98 replies to this topic

[Peter Besenbruch]

Nine minute exposure of the Orion Nebula region from a local park (Bortle 6 but with gibbous moon added). This was the first image taken by the third Vespera 2. Basically a demonstration that the scope could take pictures and that the optics were OK. Processed in GraXpert and GIMP with a fair bit of effort given to minimizing blow-out.

 

[Peter Besenbruch]

43 minute exposure of the Rosette cluster and nebula complex, combining 32min and 11min exposures, both taken with a nebula filter (which finally sorta started working). Processed in Siril (stacking and color calibration), GraXpert (denoising and stellar deconvolution), and GIMP (everything else). Taken in a Bortle 5 backyard with a slowly diminishing gibbous moon added to the mix. Clouds contributed to the short exposures.

 

This is a shorter exposure than the Rosette image I posted earlier, yet the use of a nebula filter changed how I processed the image. The earlier photo, taken without a filter, required separating out the stars, and beating the hell out of the nebula before it would look like anything. The image below was processed all of a piece. The above image was a mosaic (later trimmed); the below image is a lightly cropped standard image, and demonstrates the Vespera II's already wide angle capabilities without having to resort of mosaic mode.

 

Edited by Peter Besenbruch, 16 April 2025 - 05:46 PM.

[Eusty]

I own the Vespera Pro and love it. I want to find a software or app where i can take the TIFF files and stack them. I us an APPLE iOS iPAD. Can anybody comment on a software for a big inner that want to start stacking and recreating better photo’s.

Thanks,

[Peter Besenbruch]

I own the Vespera Pro and love it. I want to find a software or app where i can take the TIFF files and stack them. I us an APPLE iOS iPAD. Can anybody comment on a software for a big inner that want to start stacking and recreating better photo’s.

I use Siril to stack TIF files. It's a three step process. Convert the TIFs to FITS files. Register the FITS files. Stack the FITS files. Use "Save As" to save back to TIF, if that's what you want.

 

btw. I noticed you asked the same question in a bunch of threads. That's not kosher.

Edited by Peter Besenbruch, 17 April 2025 - 11:53 PM.

[Infiniumguy]

NGC 6960, Veil Nebula, Vespera 2, Mosaic, 2:35 integration, 678 10 sec subs. Bortle 4.5 skies. No filter. Very fortunate to have clear skies last night after many cloudy days and many more forecasted. I finally learned how to generate a plan using a Mosaic and it worked flawlessly. Previously thought I had to do initialization when first turning on the V2, but then learned that when using a planned session it automatically does the initialization just before starting the plan. Processed the .TIFF right out of the V2 using PI and Photoshop. Lots of challenges with a gradient I am yet to fully eliminate. I tried moderately successfully to use DBE, but need more work to get better with that tool. This is my final version 2 and I expect I can and will make it better with time. Extremely impressed with the detail in the image for such a short time on target. The full Veil nebula has a lot of nebulosity in the image and more than I could bring out on this version. 

 

I worked on it some more. For me this is a very challenging image to post process. It seems far more art than nebula. I'm learning and that's what's the most fun for me. 

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Edited by Infiniumguy, 03 May 2025 - 02:55 PM.

[Infiniumguy]

Back to the Veil Nebula last night. High clouds prevented as much clarity as the previous evening. I salvaged the Eastern Veil and processed it.1:45 total time. 633 10 sec subs. Bortle 4.5 skies. 

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[Infiniumguy]

M81, Bodes Galaxy and M82, Cigar Galaxy. Vespera 2, 3:42:10 Total integration time with 1333 10-sec subs. Standard FOV and Not-Mosaic. No filter. Bortle 4.5, but with a 89% moon. Not ideal for sure. Using the multi-night feature and expect to add subs next week as the moon becomes less visible. Processed in PI, Photoshop and LR Classic. 

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Edited by Infiniumguy, 09 May 2025 - 08:16 AM.

[Infiniumguy]

Follow up. I added 700 more subs last night. 5:44:30 total integration time and 2067 10 sec. subs. The darn moon is bright, but the V 2 did a good job of pulling in the M81 with pretty low noise. I can only imagine how much better this would be with dark skies. Again processed in PI, PS and a little in LrC. I hope to add 5 more hours in the near future and I'll update at the 10 hour point. I am pleased with the improvement over the previous image. Much more detail in the arms of M81. M82 does not seem quite as good to my thinking. The multi-night feature is a real winner for me. It seamlessly added subs to the previous session. I only use the .TIFF right out of the V2. With BlurXterminator it quickly sharpens the stars which are already pretty darn tight. 

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[Infiniumguy]

I'm probably the last person in the forum that's figured out you do not need the bubble level from Vaonis. Better late than never!!! Today I used the shelf in the "L" of the larger body piece on my Vespera 2 and just dropped my iPhone open with the "Measure" app on. Easy Peasy, Lemon Squeezy!!" I was careful to use the flat part and not have the camera lens outside edge in the way. Very easy. Anyone else doing this? 

 

I purchased the Vaonis Bubble Level that hooks into the USB-C port. It didn't work very well for me. Maybe my fumble fingers in the way. 

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Edited by Infiniumguy, 10 May 2025 - 05:52 PM.

[Peter Besenbruch]

I'm probably the last person in the forum that's figured out you do not need the bubble level from Vaonis. Better late than never!!! Today I used the shelf in the "L" of the larger body piece on my Vespera 2 and just dropped my iPhone open it with the "Measure" app on. Easy Peasy, Lemon Squeezy!!" I was careful to use the flat part and not have the camera lens outside edge in the way. Very easy. Anyone else doing this?

Actually, I have yet to level the Vespera 2 I have. I set it outside and initialize.

[Infiniumguy]

I did read that leveling is not very critical. I still do it. OCD in me. 😁

[Peter Besenbruch]

I don't level my Seestar or Origin, either. As for OCD, perhaps it's for people who like being organized and getting things done.

[Infiniumguy]

You’re right. I just don’t like leaving things to chance if I can avoid it. I was and am unsure how sensitive the Vespera 2 is to level. Anyone else ran any experiments on how sensitive level is? What I can say in my experience the V2 tracks very well. When I do BlurXterminator in PI it barely improves the stars. I also see very few artifacts around the edges when doing a mosaic capture. Field rotation artifacts are non-existent.

[Peter Besenbruch]

A little over an hour mosaic of a collection of galaxies in Leo. These are NGCs 3373, 3384 and M105 in the top, left portion of the image. M96 and 95 sit further down and to the right. Conditions were clear, but blasted by the full moon. Considerable gradient removal, and color balancing required. The usual programs, GraXpert and GIMP were used.

 

Edited by Peter Besenbruch, 13 May 2025 - 01:01 PM.

[chrisecurtis]

You’re right. I just don’t like leaving things to chance if I can avoid it. I was and am unsure how sensitive the Vespera 2 is to level. Anyone else ran any experiments on how sensitive level is? What I can say in my experience the V2 tracks very well. When I do BlurXterminator in PI it barely improves the stars. I also see very few artifacts around the edges when doing a mosaic capture. Field rotation artifacts are non-existent.

I have a very small bubble level on my tripod, and my lawn slopes in several directions! I have never done anything more than check that the bubble is somewhere in the middle by extending a tripod leg. It's not a scientific test, but I've never had more than a very occasional frame lost, and almost always due to passing cloud. 

I'd be pretty sure that the Vespera 2 does not use a level sensor: its initialisation is by plate solving: provided it's not a long way off, it can build an accurate model of the sky without knowing anything about the horizon.

[Infiniumguy]

I have a very small bubble level on my tripod, and my lawn slopes in several directions! I have never done anything more than check that the bubble is somewhere in the middle by extending a tripod leg. It's not a scientific test, but I've never had more than a very occasional frame lost, and almost always due to passing cloud. 

I'd be pretty sure that the Vespera 2 does not use a level sensor: its initialisation is by plate solving: provided it's not a long way off, it can build an accurate model of the sky without knowing anything about the horizon.

Thanks. It's pretty clear, too me anyway, that any effort towards a precise level is unnecessary for the Vespera 2. Duly noted and thanks for the comments on the topic. 

Clear skies, no wind, new moon, bottle 1, and a full battery charge to all of you. 

[Infiniumguy]

I keep adding subs and time to M81 hoping to improve the image quality. I'm about finished with this target for the season. Last night added  2:40 time and about 800 more 10-sec subs. Now totaling 10:39:10 and 3835 subs. I look back on my previous versions and gosh there's a lot of variation in color and detail although adding more subs does seem to help fill in some detail in the arms of M81 and color in the M82. All fun. Processed in PI, PS and LrC. Absolutely love the Multi-night observation feature in the Singularity app. It's a real winner for me. 

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[Peter Besenbruch]

A single pass mosaic of the Leo trio, processed twice each in GraXpert and GIMP. I applied a massive change in color temperature to get rid of the strong yellow cast.

 

[Infiniumguy]

Concentrating on M51, Whirlpool Galaxy. It's high in the sky and visible many hours of the night above my trees. This is the result of two sessions with total time of 6:06:20 and 2198 subs. Processed in PI, PS and a little in LrC. The most stunning thing to me was when I separated the stars it left 8 other galaxies visible in the starless image. Very small and in some cases very faint, but still this little piece of the sky pretty easily had 9 galaxies visible on the Vespera 2. Again, I'm in awe of the universe. 

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[Peter Besenbruch]

An update on my Vespera II. I received a second hygrometer and installed it, as the first one wasn't working. Unfortunately, the second hygrometer didn't work either. This means it is likely the the fault lies with the Vespera. I will have to contact Vaonis next week. That's three bad Vesperas in a row. At this point I can no longer recommend the Vespera II.

[Infiniumguy]

Peter. I’m truly sorry for your troubles. I couldn’t agree more. Vaonis does not deserve your business. They should take a return and give you a full refund.

[Astronotrip]

Some of my pics with the V2:
https://www.youtube....h?v=ENIeyV6zjaQ

 

[chrisecurtis]

Concentrating on M51, Whirlpool Galaxy. It's high in the sky and visible many hours of the night above my trees. This is the result of two sessions with total time of 6:06:20 and 2198 subs. Processed in PI, PS and a little in LrC. The most stunning thing to me was when I separated the stars it left 8 other galaxies visible in the starless image. Very small and in some cases very faint, but still this little piece of the sky pretty easily had 9 galaxies visible on the Vespera 2. Again, I'm in awe of the universe. 

I wrote about my "Vespera 2 deep field" image which captured hundreds of galaxies in one field.

 

Having struggled so many times in the past to even glimpse brighter galaxies, I am in awe of modern technology, and the sheer size and complexity of the universe that they can show us.

[Infiniumguy]

Chris,

I’m a relative newcomer to astrophotography after 6 decades of taking all kinds of photos of terrestrial subjects. Your article is very inspiring. As you said once you annotate the image you realize just how much you captured. It may not challenge the Hubble Deep Field image, but it’s your Deep Field image and that makes it very special in its own right. Thanks for sharing it. 
 

I have learned that Astrophotography is like golf - Perfection is unattainable! It is still very fun though and for me the Vespera 2 brings a high degree of satisfaction and very little frustration. Unlike golf for me often times!! 

[Infiniumguy]

I continue to add subs to M51, Whirlpool Galaxy, using the multi-night feature. I'm up to 9:27:30 hours and 3405 10-sec subs. It is very cool to me that I can do the multi-night feature and keep improving on the .TIFF I use. The first is the full field of view, non-Mosaic. then the zoomed in version on M-51. Like. Chris, I'm just kind of blown away with all the other faint galaxies in this image. Processed in PI, PS and a little in LrC at the end. 

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