Go Back   IceInSpace > General Astronomy > General Chat

Reply
 
Thread Tools Rate Thread
  #21  
Old 18-10-2018, 08:29 AM
xelasnave's Avatar
xelasnave
Gravity does not Suck

xelasnave is offline
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Tabulam
Posts: 16,866
I got the bug when I put a little 2 meg camera to the EP and obtained a respectable shot of the Moon.

The fun I had processing that and similar images I will never forget.

I find the challenge something else given I am just a mug and not all that good with computers.


I find it exciting to capture objects that I can not see visually.

I did enjoy searching for bright or dark spots with binos and then taking photos to "discover" what that patch held.

I do think the game has the advantage of pushing one past their comfort zone.

I know in the last year I have become more patient and now able to manage the times when something does not work.

The big thing it has done for me (again) has got me up off my back and doing physical things that I have good excuse to avoid.

Building my "cube" was perhaps the most demanding thing I have ever done...given my sever phisical limitations..I did need a walker to go out ...it was constructed in the garage and dragged piece by piece up the stairs over a long period when once I could do such a job in a weekend.

And I am sure my legs have improved due to the forced effort.

Getting the narrow band set up took me from finding objects manually to, hopefully next time out, using plate solving.

I also got great satisfaction pulling down my mounts and getting the best performance possible from them.
The first site to cover a eq6 hot up was in Spanish and it was so good to go thru that experience.

And I get so much joy from wide fields using a cheap camera and lens that you would snap family photos.

I love the processing side very much...I turn up the colour or select a small section of a photo and blow it up and up to see just how far you can go.

None of those images are fit for posting but they are not for anyone else but me.

I also like how you are driven to get every little part of the act perfect and the little inventions you generate.

When I came up with the baffled dew tube it was so exciting to find out later that Hubble used the same idea or after thinking about a dragonfly set up to see someone did it and it was so good.

For those folk who find it frustrating or think its beyond them I say that it is only a matter of patience and persistance.

And as to the cost the fact is you can do excellent work with a dslr on a sky adventurer mount...even a static tripod really.

Also try not to compare your efforts with others as that will leave you mostly disappointed...

Taking up astrophotography is one of the best things I have ever done.
Alex
Reply With Quote
  #22  
Old 18-10-2018, 09:13 AM
Terry B's Avatar
Terry B
Country living & viewing

Terry B is offline
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Armidale
Posts: 2,789
Quote:
Originally Posted by RickS View Post
I enjoy most aspects of AP but I find processing the most challenging and interesting part. Image capture is pretty cool too when you're chasing something that hasn't been imaged (well) before.

Cheers,
Rick.
Interesting.
Mine is the opposite.
I find the processing tedious but enjoy being next to the telescope seeing the images appear on my screen.
Maybe this is why I mostly do photometry and spectroscopy. The results are immediate.
Reply With Quote
  #23  
Old 18-10-2018, 09:21 AM
graham.hobart's Avatar
graham.hobart (Graham stevens)
DeepSkySlacker

graham.hobart is offline
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: hobart, tasmania
Posts: 2,214
astrophotography etc

I'm with Terry B about this, though it is nice to see pretty pics and make an annual calender, I enjoy the peaceful part of sitting in my dome with a glass and a scope and watching the skies and the scope and the titillation of the image down load. For me it's become my zen moments- away from work kids and house, under a clear sky, peering into infinity, thinking big concepts. Having a nice pic to show the folks is a bonus.
Graz
Reply With Quote
  #24  
Old 18-10-2018, 09:24 AM
astro_nutt
Registered User

astro_nutt is offline
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Melbourne
Posts: 1,013
I did visual Astronomy for 17 years before I moved to Astrophotography. For me it was the right time to try, so it started with me learning to use a camera then taking short images of the Moon. From there I built a scope for the camera and was rewarded by details I could never imagine. It provided me with images that would normally be obtained from a larger scope. I kept it simple, using the limitation of what I have without too much technology.
I find it rewarding when the raw images are processed and it's just "WOW!" So for me, I'm happy with the results I've achieved and better opportunities await me.
And like visual Astronomy, it is trial and error, but the rewards
outweigh the efforts.
Cheers!
Reply With Quote
  #25  
Old 18-10-2018, 10:54 AM
Stonius's Avatar
Stonius (Markus)
Registered User

Stonius is offline
 
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Melbourne
Posts: 1,495
Just starting out on that journey myself, but I enjoy the fact that the images can be manipulated to bring out various aspects of the details, and that they are permanent, not ephemeral. So what I see in the planets, for example as they boil away, or in a nebula with averted vision, becomes solid and unmistakeably 'there'. I also like that there is a record of what was up there that night. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy visual too. The dream is to become proficient enough that I can set the photography rig going and step away to do visual until I feel like going to bed. Or even, maybe some nights to have my rig 'tag along' cataloging and taking photos of the stuff I'm looking at visually. In this way it can work as a visual aid, where it shows details I may want to stretch my eyes to try and catch. In this case, the objective wouldn't be perfect imaging (more like 'Astrogram'), and would need careful use of an eyepatch to be worthwhile. Haven't actually tried it yet, but I think this could be fun.

But apart from that, there is a joy in being able to share what I'm seeing with other people, especially people who don't realise that you can see this stuff from earth with amateur gear.

I also like the technical challenge (and find it equally frustrating too). I like learning about new things, and learning new aspects of things I thought I knew about. For example, cameras are an entirely new ball game when you are talking about astrophotography.

I like experimenting with data, finding different ways to squeeze out better images.

By way of example, the other night, I screwed up completely and only managed to get a handful of L, R & G subs of M42. I thought I'd have to wait till next time, till I realised the blue was inherent in the luminance channel, and managed to pull an image from the data that was far better than I imagined I'd get.

Another aspect of it that I like is the fact that it saves you time at the eyepiece. I took a lovely crescent moon shot the other night. Identifying all the craters and finding out how big they were would have taken ages. But with a quick photo, I can pore over it to my hearts content later on, and pick up on things I might have missed out on in the moment at the eyepiece.

That's my 2cents, anyway. Wait - we're talking about astrophotography here. That's my $10,000 anyway. :-D
Reply With Quote
  #26  
Old 18-10-2018, 11:07 AM
RickS's Avatar
RickS (Rick)
PI cult recruiter

RickS is offline
 
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 10,584
Quote:
Originally Posted by Terry B View Post
Interesting.
Mine is the opposite.
I find the processing tedious but enjoy being next to the telescope seeing the images appear on my screen.
Maybe this is why I mostly do photometry and spectroscopy. The results are immediate.
Quote:
Originally Posted by graham.hobart View Post
I'm with Terry B about this, though it is nice to see pretty pics and make an annual calender, I enjoy the peaceful part of sitting in my dome with a glass and a scope and watching the skies and the scope and the titillation of the image down load. For me it's become my zen moments- away from work kids and house, under a clear sky, peering into infinity, thinking big concepts. Having a nice pic to show the folks is a bonus.
Graz
Hi Terry & Graz,

I can understand that and I really do enjoy time under dark skies, especially with a few other like-minded individuals to chat with (and share wine & cheese, perhaps) while the scope is whirring away. It's just that I find the capture part becomes fairly mechanical and that processing is more challenging... for me at least.

I guess we're all different. I believe there are actually people who would rather look through an eyepiece

Cheers,
Rick.
Reply With Quote
  #27  
Old 18-10-2018, 11:11 AM
Stonius's Avatar
Stonius (Markus)
Registered User

Stonius is offline
 
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Melbourne
Posts: 1,495
I should also add, that I've always been bothered by the stuff I can't see. I'm sure people have felt the same. That's why aperture fever exists. Photography enables me to overcome those limitations.

Admittedly, some of my friends wonder why I do it when I could just look at the same pictures in a book, but there's something different about doing it yourself - getting intimate with the subject in a way you wouldn't with a cursory glance at a finished picture.

Besides, if people weren't to take pictures of things other people have taken better pictures of, Tourists wouldn't bother taking cameras with them on holiday. It's about your personal experience with that famous person place or thing.

Markus
Reply With Quote
  #28  
Old 18-10-2018, 04:03 PM
Merlin66's Avatar
Merlin66 (Ken)
Registered User

Merlin66 is offline
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Junortoun Vic
Posts: 8,904
I’m with Terry, gave up on AP to focus on Spectroscopy and solar imaging.
What surprises me about people spending hours and hours taking an image, is the they don’t seem to analyse the data they have collected.
I hate to think of the comets, nova and variable stars that have been missed.
I suppose that’s the difference between taking pretty pictures and the science of astronomy.
Reply With Quote
  #29  
Old 18-10-2018, 08:54 PM
Slawomir's Avatar
Slawomir (Suavi)
Registered User

Slawomir is offline
 
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: North Queensland
Posts: 3,240
A fair point Ken about real science and just pretty pictures.

But I do not think that everyone would be finding much pleasure in systematical data analysis, graphs and error analysis after a busy day of demanding mental work. In the end astro is for the most just a hobby/passion. With its many forms, different people gravitate to different aspects of astro, depending on their circumstances and personal preferences.

Pretty pictures also have their place and IMHO an important role of inspiring and popularising astronomy by attracting attention of those who are not necessarily interested in looking beyond this blue rock floating through space. If it wasn't for pretty pictures, Hubble would have long been forgotten.
Reply With Quote
  #30  
Old 18-10-2018, 09:36 PM
lazjen's Avatar
lazjen (Chris)
PI cult member

lazjen is offline
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Flaxton, Qld
Posts: 2,064
It's been touched on by a few people here some of the reasons why I do AP. I do like to get the pretty pictures. At times I do enjoy the challenges of getting all the pieces in place to do the imaging as well - sometimes though I just wish it would all work so I can just get the data.

I'd like to do more than just AP and head into doing something scientific, but I do not realistically have the time for it while full time working - at least for the approach I've been using so far. I'm heading towards more automation and hope this might open up more opportunities for me to diversify.
Reply With Quote
  #31  
Old 18-10-2018, 10:25 PM
mynameiscd's Avatar
mynameiscd (Andy)
Registered User

mynameiscd is offline
 
Join Date: Jan 2017
Location: Langkoop, Victoria
Posts: 457
My first inspiration was in about 1975 and i was staying at my older cousins house and he had a simple reflector ( probably a Tasco ) an eq with a clockwork motor and a 35mm camera.
He took some shots of Saturn and then took the rest of the film of asteroids.
Next day i helped him develop the b/w film and he caught a pretty blurry image of Saturn but on one frame of stars there was a little line and that was the first image of an asteroid i saw.
He then explain the motion of stars vs the asteroid and why it was a little line not like any of the other stars.
Actually processing the photos and the explanation of how it all works sold the whole astrophotography to me but it took about 20 years to get started.
Now we are spoilt with digital and the type of images we get and processing tools that are cheeply available.
Im still a real beginner but having the enless resources available really helps you when sometimes it a bit daunting then you read somthing here of see a youtube video and it all make sense.
I am so glad my 14 year old cousin got me inspired when I was about 9.
By the way he's now a professor working at Lunt university in Sweeden with access to some pretty good astro gear but he's more into Visual Neuroscience - Computational Neuroscience - Biomimetics - Neuromorphic Engineering.
Maybe I'll stick to basic astrophotography for now.
Cheers
Andy
Reply With Quote
  #32  
Old 19-10-2018, 05:37 AM
Merlin66's Avatar
Merlin66 (Ken)
Registered User

Merlin66 is offline
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Junortoun Vic
Posts: 8,904
Suavi,
Agreed.
I was just suggesting one more step after acquiring the image....just check the field against a previous image ( or CdC etc) and look for changes...no mathematics involved just a bit of concentration for a few minutes.
Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools
Rate This Thread
Rate This Thread:

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT +10. The time is now 12:23 AM.

Powered by vBulletin Version 3.8.7 | Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Advertisement
Testar
Advertisement
Bintel
Advertisement