This is more of a little peek than it is a final image post...
I was only able to get 33x180s subs before clouds ruined my night, however I was pretty astonished with the result given only 1hr 39min of data.
My intention is to get about 10hrs on this, and then 'go from there', however, if 1.6hrs looks like this, I think I might get away with considerably less integration time than I first imagined.
Potentially, my best galaxy image ever, already...
Equipment:
Askar 120 APO + 1x Field flattener
Player One Artemis-C Pro (IMX294)
Player One Filter Drawer
Player One OAG + Sedna M (IMX178)
Player One UV/IR Cut
Emcan Astro EM31 Pro harmonic mount.
No Astrobin link yet as this is just a glimpse at what I'm working on.
This image is at 50% scale, with and about 30% cropped off the original frame...
Galaxies are the most exciting objects to image IMO, they are just so "cosmic" hit it man, hit it, lots of back ground fuzzies to capture in that field too
Alex,
Very good image of the Sculptor Galaxy ( aka Silver Dollar , Silver Coin , Caroline’s )
Resolution is top notch from your rig
You must have had some good conditions for such short integration. At 10hrs it will be a cracker !
Well done !!
My only observation which is always subjective is that colour has a slight tinge of green about it.
Galaxies are the most exciting objects to image IMO, they are just so "cosmic" hit it man, hit it, lots of back ground fuzzies to capture in that field too
Mike
Agreed mate - being locked into my super wide field 65mm APO for nearly a year now has really starved me of the opportunity to shoot galaxies... So I figured now with a 5" APO, I'd have a go at something different! Impressed would be an understatement... I'm going to hit a few more now after seeing how this has played out!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Startrek
Alex,
Very good image of the Sculptor Galaxy ( aka Silver Dollar , Silver Coin , Caroline’s )
Resolution is top notch from your rig
You must have had some good conditions for such short integration. At 10hrs it will be a cracker !
Well done !!
My only observation which is always subjective is that colour has a slight tinge of green about it.
Cheers
Martin
Thanks Martin - Resolution is at 1.14"/px, and the seeing here the past few days has been among the best we've had in a long time (high 1.8" to low 1.9")
The green is likely due to a few clouds that rolled in (my colourblind eyes can't see the green - but I'll assume that casued it...)
Quote:
Originally Posted by gregbradley
Lots of detail in that one. Just needs more hours as you already know. I agree, it's showing a lot for only 1:39 hours. It's worth pursuing.
Greg.
Thanks Greg, The original was definitely a little starved for data - but I was very impressed to get AN image at all in 1.6h, let alone one of the better galaxy images I've ever made...
I added another 68 subs last night - we're at 5hrs now... Image below!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Leo.G
Only 33 x 180 second subs?
That's an amazing image!
Thanks Leo! Yep, 33 was all the sky would allow before the clouds rolled in and ruined my night - but last night was beautiful and I got another few hours... I would have stayed up longer, but having to work means I need sleep, and it being school holidays means the rig can't stay out in the yard while I sleep!
Quote:
Originally Posted by TrevorW
Great effort so far
Thanks Trevor! more to come!
Quote:
Originally Posted by telecasterguru
The colours look quite good and the image is amazing for the time taken. Really wonderful.
Thanks mate!
Here it is with 100x180s subs.... The background has a real silky feel to it now, and the faint fuzzies are working their way out!
I'll double it again and think that will do it! 10hrs looks like it will be HEAPS!
Exceptionally happy with this result... Brisbane had clouded in, but I'll be putting together a few ideas for galaxies to image over the new moon period. NGC300 and NGC55 spring to mind, but maybe NGC1365 will be my next big one...
Yeah Paul - look, having been as 'old school' as I am, seeing a ~5" triplet APO for less than $2400 with a reportedly brilliant 3.5" focuser and a dedilcated flattener for only $300 extra, to say I was feeling a little dubious about it would be an understatement (and having owned WO FLT110 (TMB/LZOS optics), TMB 80/480 and an AP Starfire 130) I will say I had my expectations well under control - and had reserved myself to the fact that I was 'settling' for whatever quality I the scope provided, based on the very low price...
Does the 120APO compare to the Starfire 130? I think if you put them on a test bench together, the starfire would destroy it, however, when you're imaging under ~2" seeing conditions on average, I doubt you'd ever notice the differences between them... and I think it would optically hold its own against the WO FLT110 I had... Build quality wise, it's certainly at or above the WO and the TMB scope - again, the AP... I dunno, maybe its rose coloured glasses, but the Starfire seemed like it was just more lovely than anything else...
A lot of reviews will say that the scope is amazing 'for the price'
I would say its amazing, in spite of its price. It is FAR better than it has any right to be at this price bracket.
For me, there was a LOT of deliberation... Based on what I knew I was happy to spend I was looking at:
the Askar 107 and 130 PHQ scopes, and 120 and 140 APO's.
There are next to no concrete reviews on the 107PHQ, and despite my 65PHQ being exceptional, with no reviews, spending 3k on a scope was less than ideal... and the 120 is bigger, and has more reach, for nearly $600 less (after adding the flattener) and has numerous AMAZING reviews.
the 130PHQ has amazing reviews, more aperture and reach, but its slower at nearly f/8, and you're looking at a different size of scope going to a 130 f/7.7 quadruplet over a 120 triplet... Oh, and nearly $1k more expensive.
Then the 140APO... well... fully extended for imaging its nearly 1.3m long but 140mm f/7 for just over 3k with the flattener was tempting... But again, no reviews, and the spot diagrams compared to the other 3 were quite average...
All I knew was that I wanted a LONG focal length, a dead flat field (over my small sensor) a decent wack of aperture to resolve a bit more detail, but retain the portability of my rig... So after a lot of umming and ahhing, I pulled the trigger on what turned out to be the cheapest scope in the comparison, and I'm 100% glad I did...
It's brilliant... each sub that rolls in, I litterally look at the screen and think "HOW?".. Then when you first hit STF after integration... wow...
I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the scope at a moments notice, however, if you have the budget for the AP SF130, TEC110/140 or Tak TOA130 - Do it.... I bet they will outperform it when your seeing is sublime...
I've recently acquired an Astrotrac and will be keen on getting it out to some friends/acquaintances properties where the nights are dark and tiger snakes roam (I hope their eyes light up with a red light) to do some nebula imaging. I haven't done any since my 35mm days and that's a LONG time ago now (though I still have all of my gear, Nikon F601 and F801 in new condition and all of my old Nikon lenses fit my D810 (cheapskate, I don't shave or get hair cuts either, equal parts cheap and lazy).
I'm currently working on fitting a remote focus to my little 80mm Megrez (original semi APO model (whatever that means)) and spent considerable time last night finding a balance point with my D810 and necessary spacer/adapter (my design and very heavy/strong) all set up as per imaging with it.
I also have an 80-200 f2.8ED lens which cost me a fortune back in 1990, the model before the tripod shoe unfortunately, 16 element glass unit. I've been doing a lot of research and that's a good set-up with the camera on the astrotrac for Orion but I also believe I have to stop it down. I have a modified EQ5 Pro (my mods including tapered roller bearing) but it's not so light and portable to carry out to where I can see beyond neighbouring trees.
Watch this space!
They won't be the quality others here get but hopefully I'll eventually get some nice stacks, eventually...
They won't be the quality others here get but hopefully I'll eventually get some nice stacks, eventually...
Its so important to remember that comparison is the theif of joy in times like this though!
I am absolutely guilty of comparing my astrophotography to other peoples and becoming disillusioned with it (hence, taking a nearly decade long break from the hobby at one point).
These days, while I'm still constantly looking at other peoples images, and I'm able to celebrate with them when they produce something really special, I am now capable of looking at my own images in isolation, and while they may never be the sort of quality that you see from other people on this forum or on astrobin, they are mine, and as long as I see progress in my images from one month to the next - im the happiest man alive...
Don't let comparison steal away the joy of creating images of the universe!
Its so important to remember that comparison is the theif of joy in times like this though!
I don't have that problem, I admire the high quality of work here (I think it's more than admiration) but also appreciate the fact many members are working with equipment I could only ever dream of owning. I've been on a disability pension for over 30 years coming from a managerial position on $150K+ (early 90s) annually, dropping down to $12K annually overnight. I'm always extremely happy with I get and often surprise people considering the equipment I'm playing with.
I get immense joy out of seeing the beauty and quality of other peoples work and have a lot of respect for what goes into it, time and dedication as well as equipment but I get the same amount of joy out of my lesser quality images which I post on non related forums and share with friends locally and around the world and they all like them. There's always the satisfaction of having gotten the images myself.
I'd love to get the quality of what I see here (I'm in absolute awe of what members post here and have the highest respect for their abilities) but I also know there's going to be certain limitations. Throw in the fact I'm stupid and colour blind (red green) and my processing is never going to match that of people who remember the steps and can see the colours.
I do the best I can with what I have and have them printed and hanging on my walls as do many people I know (having a genuine Kodak photo kiosk with 12x8 capabilities helps (all given to me by the local pharmacist when both printers died and he couldn't sell the set-up to try and recoup some losses)). My son and I stripped both printers right down, found and rectified the faults Kodak couldn't or wouldn't find and use it frequently for all of my stuff. It came with the computer, Kodak kiosk, software and large and regular format printers (plus photo scanner and several boxes of paper and ribbons for both printers (dye sublimation printers)) Kodak 8800 large format and 6850 EXTREMELY complex printer which will do up to 6x8.
He even gave me a pair or working spares he had in his rental storage shed when he sold his pharmacy a while back. Spares are hard to find and complete printers I can strip are extremely useful, both have considerably more wear than the pair in the cabinet.
Many years ago I had another member on a big, non related forum criticise my image of Saturn taken through an 8" Newtonian and comparing it to another Saturn image taken by an astronomer with an 8" Newtonian. Yes, I loved the other guys image then looked into his equipment, his camera was over $50K, his dome and mount were also top level (mount was $30K odd and other things price wise, I used a $200 used GSO, an EQ3 Pro guided mount carrying twice it's payload and at the time a Philips spc900 web cam. I mentioned the differences and told the other guy he was basically uneducated in the use/equipment, etc), comparing a novices images taken from his back yard to a top level professionals images taken in a commercial observatory. That wasn't comparing apples to apples.
Same member wanted to set up a unit on the balcony of his apartment in Spain from memory and have it follow the features year round without having to touch it. He wouldn't accept that it was an impossible task.