Any Astrophotographers/imagers here?

NickK

NickK

NickK

Caporegime
Joined
13 Jan 2003
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Interested in this as a possible hobby so I thought I'd throw open a thread.

Although the planets are good for watching, I think I'd quickly move to deep space objects (DSO).

Thinking about a Vixen VC200L with a tracking mount (possibly second hand). I know they've very good for DSO imaging and that they're not as good for planets compared to some. Then later add a CCD.

I've looked at large aperture refractors (Meade and Vixen) but I have a feeling that, whilst superb for planets, they'll struggle with DSOs (ie taking hours rather than minutes for a shot).

Heres an example of what a VC200L can do with a CCD attached (click for source and location for full size images):
 
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I assume you have been to www.stargazerslounge.com ?
A welath of information! The standard seems to be an HEQ5 mount, and then build on that. Where are you located? If its anywhere up here, there is a starparty on in march (I think) at Kielder reservoir. There will be quite a few imagers up there!
 
PhillyDee said:
I assume you have been to www.stargazerslounge.com ?
A welath of information! The standard seems to be an HEQ5 mount, and then build on that. Where are you located? If its anywhere up here, there is a starparty on in march (I think) at Kielder reservoir. There will be quite a few imagers up there!
Click to expand...

I'm doon sooth. I notice on SGL there's a southern imaging meet being planned too. I also know there's a Reading club which I'd look to get involved with. :D


ScarySquirrel said:
Wow, what an amazing photo. I am interested, but never done it, and know nothing about it.
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Simply put you need to use a long exposure time through a large aperture. Then accumulation of photons then finally start bringing out the major detail. The fun is that the earth rotates so you need to track the subject accurately and the atmosphere can also cause oddities.
You can use a camera but the best images are done using a cooled CCD camera with filters being used for consecutive exposures which are then combined on a computer.
 
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wow, thats an incredible picture, I would love to take something like that! How do you find the object in the first place, surely its such a narrow part of the sky you need to be ludicrously precise? And how do you adjust the focus for something so far away?
 
dan1903 said:
wow, thats an incredible picture, I would love to take something like that! How do you find the object in the first place, surely its such a narrow part of the sky you need to be ludicrously precise? And how do you adjust the focus for something so far away?
Click to expand...

Finding the object is actually quite simple with the latest mounts. More difficult is tracking the object accuratly enough to ensure that during your 40 minutes of exposure for a single frame doesn't move about too much!
The latest mounts use a computerised system built into the hand controller, but you can also use a second camera to gide the first by tracking a seperate bright object and it auto corrects as it goes!

Its is insanely expensive, just look at the camera prices
http://www.firstlightoptics.com/products.php?cat=129
I would really recommend that shop as well, give them a ring if you need advice, James and Steve are also amateur-astronomers, and like to test out their equipment. Very knowledgeable, and very friendly and helpful!
 
Always found this a really interesting area, and would love to do more, but it'll be a while before I can throw my money at it. For now I'll stick with doing starfields and the like with my D40.
 
Picture in the OP is amazing, would love to do something like that. Have always fancied a decent telescope but I'm not at a particularly dark site so it's always put me off. We hope to move to a more rural spot so I'd love to look more into this once that happens.
 
IMG_7945_3_4_fusedsmall.jpg


This being a HDR attempt at the moon with its natural colors boosted. Shot with my canon 400D in my 200P Dobsonian scope.

milkyway3.jpg


This was taken again with my 400D but with a Sigma 30mm 1.4 lens, about 25 second exposure I think, any longer and star trails would be apparent. Quite heavily processed but you can almost make out the milkyway, I think ;)

jup0000.jpg


Finally my only decent shot of Jupiter, taken with a modified Microsoft Lifecam again in the same 200P Dobsonian scope. About 10 seconds of video, with the best frames stacked to enhance the detail.

Sadly my scope hasn't got an electronic mount so any deep sky stuff is pretty impossible, but to be honest the amount of photographic data you need to stack a decent photo is crazy, literally hours worth of images to produce a single image.

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Also I have some videos of the moon shot with my webcam and my scope;


Theres a few others on my channel.
 
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Great photos!

Looked up the 200P.. nice scope. Dobsons seem a little too unwieldy for me although I've seen someone make a set of wheels and a frame for carrying it. He leans the telescope over and the wheels touch the ground and away it goes!


 
Ive got a 200p, and along with the mount and equipment required, its a major operation to get it in the car and away somewhere. It gets used twice per year as I do not have a back garden, and clear skies are few and far between!
 
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