; https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/664415-zwo-asi120mm-mini-vs-asi290mm-mini-for-oag-sensitivity/

I will keep an eye on the post to see if  some one with first hand experience gives their opinion..

Deafening silence....

I'm not answering, sounds too much like a QI question. I can hear the klaxon now....

I have used a laptop outside which was fine even when very cold (-10 or so) providing I put the transformer for the 12v supply and the PC transformer in the same plastic box. This generated enough heat to keep everything frost free. However, unlike the kit, I do not like getting frozen so I changed to a 15m active USB 3 cable back to the house which I have been using for about a year without issue. This connects to a 12v powered USB hub which controls everything on the scope. I also have a 12v power distribution box that I made out of a small junction box, so the only trailing cables are one for power and one for data. I know a lot of people are not keen of the USB cables - but personally I have been pleased with the results.

3 hours ago, scotty38 said:

Looks pretty good to me and I wouldn't know where to begin to see any faults in it. it'd be on my wall if it was mine

2 hours ago, Paul M said:

I barely recognised it, which galaxy is this? I thought. I had to check the title again!

So much detail in the spiral arms

Thanks for the comments - much appreciated.

This one has turned out a lot better than the previous dozen that I produced. As I said, I have no idea why I found this one so difficult.

I took this a few months ago, but I have processed it multiple times and really struggled to get a good result. Eventually I have something that feels 'acceptable' - but I'm still not really pleased with the overall outcome. For some reason I have found getting the colour balance right very tricky. Also, retaining enough detail without have too much noise has been difficult. Why I find this particular galaxy so hard I am not sure.

Anyway, here is the final image (for now).

Approximately 2 hours of RGB and slightly more Lum. Taken with a ASI1600mm and a StellaLyra RC8 and binned in processing. Processed with APP, Startools and Affinity.

All comments - good and bad - welcome as always.