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Pages: << 83 | 84 | 85 | 86 | 87 | 88 | 89 | 90 | 91 | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 100 | 101 | 102 | 103 | >> (show all) haytor Pooh-Bah Reged: 11/29/07 Loc: Smethwick near Birmingham UK. Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: Peter9]       #5602527 - 01/03/13 08:41 AM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   love the Mars image oracleman, both poles and some nice surface detail showing, very well done. A good M1 shot milby in a wider field capture, as Tel says it wont show great detail with regards to its filiments but the overall capture remains good showing its nebulosity,i like it. best regards, Tom. Post Extras:       ghataa professor emeritus Reged: 06/20/11 Loc: Central, NJ Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: Peter9]       #5602552 - 01/03/13 08:55 AM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Great Saturn images guys!! Very impressive. To Tel's point, one thing I did not appreciate when I entered imaging as a hobby was the "need" for a variety of focal lengths to suitably frame targets. I have spent most of my time in the 50-600 mm range, largely due to my comfort level with the CG5 and getting all the bits working. Lots of objects work well at 600 mm or below for me but many do not. For example, I personally don't find star clusters pleasing (M13, M92 etc) at 600 mm. When I get a higher capacity mount, the 2000 mm or focally reduced 1260 mm of the 8SE OTA will be a real treat when doing long exposures on smaller targets. However, there is plenty to keep my busy at the shorter focal lengths for now and it is more forgiving when guiding!! Best, George Post Extras:       haytor Pooh-Bah Reged: 11/29/07 Loc: Smethwick near Birmingham UK. Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: ghataa]       #5602625 - 01/03/13 09:49 AM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Great discussion this,Tel`s points are all well made and correct,matching targets to our respective set up FOV`s in advance, is often overlooked at the time of imaging, and can lead to disapointment when we discover a target is either too large or too small to fit nicely into a FOV of our individual set ups. Being aware of that information now though,its a simple matter of using the software that Tel mentioned, in checking what targets will sit nicely into our respective FOV`s. Aside from that though,i myself am not put off targeting small targets such as M1 or M57 the ring nebula,as i personally understand that although i might not capture very fine or great detail in a wider FOV, its still nice to capture these targets in the wider field to put them into perspective with the night sky. There are also many large targets that are simply far to large to fit into my FOV, with these targets, i look for A.O.I. (Areas of interest)which close up, can show much finer detail such as that in the Rosette, dark lanes of matter and Bok globuals, ect. Of course in an ideal world, we could each afford various set ups to cover all size targets,but to do that, i would have to sell all my children and grand children, plus my great grand child.I would keep my wife as she makes great gravy. best regards, Tom. Edited by haytor (01/03/13 09:51 AM) Post Extras:       milby super member Reged: 03/11/12 Loc: Indiana, USA Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: haytor]       #5602759 - 01/03/13 11:15 AM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   One of these days I'll get the camera down to the prime focus and start that ordeal, but as it is right now I can wheel the scope out and be ready to image in just a few minutes. That's a major plus when it's 11 degreees F! My plan is to canvass all that I can with the Hyperstar from my latitude then move on to other means. I kind of like the contextual aspect of the smaller objects adrift, as it were. Post Extras:       Tel Postmaster Reged: 03/31/06 Loc: Wallingford England Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: milby]       #5603163 - 01/03/13 02:51 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Hi Milby, I fully understand your comment and completely respect your view ! I confess I have never owned nor had access to the use of a Hyperstar but can well imagine that once set in position with the accuracy it demands, I too would be extremely reluctant to remove it casually before I had exhausted, (at least), most of its unique potential to my satisfaction. Best regards, Tel Edited by Tel (01/03/13 06:17 PM) Post Extras:       Tel Postmaster Reged: 03/31/06 Loc: Wallingford England Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: oracleman]       #5608443 - 01/06/13 01:54 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Quote: Mmmm viewing fantastic Tel's Jupiter image I have a question about 8se azimutal mount... Is better have a equatorial mount? Maybe azimutal mount can *blur* image a little? I allways had that misgiving... Also I attach old image from past mars oposition. Configuration is nexstar 8se, spc900, and ultima barlow x2 (and quite good seeing ) Thanks in advance! Sorry, Oracleman, my apologies for not responding earlier. pure oversight on my part ! Firstly, thank you heartedly for your comments on "my Jupiter", but in fact it was actually imaged by my good friend and CN colleague, Mushroom Bill, (Andy), also processed by him and with only my "finishing touches" added ! To try to answer your question though, there is no doubt that a worm driven German equatorial mount will out-perform with greater consistency that of the spur driven 8SE mount. However, this is not such an issue when creating short videos, such as your (and my) Philips SPC900NC webcam produces. Thus, one objective in this case, is primarily to reduce the amount of backlash within those spur gears to a minimum. Secondly, and in order to keep the planetary image on the screen of the lap top, (minimise drift, which is prevailent on this type of mount resulting from the inherent backlash)), I would tend, (for the sake of image detail) to increase the focal length of the 8SE by a factor of X2 (i.e. with a X2 Barlow lens), but be reluctant to exceed this: again to minimise on screen drift. (If the imaging conditions are with you, you can always modify the final size of the image at the processing stage). Also in terms of reducing drift, set your frame rate to about 10 or 20 fps: (too many frames per second will likely cause artefacts to appear within the image, (noteably "Onion Rings"), and keep the exposure time reasonable: 2 minutes should suffice, (bearing in mind that if you're imaging Jupiter, its rotation is rapid enough to cause image blurring if the exposure time is prolonged much above this). Thirdly, I'd recommend you stack your frames in Registax and initially process the stack there. If you have more processing software such as Photoshop available to you, then take the processing thereafter further into that. (Failing the availabilty of Photoshop etc. you can always use the free software processing program "Gimp" to good (final) effect. Finally, even if you think you are satisfied with the image you have created, go back over it and try "tweaking" it further to see if you can gain something even better. Experimentation is great fun ! Hoping this helps, but if you do have further questions please let us know. Best regards, Tel Post Extras:       Tel Postmaster Reged: 03/31/06 Loc: Wallingford England Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: Tel]       #5609074 - 01/06/13 07:17 PM Attachment (22 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   By the way, taking a look at your image of Mars and manipulating it in Photoshop a little, can I assume it was taken sometime early in 2012, (ca. March ?), when it was not that well displayed, as I too found when I tried to image it around that time? Nevertheless, you have captured the Syrtis Major well and both the waxing and waning polar "ice" caps, illustrating that much can still be done even when these objects are not well placed. Many congratulations ! best regards, Tel Post Extras:       milby super member Reged: 03/11/12 Loc: Indiana, USA Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: Tel]       #5619737 - 01/12/13 07:59 PM Attachment (21 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Well, the skies have been dreadful in my corner of the globe so I've taken another crack at M42 processing and Mask techniques in PSE. Edited by milby (01/12/13 08:01 PM) Post Extras:       CelestronDaddy sage Reged: 08/22/09 Loc: Central Texas Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: milby]       #5619814 - 01/12/13 09:09 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Impressive! Post Extras:       nomosnow sage Reged: 03/21/11 Loc: Fort Saskatchewan,Ab ,Canada Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: CelestronDaddy]       #5619975 - 01/12/13 10:59 PM Attachment (17 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Here is my first attempt at a Jupiter video . I used my Nexstar 8 SE OTA on my CG-5 mount and the Neximage camera and a 2 times barlow. I enjoyed the motion! John Post Extras:       Tel Postmaster Reged: 03/31/06 Loc: Wallingford England Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: nomosnow]       #5620179 - 01/13/13 04:40 AM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Congratulations, Nomosnow ! For a first attempt at video making, this is superb. (Something I've never undertaken, would like to, but don't know how) ! Best regards, Tel Post Extras:       Tel Postmaster Reged: 03/31/06 Loc: Wallingford England Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: Tel]       #5620182 - 01/13/13 04:50 AM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Also, congratulations, Milby, on the rework of your M42 image ! Yes, with a similar weather pattern over here, reviewing and trying to improve old images is the only thing preserving my sanity ! I am trying to make notes this year on how often we see the Sun for any prolonged length of time. So far this year, today will likely be the third time in 13 days. The first was on the first of January, the second on the nineth ! (It's not doing my Vitamin D synthesis any good at all) Best regards, Tel Post Extras:       CelestronDaddy sage Reged: 08/22/09 Loc: Central Texas Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: nomosnow]       #5620339 - 01/13/13 09:17 AM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   nomosnow - Very nice! Post Extras:       milby super member Reged: 03/11/12 Loc: Indiana, USA Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: CelestronDaddy]       #5621891 - 01/13/13 11:10 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   LOL, Tel. I've read so much about the Herschels over the years and often wondered how they managed to canvass the sky so thoroughly given their obvious hardship from the weather in England. I always hover over their spot in Westminster Abbey when I get to London. Anyway, hope it breaks for you soon, my friend! Post Extras:       cpl43uk sage Reged: 02/09/08 Loc: Bristol, UK Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: milby]       #5622072 - 01/14/13 02:54 AM Attachment (14 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Let me bring down the discussion a notch or two! Thought I would show you an image I captured yesterday of AR1654 from iphone video mode and registax/photoshop. I attach the phone to a 2" diagonal of my ALT-AZI 8SE with (literally), a piece of plumbing, some sticky-back plastic and a couple of rubber bands! Eyepiece was the 8mm stop of a baader zoom and used a UHC filter. Video was about 1 min long, then translated .mov into .avi file (cost some resolution) and the used Registax to develop the image. Ported this into photoshop and played with layers. I was impressed with the level of detail you can pull out of the scene with such a simple set up and it's a great -yet -easy- way to learn some skills in astrophoto-land. Post Extras:       milby super member Reged: 03/11/12 Loc: Indiana, USA Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: cpl43uk]       #5623604 - 01/14/13 10:55 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Chris, That is cool as hell! I got some shots of the Venus transit from the eyepiece with my phone and, though not nearly as detailed as yours, they are surprisingly good. Congrats! Post Extras:       Maverick199 Postmaster Reged: 02/27/11 Loc: India Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: milby]       #5627506 - 01/17/13 06:54 AM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Milby, Chris, Tel, some great images and processing to boot. Specially Tel for taking the time to explain in detail which is helpful to me as well. Post Extras:       milby super member Reged: 03/11/12 Loc: Indiana, USA Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: Maverick199]       #5631497 - 01/19/13 12:39 PM Attachment (10 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Mosaic of two Rosette images from 1/17/13. HA filter. Processed in Maxim DL and pixinsight, with final conversion to format in PS Post Extras:       Tel Postmaster Reged: 03/31/06 Loc: Wallingford England Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: milby]       #5631793 - 01/19/13 03:47 PM Attachment (8 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Hi Milby, A great mosaic and a lovely image to boot ! Did you use that really excellent piece of software "Microsoft Ice" which "Maverick" (Haseeb) brought to the forum ? So saying, I took some seven segments of the full moon some years ago in order to practise my skills in mosaicking via a processing program known as Photo Impact 8. I was somewhat successful but in some cases, I,(and of course others), could still see the "stitch" ! Haseeb's offering on the other hand, eliminates this completely. Unfortunately, due to my poor calculating, my segmentation of this full moon was incomplete and a small portion appeared to have been omitted. (See attached). However, I now know, thanks to our friends and colleagues, Haytor and Mushroom Bill, what happened to it ! Best regards, Tel Edited by Tel (01/19/13 03:55 PM) Post Extras:       Arthur Dent Galactic Hitch-Hiker Reged: 10/23/08 Loc: South Yorkshire, UK Re:NexStar AP Graduates Images and Discussions [Re: Tel]       #5631942 - 01/19/13 05:47 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Gosh darn it Milby. Those stunning images of yours are enough to make anyone else attempting astro-imaging to simply give up! Another cracking shot. Art Post Extras:       Pages: << 83 | 84 | 85 | 86 | 87 | 88 | 89 | 90 | 91 | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 100 | 101 | 102 | 103 | >> (show all)

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