What's your oldest AP?

[nytecam]

Poking around today for a lost gadget and came across this pic - probably my oldest surviving eg Comet Mrkos '57 plus 30' scale. Notes on back read..

"Mrkos Comet [disc 2/8/57] - [taken] 16/8/57 @ 10.45BST low in NW sky ...exp 7sec @ f/4 HP3 [ilford B&W film] developed in Micrcophene 13min @ 66F; enlarged x25".

The f/4 aperture suggests it was my first 35mm camera eg a simple Finetta [inset] with 43mm fl f/4 interchangeable astigmat lens - very crude by today's entry cameras

So how far back do your astro pics go?

[chiltonstar]

Poking around today for a lost gadget and came across this pic - probably my oldest surviving eg Comet Mrkos '57 plus 30' scale. Notes on back read..

"Mrkos Comet [disc 2/8/57] - [taken] 16/8/57 @ 10.45BST low in NW sky ...exp 7sec @ f/4 HP3 [ilford B&W film] developed in Micrcophene 13min @ 66F; enlarged x25".

The f/4 aperture suggests it was my first 35mm camera eg a simple Finetta [inset] with 43mm fl f/4 interchangeable astigmat lens - very crude by today's entry cameras

So how far back do your astro pics go?

Halley.....the most recent apparition, that is.

Chris

[ArmyAirForce]

My interest goes back to the early 1970's, but my first image was probably this one of Hale Bopp in 1997. The yellow glow top left is a lens artifact from a near by street light. Taken with a 35mm automatic camera.

[RikM]

Lunar eclipse 3rd March 2007. Sony point and shoot on a bean bag

[MarkRadice]

Comet Hyakutake in 1996 - and followed only a few months later by the awe inspiring Hale Bopp.

[John]

It's not AP but a mate and I made a series of sketches of Jupiter during the 1975-76 opposition. We had a borrowed 60mm Prinz refractor which we poked out of my bedroom window !. It was my first observation of anything other than the moon.

The sketches show a surprising amount of detail for a small aperture scope, especially the later ones as our young eyes became trained to pick out the more subtle detail. We don't appear to have seen the Great Red Spot though so either it was one the wrong side of the planet each time we observed or the scope was not able to resolve it (more likely !).

It was a rather magical few weeks - I've stuck with the hobby but my mate has not

[melsky]

A bit of lunar photography using push processed Tri-x an OM-1 and a 3" refractor borrowed from the college where I was studying photography back in the early 1970's.

Mel

[rowan46]

My oldest ap is jupiter which is about 4.5 billion years old .

[nytecam]

My oldest ap is jupiter which is about 4.5 billion years old .

But your collected photons ain't

[whooshbang]

Hale Bopp 1997. But for the life of me i have no idea where the prints are. Moved house 9 times since and gone travelling a bit.

[laser_jock99]

This has to be from about when I started AP in the mid 1980's with my first SLR (a Cosina). I stayed up all night to get theses moon steps.