M82

[Andrew]

Quick sketch of M82 below based on last night's observing. Always a treat this one, even under my light polluted skies. Nice variation in brightness in the core is always evident.

[geppetto]

That's a treat Andrew

Just been looking at CC's image of M82

and nice to see almost the same thing but sketched 8)

[Andrew]

I looked at CC's image - very nice indeed.

Got a little confused at first though when I tried to compare the star patterns with mine since they are the mirror image.

Duh! - that's what comes of only using a reflector.

[garymcgrory]

very nice sketch great level of detail, m82 is in a nice bit of sky for me at mom and your sketch really does it justice.

Cheers

Gary

[MartinB]

Shows the benefit of a 12" scope. I can make this detail out with my 8" SCT but not as clearly as that. Excellent sketch Andrew.

[barkis]

Great stuff Andrew.

You are very good at this sketching.

Ron.

[Kaptain Klevtsov]

Love the sketches. I wish I was so talented - would have saved a fortune on imaging gear!

Captain Chaos

[The Warthog]

Very well done! I plan to try some sketches of DSOs this year. I've done the Moon and Mars only, so far. It's a good way to spend an evening.

How long did this take, and did you do it all at the ep, or did you refine it afterwards?

[Andrew]

I make a rough sketch at the eyepiece and then make a decent copy inside later (preferably the same night). Galaxies are nice targets, not least because they don't take too long (maybe half an hour outside and a bit less to redraw). I like sketching open clusters, but the Messiers can take a long time (an hour or more) if you try to include every star you can see. Still, I find it quite satisfying with clusters to compare the finished sketch with photographs afterwards, just to gauge how well I've reproduced the distribution of stars and variations in brightness. I haven't tried sketching the moon yet, but I plan to have a go this year (inspired by some excellent sketches and watercolours posted on the forum).

I find the toughest part of sketching trying to reproduce the detail that can be seen at the eyepiece without exaggerating it. Obviously you want to include everything that you have seen, but some of this is inevitably picked out after looking for a long time, using filters, averted vision and different magnifications etc. It's a fine line between making these details apparent in your sketch and making them too clear. I think I just need more practice