M81 and Ursa Major

[pbrad]

I went up north just a bit to get away from all the street lights and take some photographs. This is my second attempt with my 1100D and after some tips from Digz, I was able to get much better photographs. I was able to photograph M81, M82 and the majority of Ursa Major. However, to be able to see both Messier objects you have to view the image in the original size and then just barely able to identify them. I also took a few of Leo but they left slight trails. I also tried to use Deep Sky Stacker with my images but all I got as a result was an extremely thin image. Nowhere close to the size of the original photos. Not sure what happened. So, the image below is the original with no editing.

Canon Rebel T3/1100D

Exposure: 20 sec, ISO 1600, f/4.0, Focal Length 18mm

[george7378]

Wow, that is impressive! I just got an 1100D aswell, and I'm waiting for some clear skes to try it out! Are your impressions of the camera good?

[pbrad]

Wow, that is impressive! I just got an 1100D aswell, and I'm waiting for some clear skes to try it out! Are your impressions of the camera good?

To be quite honest, this is my first DSLR. I am learning every time I use it and I love it. The lens that comes with it is Rubbish though, in my opinion. I am purchasing more, one for wide angle and another zoom lens. Now I just need to spend more time learning how to stack and properly edit the images to reduce the noise.

[pbrad]

The same image stacked with 7 images.

Ursa Major Edited by pbrad1974, on Flickr

[george7378]

Nice! Thanks for the info too - I took my 1100D out tonight, and I see what you mean about the lens - it's fine for me, but the field of view is a little bit limited, and it would be nice to have some more zoom.