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As this is still a relatively new camera I though I would start a thread for users to share their knowledge on it. Of particular interest would be what Gains and modes people are using and why they settled on these settings, also any links to other websites with useful information would be good, and also to report any issue you have had. If there are useful links or particularly useful info I can update this first post so the info is ready available. Steve

This video presentation examines multiple factors affecting Astrophotography System sensitivity (i.e. the Limiting Magnitude), and see how much they individually contribute to overall system degradation (actual data in magnitudes). The presentation quantifies the dependence on Aperture, OTA type, Optics Coatings, Camera QE (with imager comparisons), Seeing, Light pollution, Extinction… https://nlobs.com/acad-intro/ https://youtu.be/8RN_uc2f6NM This is a must see for all astrophotographers, beginners and experienced alike. PDF of this presentation and other goodies are available from: https://nlobs.com/resources/ ~Chris K.

Stumbeled upon a forum thread saying the some of the ZWO ASI Cameras has issues with vibrations from the fan. I don't know if i had any issues with my fan (having a ASI 2600MM) but I am to corious not to test this out. I made a video of how I (try to) analyse my vibrations with my phone as it has a accelerometer, which indicated a bit better values after the mod. You can find my video on my youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0K_7oEQbEg&ab_channel=ExoPhotography Have you noticed anything like this? Have you made the mod? Have you changed the fan for another, better one? Regards, Daniel

I recently upgraded to a purpose made astro-camera (Atik Horizon Color). The learning curve has definitely been noticeable, but I cant figure a couple things out. For some reason the pictures are grey scale when using N.I.N.A. I have tried different binning and formats, but the image is always black and white. If I use the ATIK software (Infinity,Dusk) there is an option for 'Color Binning', and that seems to have fixed it for those programs, but N.I.N.A doesn't seem to have that option (you can not select anything for binning, or select 1x1, 2x2 ect.). But what makes it weirder is that the preview is always color using N.I.N.A. I used a pinhole lens cover to take pictures of my computer screen and it always shows up as color images. However, if I take that exact image file that previews in color and move it to pixinsight, it is grey-scale. Is this a binning thing, file format problem? At this point I am just confused, if the preview of the image is color shouldn't the image data be color as well? So far all the problems I have had with this camera have just been simple things that were new to me, but this one is really throwing me for a loop. Thanks for any help. I've attached a couple images. The first you can see the NINA preview is color, as well with the couple other I took in the bottom right. And the other in a photo of trying to color saturate the stretched image in Pixinsight, and it says that it cannot saturate a grey-scale image. I have tried this with Tif, Fits, and various binning types.

Hi all, Not sure which section to put this in? getting started or cameras, (Mods please move if necessary) Need a little help/advice/recommendations, I have been away from my telescope/astrophotography for about 2 maybe 3 years, i kind of lost the mojo for it, but now looking to get back to it, So i'm looking for camera advice/help, Previously i only ever used a DSLR for astrophotography, however i am thinking do i stick with that or do i get something different? I know there will be a learning curve with new camera setup, My area of interest is/would be Nebulae and Galaxies,i know there is no one camera fits all kind of thing, so Nebulae would be my main interest with Galaxies coming 2nd. My current scope is the (Older Blue Model) Sky-Watcher Evostar 80 DS-PRO ED, so with that in mind what would be a good camera to pair that with, colour or mono i'm not fussed really, My budget for new/2nd hand camera is £700 but could maybe stretch to £800. Any help/advice (good or bad) will be greatly appreciated. Regards JemC

I have been waiting for this telescope for almost five months. Since May, 19th, to be precise. The day I went to the TS Italia store and saw for the first time the SLD model, model now discontinued. I even missed the last available piece just for a few days, once I finally placed my order, June, 25th. It was to be replaced by a newer model, available at the end of the Summer. Boy, am I glad I did miss it. The wait was definitely worth it. The new and improved model is simply beautiful. I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it on the Tecnosky website a few weeks ago, when they posted the product sheet. But in person, it's even more beautiful. So, the people from the store emailed me Friday, October the 2nd, telling me that it was finally available for pickup. I read the message only a whole hour later and it was soon going to be closing time. I started calling at 4:30 PM and I finally managed to get my phone call through at around 5:05 PM. The store closes at 6:00 PM and doesn't reopen until Monday. And it's 40 minutes away from where I live. I made it there in 35. There was no way I was going to have to wait till Monday, knowing my scope was only a few minutes away. So, here's the pre-unboxing picture: - top left, brown box, behind: Vixen clamp for guide-scope - top right, white box: 60mm f/4 guide-scope - top left, white boxes: T2 Nikon ring, 30mm spacer, adjustable spacer - center, behind white boxes: Optolong L-Pro 2" filter - right of filter: spacers mounted and already calibrated for 55mm backfocus, for eventual use of the ZWO ASI 224MC camera with the refractor - top right, Bahtinov mask - underneath the white boxes, top left: Losmandy bar to attach telescope to my NEQ6 Losmandy saddle - big box underneath all of the above: Tecnosky 80mm f/6 FPL-53 OWL Triplet, with carrying case and 0.8x 4 elements flattener/reducer - ZWO black case: ZWO ASI 224MC guide-camera / planetary camera - front left: Talisker 57° North and two glasses (don't mind the shape of the glasses, they are the closest to Whisky suitable glasses that I currently own...) ready for me and my wife to celebrate the end of the wait - front right: box for the aforementioned Whisky I actually waited for yesterday (Saturday, the 3rd) for the unboxing, because I wanted my best friend Omar to be present and help me with filming and taking pictures. We have been friends since we went to kindergarten and we always have had astronomy as a common interest. It just so happens, to my immense surprise, that my telescope is actually SN. 0001, so I own the first telescope ever produced of this new series. The certificate is also very promising, with a Strehl ratio of 0.974 and a Ronchi test that seems very well behaved. I like a little less the red edges on the lenses, but I guess only time and a proper visual - and astrophotographic - session will be able to tell. Obviously the "new equipment curse" didn't help, but we got almost a whole hour with clear sky patches and obviously I couldn't pass up the opportunity. I quickly setup with the bare minimum necessities for a visual observation and me, my wife and my best friend Omar - who helped with the staging, recording and directing of the unboxing event - took a quick look at the Moon, Saturn, Mars, M31 and Perseus Double Cluster. I can definitely understand now, even if the seeing wasn't perfect, and my eyepieces didn't offer enough magnification (25mm and 10mm give me 80x and 200x, with my C8, but with a native focal length of 480mm, even with a Barlow 2x, we could only achieve about 38x and 96x, respectively), what people mean when they say that an apochromatic refractor brings out the objects from the background sky. The contrast was stunning, the stars were absolute points, pinpoint, small and sharp (with my C8 they always have kind of a "blob" feeling), the contrast on the Moon was fantastic and I could see many details, despite it being almost full, and only at 48-96x. I think it passed the visual test with honors. I was also very happy to be able to see the Double Cluster all in the same field of view for the first time. Saturn was well defined, could clearly make out the rings - don't recall, in all the excitement, rush and cycling between me, my wife and my friend, if I saw the Cassini division, but I'll definitely try again next clear sky night. Mars was also beautiful, could clearly see its rusty red color, the polar cap and some darker, black features on the surface. I really can say it's a beautiful telescope, very well made and machined. The attention to details is really of another level, the paint finish is very nice and matte. Also very lovely all the different red and black anodized surfaces, they really give it a nice finish and personality. The focuser is also the best I have ever had on a telescope. Very smooth, precise, with no backlash. Coming from a C8 where every touch of the focuser throws off the image all over the place and the backlash is quite significant, I really appreciated how easy it was to fine tune focusing with a proper focuser, especially with the 10:1 focusing knob. I can't wait to be able to take the first pictures of some star field, to check if even photographically the telescope lives up to my expectations. I hope to get pinpoint stars corner to corner and that the backfocus won't be something too hard to make perfect. Here's some accessories. Optolong L-Pro 2" filter, Bahtinov mask, Losmandy dovetail to replace the Vixen one the telescope comes with, Nikon T2 ring and spacers to use the ASI 224MC with the correct backfocus directly on the telescope, instead of a guide-camera. Here's the 60mm f/4 guide-scome, with Vixen clamp. And the ZWO ASI 224MC guide-camera. Here's the mandatory celebration beer, at Corte dell'Orso (the Bear's Courtyard). It's a Belgian sour beer, lambic style. Oudbeitje by Hanssens Artisanaal, with added strawberries. A very nice beer, sour, tart and fruity. Could definitely taste the strawberries. Cheers! Here's a couple of pictures of the full setup, with everything mounted on my Sky-Watcher NEQ6 Pro. The setup is in its astrophotographic configuration: mount, telescope, guide-scope, guide-camera, filter, flattener/reducer and at the end the Nikon D5300 astromodified. All controlled by Astroberry on my Raspberry Pi 4 4GB, conveniently mounted on a bar across the two telescope rings. And finally a close up of the rig.

Hi, I just published a video of how I am cleaning my filters - I thought I might do this while my telescope is back at service due to some kind of astigmatism. How do you guys clean your filters? it seems that every dust particle finds it way to the filters just as you are done cleaning them, and to sit in a damp bathroom seems kind of a mess... Anyway, here is the video / Daniel

Hi - I just wanna share my latest build - based on Starlight Express optical rig in which they align their camerachip / housings before the ship them out - And i was inspired to build my own. I am very keen to be able to do so much adjustments and tuning to my gear during the day as possible - and this is another method of doing just that, and in this case the aligning of camera tilt which can be a royal PITA during the dark and -20 degree C. So, here is the SX article on what i was going to build: SX Article Note: I haven't reciieved my new camera yet so the video does not contain the actual adjustment, but as soon as i get my new camera - I will show just how it works! /Daniel

Thought this might be interesting for anyone who might consider a ASA mount, or anyone else who just wan't to follow my adventures trying my best in the obsy Anyway - here is the video of me polar aligning and making a new sky model /Daniel

Hi, I have been getting a lot of questions regarding what components my "optical test rig" has, and how to clamp the camera/laser with. I found some new bits and pieces which makes it very simple to build your own rig

Greetings everyone. I recently scored a great deal on facebook marketplace and bought Skywatcher Skymax 180 mm Maksutov-Cassegrain Telescope (f/15) with EQ6R-pro mount. I understand that long focal length telescopes are more suitable for planetary imaging. However, as I am tight on budget, I would like to use the same scope for deep-sky astrophotography. I have Canon Rebel T5 DSLR camera that I am using for taking images. Without autoguiding and a decent polar alignment, I can get ~30 seconds long shots without any star trailing, but that's not sufficient for imaging objects like M51. I would like to be able to integrate longer, say few minutes, thus would like to purchase an autoguider. Here are some specific questions I have. 1). The telescope comes with an 8 x 50 straight-through finder. If I were to use it as a guidescope, what type of image integration time can I expect? Has anyone done autoguiding for f/15 scope with an 8x50 or other finderscopes? 2). If the integration time will be an issue with the 8x50 finder scope, I am open to purchasing an off-axis-guider. However, considering the narrow field-of-view of Mak-180 telescope, I am concerned about not having enough photons from guidestar for autoguiding. For instance, with my DSLR camera, I need to integrate 20-30 seconds to see the nearby stars in M51. What type of OAG and camera would I need to autoguide with my scope? Are there affordable cameras (~$200) that would do the job for me? Would ASI120MM Mini Monochrome (~$150) do the job? What about OAG? I plan to use phd2 software for autoguiding rather than relying on the build-in guide port on the mount. Instead of integrating for hours, I am planning to do DSS stacking of few mintues long multiple shots, hopefully this will put less strict requirements on the autoguider. In case this information is relevant: with my current setup, I have no issue pointing my scope to a desired deep-sky object, track the object within the field-of-view of my DSLR camera for hours using the mechnical tracking of the EQ6 mount. For instance following is a single raw image of Ring nebula taken with 30 seconds shot. But it is not enough for generating high-quality images. Thank you in advance for your help. Regards, Jay

I think I need help with my Photoshop settings. I've been processing my photos and been very unhappy/depressed with the results. I then realized that they looked a lot better on my phone than on my PC screen. I did some testing and I discovered that Photoshop (CS4 - both 32bit and 64bit) and the basic Windows viewer [the two things I've been using all this time to look at my images] are displaying poorer quality views of my images than other viewers or programs. (see attached images) I think I just noticed this because I just got a CMOS OSC camera and was expecting a lot better than it seemed I was getting. Do I have something set wrong in Photoshop? I really don't want to spend the money to get Pixinsight just right now (and the time to learn it) but I need to be able to see what the image really looks like while I'm processing it. At first I thought the problem was with my monitor, but since I do see the correct image with some programs I've concluded that the issue must be with Photoshop itself. However, I have no idea at all how to fix it. I've uploaded two views of an early processing stage of an Andromeda photograph. This one shows the image as seen in Gimp, Irfan View, Windows Paint, on-line, the new Windows "Photos" or on other laptops, phones, etc. This one shows the image as seen in Photoshop or in the Windows Photo Viewer or Photo Gallery on my PC. (I used screen capture to get this but it is accurate for what I see). As you can see above, the image I'm seeing in Photoshop has problems. The main problem I notice is that the gradients of color do not flow smoothly but are concentric areas of flat color. No depth or subtlety. Can this be fixed and if so what do I need to adjust in Photoshop or my PC? I'm using Photoshop CS4 and this effect shows up in both the 32bit and 64 bit versions. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks and Clear Skies Everyone Taylor Blanchard

Hi, I bought my first telescope, SW 150pds about 6 months ago with the purpose of astroimaging "when i feel ready". So far ive used my Nikon D810 for that, and I'm now planning on taking the step buying my first AP camera. My targets would be DSO's, and not planetary. I want a mono-camera, not color. I want to get away with a very good camera to a reasonable price (wouldn't we all...) and in this regard I've been drooling on the ZWO ASI 1600MM Mono for some time. The price for it is in the upper part of my budget, but I'm willing to if its worth it. I've seen from other treads that sensor-size isn't everything, and dynamic range and gain and all is just as important, but i have trouble understanding it all 100% when it's all new to me, but in my experience i am a practical person who learns things much better and faster with the gear in my hand. So without getting to technical, and staying as objective as possible - please help me with; 1. Is this a good camera to go for? 2. It's sold with options of filters 1.25", 31mm or 36mm - Why these options, and what determines what i would choose? 3. Would you go for another camera in this price range, and why? - Or to rephrase it a bit; If you were in my shoes, which camera would you og for? I'd appreciate any help:) I might add, that i understand that with my lack of experience, buying a mono-camera with filters and all might seem premature, but for some strange reason. I enjoy these "way over my head"-projects and figuring out things as time goes - I just need some guiding in the right direction.

Hi all, Since a few days, I'm the proud owner of the asi1600 Pro. Performed some first tests, see: https://youtu.be/hHJBbpNoi2I I used SGP Pro to test cooling and dark frames (2m and 5m) on unity gain settings. Is it ok to use unity gain (139) setting or should I use high dynamic range? Also, this is my first mono. Do I need to take flats/bias frames for each filter separately? And how could I stack either broadband or narrowband images? I'm used to deep sky stacker. Cheers, Wido

Hi everyone, The North America and Pelican nebulae are situated in the Cygnus constellation and are thought to be 1800 light years away. My favourite part of the image is "The Wall", which is the "Mexico" part of the North America nebula and is a source of intense star formation. The data for this image was collected all on one night and therefore could do with more integration, but I like the result. I've used my go-to "natural blend" narrowband (as originally suggested by Jon Rista on Cloudy Nights): R = 76%*Ha + 24%*SII G = OIII B = 85%*OIII + 15%*Ha I personally prefer this "natural blend" to the Hubble palette both in terms of look and ease of processing! 4 hours integration time, captured with WO Z73/ZWO ASI1600MM Pro/Astrodon Filters. Full details here. Thanks for looking!

Hi everyone, This has been on my hard drive for some months, so nice to have finally got round to processing it! Shot over several nights in January in my back garden. NGC 281, also known casually as the Pacman Nebula, is a bright emission nebula and part of an H II region in the northern constellation of Cassiopeia and is part of the Milky Way's Perseus Spiral Arm. It lies about 9,500 light years from us and is 48 light years across. As the final version, I've gone for a crop, which I think holds up well, though I'll include the wider fov version in the next post. I used a more natural colour blend for this image: R = 76%*Ha + 24%*SII G = 100%*OIII B = 85%*OIII + 15%*Ha For some reason, I was not expecting much from this image, but the result looks like it will be one of my favourites...the narrowband data was really good! Captured using APT, stacked using APP and processed in Pixinsight. 5.4 hours integration time. Link to full details and higher res version. Thanks for looking!

Hi, this question has probably been done to death here, but can I ask the community to help me decide on a new camera? After struggling with my very glitchy QHY5LIIc camera for a while, as well as having a forced break from astronomy, I have decided to get a new camera. After all the problems I've been having with the QHY, I really don't want to use this manufacturer again. I know lots of people use them quite happily, but once bitten ... I have been looking at the ZWO cameras - OSC, as I haven't the time, clear skies, or patients to do LRGB imaging! I have about £250 to spend, which I may be able to push to £300 if I wait a bit. ? So I've been looking at the ASI224MC, ASI290MC and the ASI178MC cameras. I mainly do planetary/Luna imaging, but I have also dabbled in a bit of DSO and would like to continue with both. I have a C9.25 and a ST80 guide scope. I know these aren't ideal for DSOs but please humour me! I think from the specs/information that the 224 is probably the best option. Although the resolution and QE are the worst of the three, the well depth and read noise are the best and the fps is pretty good too. I don't know if there are better/cheaper cameras using the same chips, such as Altair's range. I just don't want to make the same mistake that I did with the QHY!n Any help/advice you can give will be much appreciated.?

I was looking to get into astrophotography with my 10 inch dobson and for start would like to buy something affordable. Cameras can be used or new. Thanks in advance!

Hi All I’m considering purchasing an 8”aperture, f3.8 newtonian ( primarily for EAA) from Orion UK and would appreciate any input or feedback from anyone familiar with the product, the company or the purchasing process - and how to assess the compatibility with my current cameras. This is would be a step up from my current equipment and entails selecting components that I’ve never used and know little about such as a rack and pinion focuser and components (ACU-3L), and coma corrector (Wynne Corrector). I’ve added links to these items below. I’m also feeling unsure of how to mate up my Zwo 178 and 294 cameras to the 3” focuser and whether there will be an acceptable match between the scope optics and my sensors. I’m sure the folks at Orion UK will assist with all this but I’d sure welcome input from the Stargazer's Lounge community before starting the dialog with Orion UK. thank you in advance for any help you can provide! Gary ACU-3L Focuser selection Info: https://www.orionopt...sers.html#ACU3L Wynne Corrector selection Info: https://www.orionopt...torsfittin.html

Which cooled mono cmos - 1600MM-Pro or QHY163m?? On the face of it there's little to distinguish between the two. Same sensor, similar price etc. I see the zwo has a 256mb buffer compared to the qhy's 128Mb but I can't see that would make any practical difference for longish exposure dso imaging. Both have amp glow suppression? Heated windows? Usb hub not a factor. I wouldn't be using with a filter wheel - just a filter drawyer with 2" Ha. Is there anything to distinguish between the two that might tip the balance?? Thanks for any replies Louise

Hi everyone, One and a half clear nights for me early in the year and I focused on M45. As a naked eye visible target, I think subconsciously I never gave M45 the concentration it deserves, thinking I could always catch it another time. Anyway, despite lusting after the Horsehead, I kept my refractor pointed at the seven sisters in new moon skies and the result is below. I actually found it pretty hard to process...the seven sisters themselves were pretty well behaved, but I couldn't decide what to do with the background. I know this is a dusty region so I did not want to put DBE samples everywhere. But at the end the background seems a bit smudgy after tweaking curves - I'm not sure whether to darken the background or leave it as is. 3.4 hours of LRGB integration. Full details on Astrobin. Thanks for looking!

Had a quick search but not found much info, I've just 'transitioned' from DSLR to a CMOS (AA 183C pro) Used to capture with APT or Backyard Nikon, save as RAW, DSS to stack and use autosave.tif to work on in Photoshop. Whats the general consensus on CMOS ? So far trying APT or Sharpcap, saving as FITS, stacking in DSS still and using autosave.tif into Photoshop. I keep seeing fits liberator mentioned ? Opinions gratefully received.

Hi everyone, I've been beavering away on a couple of images, one of the Pacman nebula and this, my first Horsehead. Shot over several nights in my back garden. Terrible weather meant a big gap between imaging nights - it's amazing how you (or is it just me?!) forget the little details in just 8 or 9 days... Lum data is lacking a bit and I couldn't tame mighty Alnitak. But I like the result. Anyway, a number of firsts here - first completed image with the Lakeside focuser, first true tests of APT's recently added auto meridian flip (works great!) and first time using Astro Pixel Processor for calibration and stacking. APP is a contender - very easy to use - I threw all my multinight multifilter data at it and it chugged through it all with the minimum of fuss! 4.9 hours of HaLRGB data. L 108x15", R 41x60", G 84x30", B 81x30", Ha 35x250". Thanks for looking!