Jump to content

SkySurveyBanner.jpg.21855908fce40597655603b6c9af720d.jpg

M81 M82 over the roof of my house

lensman57

By lensman57
in Getting Started With Imaging

Recommended Posts

lensman57

lensman57

Posted
Posted

Hi,

This was taken a couple of nights ago during the early hours of the evening before clouds, wind and rain  arrived. As both M81 and M82 were relatively low and over the roof of my house I only gave it 240s per sub, 36 were taken, 31 were stacked . The capture was quite noisy and with gradients galore as my wife kept the lights on in the kitchen and the living room. No,  better not argue if you know whats good for you. Any how I hope that you enjoy it. WO ZS71 @ F4.7, Atik 428EX C, Idas P2, HEQ5 Pro. The scope was not balanced :embarassed: so the star shapes are not brilliant. Flats and Bias but no Darks. processed in StarTools and tweaked in PS.

Regards and happy new year to all,

A.G

post-28808-0-42003600-1388622125_thumb.p

Link to comment
Share on other sites
lensman57

lensman57

Posted
  • Author
Posted

esc

Thats just amazing! What set are using? Telescope, mount ,cam...etc?

Thank you,

The details were in the post but, the scope was william Optics ZS71 with the WO 0.8 FF/FR. The camera was an Atik 428 exc and the mount was a modified HEQ5 PRO. Guiding was through the Altair 60mm,  ASI 120 MM and PHD guiding.  As I mentioned earlier in the rush to set up I forgot to balance the scope so I have poor star shapes but at this moment with all the storms and wind  we have had for over 3 weeks any thing is better than nothing.

Regards,

A.G

Link to comment
Share on other sites
lensman57

lensman57

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Hi lensman,

Good job.

I see you used startools. I have played around and I think it's very good. What do you make of it?

Paul.

Hi Paul,

Thank you for your kind comments. As for StarTools, well I do have PI, and also NEB3 but StarTools is my main processor. It can do most of the stuff that PI does but in 1/3 of the time, it is  a bit unconventionl as it is a dedicated AP processor from ground up  so there is nothing that can be carried over from say PS but once you get the hang of it then it just gives you very good results. As with any other AP software the better the subs and the higher the S/NR the better the results. It is by no means a fire and forget type of software as some people have hinted in fact there is quite a lot of control over the parameters to experiment with. The are a couple of the aspects of it that I have not come to terms with and the wipe module is one of them, and this is only because of my lazyness to experiment and learn but otherwise it is a very powerful piece of software  at a ridiculously low price. Ivo is also very proactive with his support and he even offered a personal tutorial for a couple of difficult captures that I had.

Regards and Thanks to all.

A.G

Link to comment
Share on other sites
narrowbandpaul

narrowbandpaul

Posted
Posted

Hi AG

Ivo is very good at writing software and helping people with it. It's a big job for just one person. I like the programme. On trial I found it easier and more effective than my current processing. I hope he continues with it's it does most of what PI does for a fraction of the cost. I think if more folk knew about including some of the big wigs then that would raise its profile.

Paul

Link to comment
Share on other sites
lensman57

lensman57

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Hi AG

Ivo is very good at writing software and helping people with it. It's a big job for just one person. I like the programme. On trial I found it easier and more effective than my current processing. I hope he continues with it's it does most of what PI does for a fraction of the cost. I think if more folk knew about including some of the big wigs then that would raise its profile.

Paul

Hi Paul,

You are too right, I hope that I am not going to cause offence to anyone but at times there seems to be a bit of innocent snobbery going on with seasoned imagers as to the usage of software or hardware. To me this is a hobby, a very expensive and enjoyable one and at times frustrating, like when we are having such wonderful clear skies at moment, LOL. Any piece of software that does not cost the earth and can help me process the  normally very poor data that I get is a great bonus. I don't know if many people realise that IVO also has a huge input in APT, another cracker of a piece of software that is almost free, well it is if one is stingy about paying £12.00 for a license. I think that he needs all the support that he could get.

Regards and clear skies,

A.G

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Yoddha

Yoddha

Posted
Posted

There is a small coincidence in the names and in the area :) The StarTool author's name is also Ivo, a great guy that lives in Australia. I don't have input to his project and live in Bulgaria :) APT and StarTools has no other connection, than the astro photography :D

Thank you for your kind words!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
lensman57

lensman57

Posted
  • Author
Posted

There is a small coincidence in the names and in the area :) The StarTool author's name is also Ivo, a great guy that lives in Australia. I don't have input to his project and live in Bulgaria :) APT and StarTools has no other connection, than the astro photography :D

Thank you for your kind words!

I do apologise, it was my mistake, it seems that to be a great guy and write excellent software one has to be called IVO. I take my hats off to you all.

Regards,

A.G

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue. By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.