DSO basics

[m37]

Hi

My barrage of questions continues.

I saw what I think was M75 last night. Very faint white dusty looking thing (no, it wasn't dust).

So I got it nicely centered, slapped on the webcam and got... nothing!

I didn't really expect to master DSO imaging this quickly so I'm not disappointed.

My question is, will I be able to get rudimentary DSO images with my 102 refractor and Lifecam HD. Doesn't have long exposures but I'm not after anything too brilliant at this stage. Just making a visual record of my find would be enough.

And would a focal reducer help tease out more light? Couldn't even get stars visible when I put the 0.6 reducer on last night.

Cheers

[Bizibilder]

Sorry but the simple answer is no. Unfortunately your webcam is quite insuitable for DSO's as you cannot get a long enough exposure to record anything. It will be fine for the Moon and planets where there is a considerably brighter image available. If you want to capture DSO's the minimum you will need is a camera with an exposure time of several seconds or even minutes.

[ronin]

Another problem is that the focal plane of the eyepiece is different to the plane of the webcam sensor. In simple terms you cannot focus on something with an eyepiece then drop a camera in. You just will not have an image on the webcam, it will be wildly out of focus. You need to understand the optics of what you are doing.

In more mechanical terms the webcam sensor may not be central either so it could sit off of the optical axis so any image is not even on the sensor, whether it is in focus or not.

[Tinker1947]

Welcome to the dark side.....Canon 1100D is favoured as a starter camera, you may need some extentions to get one focused and a adapter/t-ring to connect it.....

[swag72]

If you are wanting to do any form of DSO imaging, can I recommend the book 'Making Every Photon Count' that you can get from the FLO website in the book section. It really is a bit of a bible for DSO imaging and will help you understand what you need to do, how you do it and why - It really is a well written and informative book. It will be the best £20 you ever spend.

[m37]

Thanks again guys. Definitely getting that book, and just found that I can use my Pentax k-x for long exposures because someone has written some software to do it. Not supported by Pentax you see.

[Scott]

Long exposures + az mount is not ideal for imaging, but good luck....as above.....get the book....it'll save you loads

[lensman57]

Hi

My barrage of questions continues.

I saw what I think was M75 last night. Very faint white dusty looking thing (no, it wasn't dust).

So I got it nicely centered, slapped on the webcam and got... nothing!

I didn't really expect to master DSO imaging this quickly so I'm not disappointed.

My question is, will I be able to get rudimentary DSO images with my 102 refractor and Lifecam HD. Doesn't have long exposures but I'm not after anything too brilliant at this stage. Just making a visual record of my find would be enough.

And would a focal reducer help tease out more light? Couldn't even get stars visible when I put the 0.6 reducer on last night.

Cheers

Hi,

The order of priority is a) Mount, driven EQ type with an ability to guide, The Scope, A short FL, fast F ratio ED scope is the prefered weapaon of choice such as SW ED 80 but there are other options, long FL scopes are very demanding of the mount and difficult to guide for a novice. c) The Camera, The best way for a novice to start is a DSLR as chances are that you already own one, also the large sensor gives you a wide FOV that helps with locating the objects more easily than a dedicated ccd. You have some decisions to make depending on your budget , location,level of enthusiasm and the type pf DSOs you'd like to image. A WebCam is of no use for proper DSO imaging even the very expensive ones marketed as dual purpose, these are more of a planetary, guiding rather than LX imaging.

Regards,

A.G

[m37]

Cheers. That's given me a lot to think about.

[edjrgibbs]

Your Pentax K-x should be fine for AP (I think). You'll need an adapter to connect it to the ST102. This one from FLO should work http://www.firstlightoptics.com/adaptors/flo-2-inch-t-mount-camera-adapter.html with a Pentax T ring http://www.firstlightoptics.com/adaptors/t-rings.html. I really enjoyed imaging with my ST102 when I had it. Found M31 and M42 easy enough. Without a timer you'll probably only be able to expose for up to 30 seconds but on an Alt Az mount that will probably be your limit anyway. If the Pentax has a mirror up or quiet option use them (works well on my D3100/D300s). Also if you don't have a remote release do the 10-30 second delay option as his will allow the scope to settle down before opening the shutter.

Enjoy but be prepared to become addicted and want to spend lot more on an EQ mount... I spent 6 months on an Alt Az before moving to an EQ5 and now an HEQ5.

[smudgeball]

Hi

Good luck.

I started off "piggy backing" my dslr on my nexstar 6SE and also did some webcam planetary imaging.

I've also tried a home made barn-door tracker with my dslr and a 50mm lens for widefield.

The dark side has drawn me deeper in and I now have a megrez 72 and my recently purchased modded 1100d.

Going to take it easy with this and see how far I can go un-guided.......................but I can see Mr PHD standing there staring at me

There are so many different ways of imaging and I'm sure you'll work it all out.

Again , good luck

Regards

Neil