First light with modified 300D: Horsehead/Flame

Last weekend I completed the 300D modification per Gary Honis' excellent Web tutorial ( ghonis2.ho8.com/rebelmod.html ) as well as the Russian firmware hack and changing the TC80N3 timer/remote to fit both the 10D and 300D. Tearing apart a perfectly good camera was pretty nerve-racking, not to mention precision cutting of a 27 x 19.6mm clear replacement for the IR blocking filter (ever go bonkers? :x ) -- but all turned out well and everything works. Uncorrected pictures are pink!

I got breaks in the clouds Tuesday and yesterday evenings and grabbed a total of 23 exposures at 2 minutes ISO 800. This is with the Orion ED80 refractor with IDAS LPS filter, autoguided on the main LX200 with ToUcam/GuideDog. Not the best HH, but the pic may help illustrate what this modification does for the camera's red sensitivity. For test framing I was picking up a clear horsehead and flame at 30 seconds with ISO 1600!

home.earthlink.net/~dslattery1/images/HHead_2-7_2-9-05_1.jpg

Just curious, are many of you browsing the Digital_Astro or ImagesPlus Yahoo groups? There are so many pioneering folks on there that pics like this pale (literally) by comparison, but those 2 boards are an education in themselves on digital imaging. I know Keith g. is lurking in there! Anyone else?

-- Denis Slattery

Excellent photo slattts. I have a photo of the same field taken with an unmodified Canon. Only 3 shots at 30 seconds each though. Now that I can track with GuideDog I shall do some 2 minute shots like you and see how an unmodified camera compares to the modified one.

By the way, I'm a member of every single astronomy related Yahoo group. Keeps me busy, reading the posts in the morning.

Hey Slattts, thats a cracking image, beautiful detail!

Johnmc.

Denis, That's a wonderful shot! Bet you need a degree in surgery to do that modification, I would'nt have the nerve for that yet

Keith..

Denis,
I'm impressed that you succesfully managed to modifty the camera, i think I'll hold off for a few years and get one on the cheap when they're a penny a dozen and modiify one then.
I haven't seen those groups before, I must check them out

Superb image Denis!!
Mind me asking, do u use Imageplus? If so, how do u find it?