Albastars

Thanks @Clarkey , that's really useful. I was wondering about the quality of the focusers. It is a larger focuser on the Wave 115mm but I guess that doesn't necessarily mean its of a good quality. I think the Starwave is at the top of my list and if I need to upgrade the focuser, I can afford it. I will keep in mind the StellaMira FF, its looks a good option.. Ritchey-Cretien? Well, I hadn't considered them at all. More research needed! Cheers

I have around £2000 to spend on a new telescope and need some help choosing. It’s for imaging DSOs only on a Zwo AM5 mount. Presently, I have a WO Z73 and I’m using a modded Canon 800D but am looking at upgrading to a Zwo ASI2600 in the near future. I prefer a refractor over a reflector. I’m looking for as long a focal length as I can but I think up to 800mm is affordable and within my mount’s capabilities. I guess I will need a 1x Flattener too. I’ve found a few 115/f7 scopes including - Ts-Optics Photoline - £1299 Altair Starwave - £1299 Altair Wave - £1899 Starfield Gear115 (from FLO) -£2098 The cheaper ones appeal obviously but will I have to spend on upgrades? Do any of these scopes stand out as the best or are there alternatives, perhaps longer options? If anyone wants to suggest a reflector my main worries are its size for transportation, repeated colimation and the need to upgrade parts and fettle. Open to persuasion though - I was looking at the Vixen R200SS. Thanks

That is stunning! Thanks for posting.

Sorry @Elp I don't use DSS.

Similar for me with a modded Canon 800D. I came across this article a while back and found it useful - https://www.myastroscience.com/proper-flats-with-dslr

Thanks @ONIKKINEN and @Clarkey If it is tilt, I guess its a fraction of a millimetre? I don't think I have room to fit a tilt adjuster but maybe some copper tape in the right place might help. The weather for the next week is grim, so I'm going to have to be patient. Thanks again.

Hi, Can anyone tell me what might be going on with my star shapes? I think possibly I need to increase my back focus a bit but the corners are not uniform. Perhaps some kind of tilt in there as well? One debayered sub (180secs) attached. Ca\non 800D, WO Z73ZS scope with WO 0.8 reducer with adjustable back focus set to recommended 1.8mm - total BF of 56.8mm. Thanks Dave

I saw a great picture by Adam Block and was inspired to have a go at Orion. A year ago I thought the night sky was just stars, I had no idea about anything else! Canon 800D (modded), Canon 40mm Fornax Lighttrack II Bortle 3 ISO 400, F4, 82 x 2min subs - 2hrs 44min integration. Processed in PixInsight I would have liked longer but the clouds rolled in. I'm not sure if this is the finished image yet but here it is anyway.

I'm impressed, there is a lot hiding in that jpg. Thanks for taking a look. Rather than work on it though, I got another 4+hrs on the Pacman, this time in RAW. This is my processing so far but I've blown the big stars in the nebula - I'm learning about processing all the time, so I'll probably go back to it.

FWIW, this is just registered, stacked and auto stretched with no calibration frames. I guess if I worked on it there might be a reasonable image in there somewhere. But moving on, I was out last night and hopefully got 5 hours on the Pacman. Thats my third attempt in 10 days - the first try was ruined by gusting winds.

I had this odd feeling through the night that something was wrong after a rushed set up. Just collected 6 1/2 hours of what appears at first glance to be good data - except its all in jpgs 😖 Ah well, onwards and upwards.

Wow, that brilliant! I don't have PS but I can do it in Affinity Photo. Amazing.

Thanks. I had used my Sony A7Riii for a few images before I bit the bullet and bought a used and modded 800D from Andy Ellis of http://astronomiser.co.uk/ . Andy provided a quick and efficient service and all good with the camera so far. Because I've no before and after experience with the modded camera I can't really comment on star bloating.

Thanks Olly, I'm new to astrophotography (but not photography) and had tried to reduce the stars but I was getting too many artifacts. I use a star de-emphasiszer script in PixInsight based on work by Adam Block. I rewatched some videos and played with the settings a bit more and got a better result but perhaps not as strong an affect as yours. Re Image-Adjustments-Selective Colour in PS. Can the same be done in PI? In this version I increased the reds in curves using a colour mask. There is so much to learn that its daunting and fascinating in equal measure!

I took this on the night of the last full moon and had low expectations for the result - just out for practice really. Its not the best but I'm very, very happy with it. Canon 800D -modded, WO Z73 with 0.8 reducer (344mm) Lightrack II mount ISO 200 90 x 3min subs 30 each of darks, bias and flats Processed in PixInsight Suggestions to improve it are very welcome.