M3 Image

Thanks for the kind words guys. My location in suburban Dublin, and the limitations of the equipment (CG5 mount and micro four thirds DSLR), do restrict what what can be achieved, but brighter objects, like M3, are perfectly manageable. If I could achieve that kind of result fairly consistently, it would be very satisfying, and I would be kept busy for years to come. The next step is to try autoguiding, in the hope that fewer images have to be discarded. Longer exposure times would be great, but are impractical because of the light pollution. I am about to try a budget basement autoguiding setup using a webcam on a finderscope - I will keep you posted. There is still a lot to learn, e.g. about the vagaries of the CG5 mount, and the best methods for image processing, and I have lots of ideas to try out over the coming months. Thanks again for the advise and encouragement, the images posted by seasoned imagers like yourselves act as inspiration for beginners and set the standard that we strive towards.

Hi Martinus. I think the main problem is just the fact that only two 60 second shots were useable. With more subs you should see a massive improvement. Given that the Mak is "slower" than my Newt, the brightness of the image seems consistent with my experience, and you will probably need 50 or more 60 second subs to bring out the fainter stars in the cluster. What mount are you using? The long focal length of the MK67 poses quite a challenge. Even with my modest 1000 mm focal length up to half of my 60 second subs are unusable. The focusing looks good. If you don't already have one, I would recommend a Bahtinov mask - they are cheap, simple to use, and give excellent results. Looks to me like you are on the right track, I look forward to seeing more of your work.

Thanks Mike. I am using a LXD75 which didn't deal with a 13kph breeze too well. I'm aware that a long focal length is a limitation here as is the relatively large central obstruction on the scope. I must admit though that I'm pretty happy that I got an image at all given my previous frustrations with attaching the camera and bringing the image into focus. The unusable images seem to be a result of instability in the mount - shooting at ISO1600 introduces a lot of noise but I guess that's to be expected.

All this just makes me lament that I don't have a mount capable of carrying the SN-10.

Well done Mike, thats a stonking image. MUCH much better than the last one. Nice colour balance, stars are oerfect, well done on this.

Martin: Thats a grand image considering its just 2 x 60 secs. As you can see from Mikes adventures, there is a steep learning curve. You have taken another step so congrats.

Well done both.

Dave.

Mike, that a great improvement on your first shot, you certainly have stepped up another level so keep on pushing

Martin, I can only mirror mike's words, the more subs the better, a good start !

Keith..