CCD Well I Wasn't Expecting This?

[Wetsparks]

Finally got a chance this week to have a long play one evening with me scope (SW 150p) and camera Orion C3.

Much to my surprise when the scope was just pointing at a blank bit of sky the image from the camera was just a greyish nothingness, I was kind of expecting a dark blank image. As soon as a star or planet (Jupiter) came into view the picture changed to the item in a dark sky. Am I missing something here or is this 'normal'?

[oldpink]

were you in focus ??
were you able to see anything
if I have issues I point at something big & bright like the moon to sort it out

[guiseppe]

Sure does sound like a focusing issue. At least if a CCD works anything like a DSLR.

[Uranium235]

Depends on whether you were properly in focus in the first place, and how long your exposure time is. Jupiter is very bright, so it will easily appear in very short subs (sub 1s). Typically, I can get a few bright stars with 0.5s exposures, and the longer you expose for, the more stars you will get.