M16

M16 (The Eagle Nebula) has got to be the strangest thing out there… and probably the most famous as well. This image consists of 15x30sec. Subs unguided. Captured low in the horizon, through the light polluted skies of Bentonville. Post processing was a nightmare on this target and I’m not too impressed with my Photo Shop skills.

The Learning Curve

My second DSO imaging attempt...

M42, M33 and NGC 869 all are 30 sec. subs unguided. M42 is a total of 5 images at 15x30 subs each, then merge using Autostitch to create this partial mosaic. I was hoping to complete the mosaic, but I ran out of steam at 5:30am this morning.

The Ring and Dumbbell Nebulas

Here are my first long exposure attempts. Both images are 25x15sec. Subs stacked. I am pretty please with the final outcome considering all the guesswork I had to take not knowing the camera and software. Hopefully on my next attempt, I will do a better job at polar alignment and balancing.

The Ring Nebula and a Point & Shoot

After weeks of lousy weather ending with the grand finale of Gustav, I finally got some afocal imaging with my new reflector. This 10” Newtonian F/4.7 is a true power house and the mount I’ve attached it to is solid as a rock. This afocal image consist 10x15 sec. subs unguided using our point & shoot camera and a steady pix mount. Stacking the 10 subs in Registax4 I used PSE 2.0 for final processing. This scope and mount will definitely keep my busy for years to come, especially once I begin upgrading my imaging equipment to match its true performance…