Diffraction spikes

[spanky]

How do you like yours?

Straight up and down, or tilted, or are you not that bothered?

I've been doing all mine dead square with my camera in the same position, partly because I prefer them looking neat, and partly because there's no need to take flats after every session!

[ollypenrice]

I like mine to not be there! I really don't like them. We may be used to them but they are artefacts. The other thing is that if you want to combine data from a different scope you are going to have a tough old time of it...

But when F ratio fever runs its course I suppose I will have to learn to love them. Or would OO make me an AO10 with plane glass 'spider?' Actually I'm not joking...

Olly

[tmarkuk]

Protostar make curved spiders if you don't like spikes, personally I quite like them but I don't really care what orientation they are. The primary aim for me is to frame the object and it's not always possible to align the spikes neatly whilst framing larger objects neatly in my fov.

[Shibby]

Personally I guite like them too. I also always line them up with the frame - they're inevitable with my scope so might as well make a feature of them. The can get a bit too much with brighter stars though, even with short subs. See my Pleiades pic: http://stargazerslounge.com/imaging-deep-sky/121244-pleiades-reprocessed.html