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My Moon

moon night sky

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23 replies to this topic

#1
BonOlgirl

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One of my most favorite things to photograph is the moon with my digiscope setup... :wub: Hope.jpg



#2
morticiaskeeper

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What setup do you use?

I'm never happy with the sharpness when I put the camera onto the scope.

#3
BonOlgirl

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I have a Celestron Ultima 80 Straight Spotting Scope. I also have focus issues. I attach the camera body right onto the scope with a T-Adapter. When I get as sharp as I can, I take it into Camera Raw and sharpen it up. That usually takes it a bit sharper. I'm wondering if focusing would be easier with a more powerful scope....what do you think?  B)



#4
morticiaskeeper

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I use a more powerful scope, and still have problems.!

I use a skywatcher 1145p reflector, although, for the moon, I have to leave the outer lenscap on due to brightness.

The camera t mounts to the focuser in place of the eyepiece.

I've also used a webcam for image stacking, but nothing comes out as good as the eyepiece image

#5
BonOlgirl

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I'd really like to see some of your moon pics.

 

I've been trying to see and photograph Jupiter, but my scope is just not powerful enough.

 

Gonna have to find what kind of set up will take good pics, and maybe someday be able to afford one. 



#6
morticiaskeeper

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I'll look for some pics tonight

#7
BonOlgirl

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Looking forward to seeing them...



#8
morticiaskeeper

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They're not that good!

It isn't the power of the scope that's important, it'd the aperture.

My 25mm eyepiece gives 40x on my scope, that's too much for Andromeda Galaxy, 20x would be better.

If I were to buy s scope today, I would want at least 200mm aperture

#9
BonOlgirl

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Very interesting....I need to study this topic...thanks!



#10
morticiaskeeper

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Three of my moon pics

I think this one was taken with my Sigma 70-300 lens, I was shooting in jpg then, so there isn't any editing.
image.jpg

These two we're taken with the D40 t-mounted to the focuser of a Skywatcher 1145p reflector telescope. This is a 1000mm focal length scope, but is only 500mm long, so there is a 2x Barlow built in.

These were taken in RAW, so have been doctored in Darktable.
image.jpg
image.jpg

Jupiter is pretty easy to see with my scope, on a good day you can see the bands and the moons, even the spot sometimes. Taking a picture is very difficult.

I have taken video of Jupiter using an Xbox webcam, modified to remove the IR filter and back lights. The video frames were then stacked in Avistack, but I was never happy with the results.

I've recently found a new site with less light pollution, so will have another go sometime.

#11
BonOlgirl

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I really like these! I think it's really interesting how that "pole" moves around to different sides at different times of the day.

 

It is so very difficult to get a good focus. I do what I can to sharpen up in camera raw.

 

I think the one you took with the 70-300 lens is an amazing shot!



#12
morticiaskeeper

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Thanks.

I'm not happy with them! Just a bit too fuzzy. All were taken at home, where the light pollution is terrible.

The one taken on the 70-300 was one of about 50, I was hoping that a stacked image would improve things, but it didn't come out any better.

I've made a bracket to fit my 450mm (300 ff) to the top of the telescope, so it will track around the celestial pole.

All I need now is good seeing conditions.

#13
BonOlgirl

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Not sure what a stacked image is....sounds like something I might want to try....can you explain?



#14
morticiaskeeper

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If you take a sequence of still images, or a movie, you stack each individual image on top of each other, like transparencies.

Because any noise in the image is random, stacking a number of images will increase the bits that should be there, the subject, and decrease the bits that are only in in one of the images, the noise.

All these amazing pictures you see of planets & galaxies are made like this.

The images have to be aligned perfectly, but the software takes care of that.

It works a bit like HDR or focus stacking, but rather than increase tonal range, or focus, it brings out the dimmer points of light until they are more visible, because you are stacking possibly hundreds of transparencies.

Gimp & Photoshop will stack and align multiple pictures. Luminance HDR for Linux will stack, as will the Ale command line program for Linux. I don't use Windoze but Registax seems to be popular. Avisync will take a movie file and stack each frame.

Hope that explains things.

#15
BonOlgirl

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I have an idea...

 

I'm curious about how different or similar the moon looks between here and halfway across the globe....

 

Was thinking maybe we could compare moon pics here...

 

Thoughts?



#16
morticiaskeeper

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Haven't even seen the moon for three nights! Forecast is bad for another week :-(

#17
BonOlgirl

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Ick! If you think about it, let me know when your weather clears up, then hopefully my weather will cooperate as well.



#18
morticiaskeeper

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It's looking better tonight, just saw the ISS go over!

#19
BonOlgirl

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What are you referring to by ISS? The Comet ISON? I haven't been able to see it yet.



#20
morticiaskeeper

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Sorry - the International Space Station. No sign of the moon at the moment. It should look the same from both sites, don't think it rotates in front of us.





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