Stargazer95050's articles with the keyword: mount

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  • So you want to be a Stargazer -- steps I would avoid & steps I suggest

    - 07 Jan 2014
    The tools like Vixen POLARIE, iOptron SKYTRACKER and the ASTROTRAC all have their use and fans. And they are capable to move a small camera setup and effectively eliminate startrails. They are small and comparatively easy to use but are quite expensive for what they can do. They also have limitations and here I want to point to the benefits of a real EQ mount. Some of these mounts cost about as much as any of these devices once you add up all the costs for the additional accessories.

  • What setup do you suggest, I should buy for Astro-Photography? #1, the Mount

    - 25 Mar 2015
    The biggest investment needed for astrophotography is _TIME_. It takes time to learn how to use the tools, time to get to places, time to photograph and time to learn from the mistakes and repeat that cycle. An astrophotography setup with lots of quality equipment isn't cheap but you may want to put it into perspective to other hobbies or to SLR camera equipment you already have bought.

  • So you want to -- get ready for FITS

    - 10 May 2014
    A standardized image format is something most users take for granted -- JPG, GIF, PNG and even TIFF are household names when it comes to (web)-images & editing. If you use a dSLR, you have gotten used to adding a tool or two, to process the Nikon or Canon RAW formats. With the astronomy cameras, the formats & necessary conversions become a real mess -- especially if you use a one-shot color "OSC" camera.

  • So you want to -- photograph a lunar eclipse

    - 31 Mar 2014
    For this article, I use the eclipse on April 15th 2014 as an example and as a location I have picked San Francisco. The path of the moon & the timing is dependent on your own location and you will have to make adjustments for that. Here are some examples and a bit of background of the various attempts : www.ipernity.com/doc/stargazer95050/album/389379

  • So you want to -- polar align your telescope

    - 26 May 2014
    Observing stars becomes easier if you don't have to constantly make adjustments. This is even more important, if you want to make long-exposure photos of the sky. The solution is simple & elegant -- the Earth rotates around it's axis and if you counteract that rotation, you keep looking at the same position in the sky. There are different names for solutions to do that, most notably an "equatorial mount". Barndoor- and other star-tracking accessories all use the same principle and require the same preparation steps -- THE POLAR ALIGNMENT