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Old 23-09-2018, 11:29 PM
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astronobob (Bob)
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Am Reconsidering the whole Astro thing.

Whilst I have had some fun for decades and a bit of photog success some years ago, I am drawing close to a conclusion about the whole astro caper.

In a nutshell, I am not that high tech savvy with programs etc, , no where near as dedicated as many/most here, and have other interests that will serve me better.

So, I will be considering selling up some (not all) of my kit/gear over the coming weeks.

Just sayin'
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Old 24-09-2018, 01:06 AM
DarkArts
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I guess you have to decide for yourself what your level of involvement will be, and what makes you happy. You've been a fantastic contributor over the years, so you certainly don't owe anybody anything.

One thing I would say, though, is don't make any decision in a rush. You might sell ... only to find yourself looking to buy similar equipment again a bit later down the track.

I don't know how much you get out to club nights and star parties, but maybe talk it over with a few other amateurs face to face ... to help crystallise your thoughts?
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Old 24-09-2018, 04:30 AM
glend (Glen)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by astronobob View Post
Whilst I have had some fun for decades and a bit of photog success some years ago, I am drawing close to a conclusion about the whole astro caper.

In a nutshell, I am not that high tech savvy with programs etc, , no where near as dedicated as many/most here, and have other interests that will serve me better.

So, I will be considering selling up some (not all) of my kit/gear over the coming weeks.

Just sayin'
It happens Bob. A recent health scare had me re-evaluating my involvement. With years (terabytes) worth of imaging data, I realised there was not much more I wanted to accomplish, and reprocessing would keep me busy for a long time anyway. I am now downsizing my equipment collection to the basics.
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Old 24-09-2018, 06:04 AM
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multiweb (Marc)
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It's much better to do something you enjoy across a wide range of activities and hobbies and most importantly staying healthy both physically and mentally. But to me looking up at the stars and the night sky will always be the ultimate chilling out. Astro photography is just something to do if you want to lose your sanity and pocket money really fast.
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Old 24-09-2018, 06:22 PM
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astronobob (Bob)
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Very true & thnx DarkArts, Glen & Marc.

I remember 25 yrs ago buying some plate glass & plywood building a few 6", 8"& 10" scopes from scratch, it was very rewarding as it was a rather rare activity.
Having always been a jack of all trades, anything and everything was keeping me interested.
When Dslrs came into the general populous 15 or so yr ago, Astro took on another turn up. It became exhilarating to go out west and capture the photons with a
simple guiding application and an ED80 on the Heq5p with a couple of cables and Windows Xp. By the way, I had only played with a puuta & learnt windows during
those times, never had any experience with puuta or even a keyboard prior that..

Now-a-days, Astro has spiralled to outrages levels, sophisticated programming, software, configuring etc etc, this I have found rather daunting, let lone expensive
in my situation, , & to go further into astro photog from Light Polluted suburban skies, & to run so many progs at once on my old astro lappy witch only
runs with a 1.8htz processor & 2G of ram, just doesn't cut the mustard, I need to find approx $800-1,000 just to upgrade the lappy,, an I5 with 8G ram don't
come cheap.
Add to this that my scopes, typically SkyWatches Newts which optics are ok for visual, but not great for mono imaging which enables the ability for fine details,
is a way 'overkill' unless I upgrade the scopes aswell, in my opinion, ,,, again $$ I just simply don't have !

I must add, that this does Not upset me, and I am Not complaining in anyway, I have only just found a limit to which I need to adhere to for this hobby to still exist
comfortably in my realm :-)
I have a few other projects I need to attend to aswell, which include: Camping, Building & restoring horse carriages, I have an old classic motorbike to restore
witch has been sitting for a few years, throw in my usual workshop capers/repairs/small welding projects etc, just to name a few.
On top of everything mentioned I also need to find $$ for another car or atleast do some major repairs, the engine is getting a little 'Tired' so to speak.
It still runs well, but starting to struggle with towing a loaded trailer or the campervan

In Conclusion : This thread is just mainly helping me come to terms with the reality. Also in a sense possibly giving others a touch of insight to a probable more common situation than is let known with this hobby, or any hobs for that matter.
I will still keep the Cosmo-Caboose (my roll away scope shed) with either the 10" or 8" newt & a colour camera with some LP filter to experiment with. It is also great to use visually after a bbq gathering
Keep it simple me thinks, no headaches, and looking forward to more happy days/nights
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Old 24-09-2018, 06:27 PM
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RickS (Rick)
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Hi Bob,

Do whatever you get the most enjoyment from right now and you can always come back to astro imaging in the future...

Cheers,
Rick.
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Old 24-09-2018, 07:27 PM
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xelasnave
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Hi Bob
I went through what you are experiencing.
But please think about this.
The fact it is now a challenge is at least one good reason to do it.

As to the money I am sure if you took the time to work it out you can do it.
I went for years without any computer using my phone only however once I got a new decent computer (now two one for captures one for processing) I realised the lack of a computer was all that was holding me back.
And so I started rhe long haul back.
Having a computer that would stack was my main problem...I left updating far too long.
Then things went crazy☺
The old scope needed replacing and so did my camera...I also neede a new mount really...and now I am trying to learn stuff I never thought I could manage and it is not easy but you break it down into little bits and it all comes together.
As to another car ... if you look around you can get a really good car for $2000.
Look for something that is out of rego as folk give them away.

I had every reason to give in but I am so glad I kept pushing.
I am old and with legs that are on fire all the time but doing all I have had to do over the last 12 months has been extremely beneficial.
Just think back to all the times the hobby gave you enjoyement.
I am now starting narrow band, getting ready to plate solve and learning various programs that really put me to the test.

How about this...stop and realise you can do it but it wont happen over night.
I expect you have stuff you can sell to use as capital and the funny thing is if you just chip away you can make it.

Dont let the advancing years cause you to become old and negative.
Just look into the future...you feel the keys of your new lappy as you guide your mount and camera and feeling happy that you have made dollars buying a good untegistered car and increasing its value simply by registering it and giving it the love the previous owner had lost for it☺
Or you could give up on a hobby that clearly you could really enjoy once you take on the challenges and beat them all.

Alex
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Old 25-09-2018, 07:41 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by astronobob View Post
I will still keep the Cosmo-Caboose (my roll away scope shed) with either the 10" or 8" newt & a colour camera with some LP filter to experiment with. It is also great to use visually after a bbq gathering
Keep it simple me thinks, no headaches, and looking forward to more happy days/nights

Good plan. I've been in and out of actively stargazing/imaging over the years - astrophotography seems to have become a bit of an arms race, with spiraling expenses and complexity. I'm going to leave my rather imperfect imaging setup as is, for catching the odd interesting phenomena here and there, and any further larger expenses will likely go towards a mobile visual rig, which I suspect will still be good in a few decades, whereas most of the electronic gizmos will have needed replacement a few times.....
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Old 25-09-2018, 10:01 AM
N1 (Mirko)
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Hi Bob, this almost reads like you've allowed technology and some "need" to stay up to date to get in the way of what you possibly came to the hobby for in the first place. This hobby does pose the danger of adding layer upon layer of technical complexity to an originally simple activity that required simple equipment. The thing is each of these layers will potentially remove you further from the original subject. People (not saying you) end up actually believing that fiddling with computers, hoarding expensive crap, hours of setting up and troubleshooting, looking at screens, processing etc is a requirement to do astronomy and/or recreational stargazing. Sometimes all that is part of the fun, but many times it just stands in the way of enjoying the night (or daytime) sky. Many people end up knowing more about the inner workings of equipment that will be obsolete in a few years than about the sky above their heads and that's just f'n sad.

I said "almost" at the start, and that's because you are planning to keep a scope, and to keep it simple so good on ya!
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Old 25-09-2018, 01:32 PM
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LewisM
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I image maybe once a month - twice on a good run. Sometimes I just prefer to do something else, but I never lose interest - I look at other's images, read a lot about imaging and astronomy in general etc.

One thing I realised years ago is do astronomy / astrophotography to please YOURSELF. You don't have to prove anything to anyone. If you haven't noticed, I don't take a darned thing about this hobby seriously, and love it to bits. MY images are for ME to enjoy - could care less what Joe Bloggs thinks of them. My visual observing I cherish for me and my youngest daughter - Daddy - Missy Moo time.

Do what pleases YOU - you don't HAVE TO anything.
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Old 25-09-2018, 02:12 PM
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cometcatcher (Kevin)
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Hobbies wax and wane. Astronomy definitely wanes in the wet season here in the tropics.

I used to fly model planes every calm morning for years, but now I couldn't be bothered. Yet my cousin is still at it. I might get back to flying one year. A goal is to build and fly something with me in it!

Anyway good luck with your future exploits, but keep your favourite telescope.
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Old 25-09-2018, 03:22 PM
glend (Glen)
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...... A goal is to build and fly something with me in it!

Thou shall be called Icarus.


Did I see you at the Birdman Rally in Melbourne?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=SwFdTmVRsY0
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Old 25-09-2018, 03:49 PM
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cometcatcher (Kevin)
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Thou shall be called Icarus.

Did I see you at the Birdman Rally in Melbourne?
Nah. But this is cool. Flying bathtub.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9x_Y19dSbY
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Old 25-09-2018, 09:03 PM
yoda776 (Matt)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LewisM View Post
I image maybe once a month - twice on a good run. Sometimes I just prefer to do something else, but I never lose interest - I look at other's images, read a lot about imaging and astronomy in general etc.

One thing I realised years ago is do astronomy / astrophotography to please YOURSELF. You don't have to prove anything to anyone. If you haven't noticed, I don't take a darned thing about this hobby seriously, and love it to bits. MY images are for ME to enjoy - could care less what Joe Bloggs thinks of them. My visual observing I cherish for me and my youngest daughter - Daddy - Missy Moo time.

Do what pleases YOU - you don't HAVE TO anything.
I tend to agree with you Lewis on this. I spend time with my two sons looking at the sky on odd occasions and imaging wise I am a beginner and take photos for me. My wife thinks they are great. I just enjoy the humbling feeling of looking up at the sky.

I think keeping that scope and roll off shed is a great idea Bob by the way
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Old 26-09-2018, 09:21 PM
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astronobob (Bob)
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Thanx all for your injections, inspiration & understandings.

I guess now, after time thunking, could well be seeing this hobbie as too competitive, I don't know why really, I doubt its looking at the forum, peeps Images etc, my main hassles are here, at home, like,
,
A) LP, am flat out finding the 5th star in the Sth Cross. So I need to 'in reality' go mono, but seems too much trouble, extra programmes, filter wheels, power and com leads, prog & Filters I know nothing about,,,; upgraded focusers with another lead/s and program/controller,,,; Multi heater-straps & controller, fans, , more leads,, Then connect mount to lappy, crypeeze, where does one start
,
B) Seeing is total rubbish 49 times out of 50 & only mid/ok the other night. Doing planet season and nothing good at all, whilst peeps from Brizz to the nsw/qld border on the same night are scoring great detail,,, It appears so bad here I dont see why I should do any imaging -- when the planets are hazy, dull, wasted, no detail, I go to the moon, and that is just as Sad, , I can see more details in a pair of Bino's
,
C) Scope configuring, focal train locations of filters between the chip and correctors, etc spacings rings, getting rid of the screw thumb method and replacing with solid screw-in fittings to rid slop etc etc, or find 5-10g for an F5 Tak
,
It just doesn't stop

Re; Competition, blow me down, reckon in just a few yrs time some young whipper-snapper will show me detailed panorama's of the milky way, eye-popping planets images and deepsky object he captured with his dam iPhone or what-have-you ...

Yeah, its a bit frustrating these days, for this duck..
I love pondering the night sky, but not as much as used to, LP has hidden most of it visually, pees me off
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Old 26-09-2018, 11:57 PM
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Hi Bob,

I think there are four types in amateur astronomy:

- those addicted to the views from big dobsonians and fish-bowl eyepieces;

- those addicted to imaging; extreme cases don't even own an eyepiece;

- a rare few (usually retired) who live in a dark sky location with a permanent set up and can afford the time to do something more serious, or

- visual lunar & planetary observers who ultimately are high-magnification junkies.

Conclusions after 45 years:

Im my younger and sillier days I've been in the first camp but realised it meant divorcing wife and family to spend every weekend somewhere camping out in the bush with a bunch of rough blokes doing something which ultimately seems rather pointless and if you tried to explain it to anyone else they'd conclude you're nuts, with good reason.

I've dabbled in the second camp but to be "in the race", unless you are willing to stand under a cold shower and flush $100 notes down the drain on a nightly basis, stop now. Secondly I notice so many are endlessly photographing the same few hundred objects over and over again, which is quite frankly utterly pointless. How many photos of M42 does the world really need ?

Work (in the big smoke) and even if I retired, family commitments keep me firmly out of the third group.

Which leaves the fourth category. After a few mistakes (which I have sold) I eventually acquired a dream scope for lunar & planetary, which is fine where I live. While it is great to occasionally visit a dark site to point this at some DSO's and galaxies etc I don't take it too seriously anymore.

Last edited by Wavytone; 27-09-2018 at 12:27 AM.
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Old 27-09-2018, 07:11 AM
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multiweb (Marc)
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Like any amateur hobby it's just that. Don't worry about "competing" or "do your best" or "get the latest gear". If it stresses you then what's the point? In the end it's just you and the stars and not much is changing any time soon up there which is relaxing so no rush. As Lewis and others pointed out do it for your own enjoyment, your family and kids, spend some time with your mates under the stars, have a few drinks and have a good chinwag, share your stuff, show off your pics and keep it simple.
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Old 27-09-2018, 07:16 AM
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multiweb (Marc)
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Originally Posted by Wavytone View Post
Secondly I notice so many are endlessly photographing the same few hundred objects over and over again, which is quite frankly utterly pointless. How many photos of M42 does the world really need ?
Whaaaa? M42 is up again? Can't wait to get back into it.
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Old 27-09-2018, 12:57 PM
N1 (Mirko)
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Originally Posted by Wavytone View Post
Hi Bob,

I think there are four types in amateur astronomy:

- those addicted to the views from big dobsonians and fish-bowl eyepieces;

- those addicted to imaging; extreme cases don't even own an eyepiece;

- a rare few (usually retired) who live in a dark sky location with a permanent set up and can afford the time to do something more serious, or

- visual lunar & planetary observers who ultimately are high-magnification junkies.

[...]
(emphasis mine)

Amateur astro as an arms race, a competition, a spiralling equipment frenzy, and now... a medical condition. What gives??
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Old 27-09-2018, 01:18 PM
DarkArts
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Originally Posted by Wavytone View Post
Secondly I notice so many are endlessly photographing the same few hundred objects over and over again, which is quite frankly utterly pointless. How many photos of M42 does the world really need ?
Yeah, you're right. Everest has been climbed. Channels have been swum. Marathons have been run. We should all pack up now and go home ... back to our pre-packaged television shows, pre-packaged microwave meals and pre-packaged lives. Don't bother trying to achieve anything for yourself. Life should be dull, dull, dull.

Quote:
Which leaves the fourth category. After a few mistakes (which I have sold) I eventually acquired a dream scope for lunar & planetary, which is fine where I live. While it is great to occasionally visit a dark site to point this at some DSO's and galaxies etc I don't take it too seriously anymore.
While I agree that lunar and planetary (and solar for that matter, if you go that way) is the easiest thing to do from the typical suburban back yard, you can still get reasonable narrowband AP results form the suburbs. And even though LP will diminish quality, LRGB is still achievable - I do it, just for myself. But, yeah, there is a disproportionate amount of lunar/planetary done from my back yard.

I recall a conversation I had a with a few astro club members a few years ago. The point (to us) about AP was two-fold: you capture with a camera what the human eye can't see even in a large dob; and, you have a record of your achievements to return to or share with others. That, for me, makes it worthwhile.

And as for camping, I've been to plenty of dark camp weekends and I've never had to spend time with "rough blokes" or sleeping in a tent; bunk beds yes, tents no, and we had cooked meals and a glass of wine or a beer every night.
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