What a Pursuit! - Forums

Topic starter

Aug 6, 2023 · Edited: Aug 6, 2023

I'm sure every professional, amateur and beginner astrophotographer has been in this place. It's really frustrating. I spent a lot of money on great equipment and hundreds of hours learning how to do astrophotography. Between the San Francisco fog, the California heat and the Oregon wildfires, I simply can't get out to image.

I know my complaints are diddly-squat compared to those living in a refugee camp, in Ukraine or in Phoenix, Arizona, but it sure is getting to me that so many things beyond my control are preventing me from imaging. I'm grateful I have friends and family and music. I just want to be outside imaging again!

jerry

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Matthew Proulx

Aug 6, 2023

Pretty much everyone in north america is feeling your pain.

Sean Mc

Aug 6, 2023

Well lets do storytime

In 2020, I decided that I would buy a telescope and attach my a7rii. I knew nothing. NOTHING!!! So i went and got some bad advice from a local telescope retailer and went home with an ES ar102 on a brand new meade lx85 mount. My god, it’s painful just thinking back…

Next up was learning how to attach my camera. M42, m48, m54, this thread, that thread… then i learn about light pollution lol.

ok so i buy a cls filter. Next I need some way to control everything. Now sitting outside at -20 didn’t seem fun to me so i bought a raspberry pi and a copy of stellarmate. What a mess that was. In the short periods of time that stellarmate didn’t crash, i managed to learn what polar alignment was :/

i’m now a year in and I haven’t taken a single image. (Mind you I’m learning on my own part-time)

well, the lx85 is… special? When was this hand controller crap designed, 1980? That combined with the dec backlash led me to purchase a stepper/belt mod. It’s about this time that I learn that my telescope really can’t support my camera at zenith. That and the difference between an achromat and an apochromat.

so new es ed102! Life got in the way for a while, and I finally get around to mounting the stepper mod on the mount. Cleaned the mount, regreased, and fought with stellarmate again. Grr!!!

ok fine. Zwo doesn’t support sony cameras.
february 2023 i cave and buy an asiair plus, 294mm pro and a 7 position filter wheel with zwo filters and a zwo eaf.

now we get 3 months of cloud :/
and i learn about the need for field flatteners lol. And imaging speed.

and i havent done an image yet.

so the right thing to do is buy a shiny new flt91 with flat6aiii !!!
and an AM5!!!!! And more cloud!!!

what a mess. The first copy had collination issues. The AM5 however was guiding at 0.3-0.5! The asiair plus was in a different league from the stellarmate. Wo asked for the lens cell back. Screw that. Thankfully my retailer took the scope back and gave me another copy. I wasted a couple of months on that scope.

same story with the new flt91 :/ oblong x shaped stars that moved as i changed the position of the flattener. This scope was supposed to be capable of full frame flatness and I couldn’t get more than a couple of central stars pinpoint. Again my retailer was generous and took back the scope for a full refund.

so… i decided that instead of using the ed102 that I had, i would get a “petzval” scope. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ An askar 65phq.

that scope is so easy to use! Finally after all those struggles and money wasted I can image without hassle. First stack posted here a little while ago. (Pixinsight is a whole other story…)

hmm i wonder how the es ed102 and the lx85 mount in the basement would work lol.

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Dave Rust

Aug 6, 2023

I feel the same way. I can say, though, that 2019-2022 was darn clear in Indiana and I could image three times a week. So one has to hope such skies will return as the wildfires shrink.

However, climate changes are a source of worry.

SemiPro

IOTD Staff

Aug 6, 2023

Having a blast up here in the Great ~~White~~ Smokey North with @Matthew Proulx

NeilM

Aug 6, 2023

Sorry to hear, Jerry. I live one and half hours north of you in Santa Rosa and I feel bad saying that for the last month we have had clear skies and beautiful cool evenings virtually every day. Right now my rig is capturing images under perfect skies (until the 90% moon comes up!)

The only thing that is limiting my astrophotography is my need to catch up on sleep a few times a week!

Let me know if you want to come a little north some time.

Neil

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Jerry Gerber

Topic starter

Aug 6, 2023 · Edited: Aug 6, 2023

Sorry to hear, Jerry. I live one and half hours north of you in Santa Rosa and I feel bad saying that for the last month we have had clear skies and beautiful cool evenings virtually every day. Right now my rig is capturing images under perfect skies (until the 90% moon comes up!)

The only thing that is limiting my astrophotography is my need to catch up on sleep a few times a week!

Let me know if you want to come a little north some time.

Neil

Thanks Neil,

That's very generous of you. Where do you usually image in Santa Rosa? My daughter lives there so I do come up regularly. I usually go to a spot in Mendocino for the past 2 months, but this month may be difficult if it's smokey up there, which I am hoping ti won't be.

Jerry

Jerry Gerber

Topic starter

Aug 6, 2023

Having a blast up here in the Great ~~White~~ Smokey North with @Matthew Proulx

Yikes, that chart says it all. The very technologies that are giving us the ability to image deep space objects from our backyards are a product of the fossil fuel era that is disrupting our planet's ability to support and sustain life. How ironic.

I've been reading that the real fire season, at least here in Califronia, is going to start late September-early October this year because we had such a wet winter and the snow is still melting. But when all the snow melts and everything dries out, uh-oh....

Engaging

NeilM

Aug 7, 2023

Jerry Gerber:
Sorry to hear, Jerry. I live one and half hours north of you in Santa Rosa and I feel bad saying that for the last month we have had clear skies and beautiful cool evenings virtually every day. Right now my rig is capturing images under perfect skies (until the 90% moon comes up!)

The only thing that is limiting my astrophotography is my need to catch up on sleep a few times a week!

Let me know if you want to come a little north some time.

Neil

Thanks Neil,

That's very generous of you. Where do you usually image in Santa Rosa? My daughter lives there so I do come up regularly. I usually go to a spot in Mendocino for the past 2 months, but this month may be difficult if it's smokey up there, which I am hoping ti won't be.

Jerry

I image in my driveway or backyard. I'm in Northwest Santa Rosa where it is dead flat. I do have some trees on the edges of the property but I'm fortunate to live on 5 acres so I can view virtually anything that is more than about 10 degrees above the horizon.

Neil

Joe Linington

Aug 7, 2023

Well lets do storytime

In 2020, I decided that I would buy a telescope and attach my a7rii. I knew nothing. NOTHING!!! So i went and got some bad advice from a local telescope retailer and went home with an ES ar102 on a brand new meade lx85 mount. My god, it’s painful just thinking back…

Next up was learning how to attach my camera. M42, m48, m54, this thread, that thread… then i learn about light pollution lol.

ok so i buy a cls filter. Next I need some way to control everything. Now sitting outside at -20 didn’t seem fun to me so i bought a raspberry pi and a copy of stellarmate. What a mess that was. In the short periods of time that stellarmate didn’t crash, i managed to learn what polar alignment was :/

i’m now a year in and I haven’t taken a single image. (Mind you I’m learning on my own part-time)

well, the lx85 is… special? When was this hand controller crap designed, 1980? That combined with the dec backlash led me to purchase a stepper/belt mod. It’s about this time that I learn that my telescope really can’t support my camera at zenith. That and the difference between an achromat and an apochromat.

so new es ed102! Life got in the way for a while, and I finally get around to mounting the stepper mod on the mount. Cleaned the mount, regreased, and fought with stellarmate again. Grr!!!

ok fine. Zwo doesn’t support sony cameras.
february 2023 i cave and buy an asiair plus, 294mm pro and a 7 position filter wheel with zwo filters and a zwo eaf.

now we get 3 months of cloud :/
and i learn about the need for field flatteners lol. And imaging speed.

and i havent done an image yet.

so the right thing to do is buy a shiny new flt91 with flat6aiii !!!
and an AM5!!!!! And more cloud!!!

what a mess. The first copy had collination issues. The AM5 however was guiding at 0.3-0.5! The asiair plus was in a different league from the stellarmate. Wo asked for the lens cell back. Screw that. Thankfully my retailer took the scope back and gave me another copy. I wasted a couple of months on that scope.

same story with the new flt91 :/ oblong x shaped stars that moved as i changed the position of the flattener. This scope was supposed to be capable of full frame flatness and I couldn’t get more than a couple of central stars pinpoint. Again my retailer was generous and took back the scope for a full refund.

so… i decided that instead of using the ed102 that I had, i would get a “petzval” scope. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ An askar 65phq.

that scope is so easy to use! Finally after all those struggles and money wasted I can image without hassle. First stack posted here a little while ago. (Pixinsight is a whole other story…)

hmm i wonder how the es ed102 and the lx85 mount in the basement would work lol.

That ed102 with a 0.8 reducer should pair beautifully with your 294m. I use thé cheaper SVBony 102ed doublet and in bin1 mode it samples at 0.84 arc seconds and makes great, detailed images. It does require consistent guiding around 0.6 but I have been very happy with it.

Helpful

Jerry Gerber

Topic starter

Aug 8, 2023

Jerry Gerber:
Sorry to hear, Jerry. I live one and half hours north of you in Santa Rosa and I feel bad saying that for the last month we have had clear skies and beautiful cool evenings virtually every day. Right now my rig is capturing images under perfect skies (until the 90% moon comes up!)

The only thing that is limiting my astrophotography is my need to catch up on sleep a few times a week!

Let me know if you want to come a little north some time.

Neil

Thanks Neil,

That's very generous of you. Where do you usually image in Santa Rosa? My daughter lives there so I do come up regularly. I usually go to a spot in Mendocino for the past 2 months, but this month may be difficult if it's smokey up there, which I am hoping ti won't be.

Jerry

I image in my driveway or backyard. I'm in Northwest Santa Rosa where it is dead flat. I do have some trees on the edges of the property but I'm fortunate to live on 5 acres so I can view virtually anything that is more than about 10 degrees above the horizon.

Neil

Are you in Bortle 5 or so? I'd love to come up and image with you sometime Neil! I can visit my daughter during the day. I finally got out last night in my backyard for the first time in months. The fog finally didn't roll in all night. I managed to get only 90 minutes of data, but it's a start:

https://www.astrobin.com/13yfxo/

Well Written Respectful Engaging Supportive

NeilM

Aug 8, 2023

Jerry Gerber:
Jerry Gerber:
Sorry to hear, Jerry. I live one and half hours north of you in Santa Rosa and I feel bad saying that for the last month we have had clear skies and beautiful cool evenings virtually every day. Right now my rig is capturing images under perfect skies (until the 90% moon comes up!)

The only thing that is limiting my astrophotography is my need to catch up on sleep a few times a week!

Let me know if you want to come a little north some time.

Neil

Thanks Neil,

That's very generous of you. Where do you usually image in Santa Rosa? My daughter lives there so I do come up regularly. I usually go to a spot in Mendocino for the past 2 months, but this month may be difficult if it's smokey up there, which I am hoping ti won't be.

Jerry

I image in my driveway or backyard. I'm in Northwest Santa Rosa where it is dead flat. I do have some trees on the edges of the property but I'm fortunate to live on 5 acres so I can view virtually anything that is more than about 10 degrees above the horizon.

Neil

Are you in Bortle 5 or so? I'd love to come up and image with you sometime Neil! I can visit my daughter during the day. I finally got out last night in my backyard for the first time in months. The fog finally didn't roll in all night. I managed to get only 90 minutes of data, but it's a start:

https://www.astrobin.com/13yfxo/

Your image is great especially considering that you only have an hour and change into it! According to Light Pollution Map I am Bortle 5 but my neighbor is Bortle 4 - so take your pick! Would be fun to image together one night. If we go deep into my field we can image in any direction. However the driveway has a nice hard surface with good views to the North and East.

Neil

Respectful Engaging Supportive

NeilM

Aug 8, 2023

Jerry Gerber:
Jerry Gerber:
Sorry to hear, Jerry. I live one and half hours north of you in Santa Rosa and I feel bad saying that for the last month we have had clear skies and beautiful cool evenings virtually every day. Right now my rig is capturing images under perfect skies (until the 90% moon comes up!)

The only thing that is limiting my astrophotography is my need to catch up on sleep a few times a week!

Let me know if you want to come a little north some time.

Neil

Thanks Neil,

That's very generous of you. Where do you usually image in Santa Rosa? My daughter lives there so I do come up regularly. I usually go to a spot in Mendocino for the past 2 months, but this month may be difficult if it's smokey up there, which I am hoping ti won't be.

Jerry

I image in my driveway or backyard. I'm in Northwest Santa Rosa where it is dead flat. I do have some trees on the edges of the property but I'm fortunate to live on 5 acres so I can view virtually anything that is more than about 10 degrees above the horizon.

Neil

Are you in Bortle 5 or so? I'd love to come up and image with you sometime Neil! I can visit my daughter during the day. I finally got out last night in my backyard for the first time in months. The fog finally didn't roll in all night. I managed to get only 90 minutes of data, but it's a start:

https://www.astrobin.com/13yfxo/

Your image is great especially considering that you only have an hour and change into it! According to Light Pollution Map I am Bortle 5 but my neighbor is Bortle 4 - so take your pick! Would be fun to image together one night. If we go deep into my field we can image in any direction. However the driveway has a nice hard surface with good views to the North and East.

Neil

Jerry, one more thing... I have seen quite a few collaborative projects on Astrobin, and therefore I was thinking it might be fun to try a collaborative project where we both collect data on the same object and then merge the data. I see that you have a Skywatcher 100ED with a 550mm FL and a nice Optolong filter, whereas I have on loan (and perhaps permanently), a StellarVue SV102T APO triplet with a FL of 714mm. I guess that each of our scopes has different strengths and weaknesses and and we might be able to get a great final image by combining the results!

Neil

Well Written Respectful Engaging Supportive

Jerry Gerber

Topic starter

Aug 8, 2023

Jerry Gerber:
Jerry Gerber:
Sorry to hear, Jerry. I live one and half hours north of you in Santa Rosa and I feel bad saying that for the last month we have had clear skies and beautiful cool evenings virtually every day. Right now my rig is capturing images under perfect skies (until the 90% moon comes up!)

The only thing that is limiting my astrophotography is my need to catch up on sleep a few times a week!

Let me know if you want to come a little north some time.

Neil

Thanks Neil,

That's very generous of you. Where do you usually image in Santa Rosa? My daughter lives there so I do come up regularly. I usually go to a spot in Mendocino for the past 2 months, but this month may be difficult if it's smokey up there, which I am hoping ti won't be.

Jerry

I image in my driveway or backyard. I'm in Northwest Santa Rosa where it is dead flat. I do have some trees on the edges of the property but I'm fortunate to live on 5 acres so I can view virtually anything that is more than about 10 degrees above the horizon.

Neil

Are you in Bortle 5 or so? I'd love to come up and image with you sometime Neil! I can visit my daughter during the day. I finally got out last night in my backyard for the first time in months. The fog finally didn't roll in all night. I managed to get only 90 minutes of data, but it's a start:

https://www.astrobin.com/13yfxo/

Your image is great especially considering that you only have an hour and change into it! According to Light Pollution Map I am Bortle 5 but my neighbor is Bortle 4 - so take your pick! Would be fun to image together one night. If we go deep into my field we can image in any direction. However the driveway has a nice hard surface with good views to the North and East.

Neil

Jerry, one more thing... I have seen quite a few collaborative projects on Astrobin, and therefore I was thinking it might be fun to try a collaborative project where we both collect data on the same object and then merge the data. I see that you have a Skywatcher 100ED with a 550mm FL and a nice Optolong filter, whereas I have on loan (and perhaps permanently), a StellarVue SV102T APO triplet with a FL of 714mm. I guess that each of our scopes has different strengths and weaknesses and and we might be able to get a great final image by combining the results!

Neil

I sent you a private message..

Jay Hovnanian

Aug 8, 2023

I don't often chime in on Forum topics, and perhaps like many others, in seeing a topic like this, I would normally bite my lip ... but to @Jerry Gerber , @smcx and others, so many of us have and are feeling the pain. I came back to Astrophotography after a lengthy absence, and with a reasonable understanding of telescopes and mounts and cameras, but man did I struggle [i]!![/i] But for the help and support of new friends and a strong mentor, I might still be at square one .... So, let's all keep supporting each other and growing. It's a WONDERFUL hobby, and we have here a wonderful community.

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