Astrophotography with an Alt-Az Mount

[ausmensan]

Hi,

Wasn't sure where exactly to put this, as the Beginners astrophotography seems to be full of pictures, not questions.

Anyway..

My equipment build up so far is as follows:

CPC1100 - Alt - Az mount
F6.3 Focal reducer
Dual Band OIII/Hydrogen Alpha Filter (ASI), plus holder
ASI462MC Camera
Canon EOS400D camera, not currently IR modded, but planning to
Various adapters, to connect all of these together in a chain.

My questions are:

I understand I am limited by the Alt-Az mount, to 30-60 second exposures, is it ok to take lots of them and stack them? Will the results be significantly worse than using an equatorial mount?

I have heard that the Wedge that Celestron sells, is not quite stable enough for the CPC1100, is that true? If so, what are my alternatives?

Do I need a focuser replacement to work effectively with my imaging? If so, what are the options?

Given my current setup, what is the likelihood that I will produce acceptable images? The Alt-Az setup seems to be my biggest issue.

Thanks for any input.

Cheers

[jahnpahwa]

This thread might be useful insofar as identifying wedge options
https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/709317-adequate-wedges-for-celestron-11-gps-fastar-xlt/

You will be restricted to well under 30seconds on alt-az with the focal length of your OTA, even with the reducer. If it was me, I'd be going the wedge option ASAP, and off-axis guiding will be an important part of the mix.

Actually, if it was me, I'd get a second, cheap set up for imaging with a shorter focal length at first. If you're thinking about dropping $1000+ on a wedge, think about spending that on a lighter Eq mount and a short refractor to get things dialled?

[xelasnave]

Forget your current scope mount and camera.

One wastes so much time and money on short cuts that simply dont work and moreover ignoring just what everybody is using to take great astronomy photos.

If you want to save money build your own wedge it will work as bought one, then take very short exposures and that will work if you take thousands...but your compromise will probably never make you happy unless you just want to produce results with using inappropriate equipment...and have folk always saying " not bad considering you are using the wrong gear".

Save money and go for a decent equatorial mount..start big say EQ 6.... but a HEQ5 with a triplet 80mm scope and a mono cooled camera and 8 filters gives excellent results... or get a decent triplet refractor 100mm to 120mm or a 8 inch to 10 inch Newtonian with a coma corrector ( me I would get a second set of additional mounting brackets, I did, and at some point a decent focuser ...manual is ok just one that works well)...and dont forget...a dedicated astronomy camera..cooled mono with at least RBG and L filters but also Ha, S11 and O 11 better still.

Believe me you will not be saving money sticking to what you have...but what you will do is waste much time realising that I just now gave you the best advice...now I bet you will say buy Alex I dont have $10k or $12k...well of course you wont ...either get it from your account at the bank that has money in it our from their account which has money in it..they will almost certainly lend it to you..if they wont lend any money you should concentrate on your career and forget about any hobby you currently have...if you need to borrow it, whilst you earn more money or rearrange your assets, borrowing should get you on the right track...$12,000 over five years will cost you interest but believe me its worth it ...find out how much it costs a week...I bet less than what many folk spend on take away coffee...what do spend on coffee or take away meals?...even with interest it will be under $10 a day...and remember..this will never work if you keep telling yourself that you cant afford it...just stop talking yourself out of it...and if at the end of five years you sell it and get more than half back...do you think you will not be more than rewarded by the experience of taking satisfying deep sky photos...
Sell you current equipment if you dont want to keep it for terrestrial photography and visual observation but please dont throw money at a mod unless it relates to your interest in terrestrial photography.

Now it will be interesting to see who disagrees with me and determine if we can air an alternate opinion.

Good luck start buying tomorrow.
Alex

[Dave882]

Hi Simon
I think the answer to your questions may be based on what direction you want to head in your astrophotography.

If you still love looking through an eyepiece and just want to take some photos home with you afterwoods to keep / show friends/family then your current alt-az setup is wonderful. Using a sensitive camera and stacking 10-30sec images you can achieve some ok live images that can be processed later. But they will never be of the quality of some of the amazing detailed work you see on these forums that do require longer exposures and multiple nights of narrow-band precision.

I'm doing exactly this with my CPC800 in alt-az / asi294/asiair pro and EAA livestacking generally approx 160x 10sec subs (20min integration) at either f6.3 or f4 (double stacked reducers). I just love how quick it is to setup and start imaging, or swap between imaging and visual. No guiding. No PA.

You ask if it will be acceptable images - that depends! They say a picture is worth a thousand words so I'll add a couple below that are extremely novice and some light adjustments on photoshop express (quality reduced for upload). Note the eggy/bloated stars and coma/vignetting in the corners so not everyone would be pleased with this as a final result- as I say it depends on what you're after.

You can add the wedge but the cost and extra setup time required may be a problem and I still reckon you won't get the results that a dedicated imaging rig will bring. Sorry I'm not speaking from experience here though.

If you really want to go down the dedicated imaging route, I agree with the previous response that a smaller aperture / short fl refractor or imaging reflector will be much more suited and with a half decent eq mount you may not be spending much more if you can pick something up 2nd hand. I've had a few goes down this path too, but since I still love the visual / EAA stuff the CPC keeps getting the most use!

[jahnpahwa]

Fantastic :)

[xelasnave]

I forgot to include an observatory for Ausmensan...still less than $10 a day over 10 years:D

I am laying in bed trying to give folk encouragement to spend their money..not a good as me spending my money or the banks money but I tell you it comes close.:)

Thinking it thru and to change position entirely...just build a wedge, cant be real hard...drift align it and take short exposures...and you can combine photos from both camera using Registar...

Maybe just buy an eq6 which should/possibly may manage your scope with short exposure.

I think what I was really trying to say was I have made these mistakes ..I started trying to do Deep Sky with a horrible mount equatorial but useless and using a Meade LPI ( lunar and planetary camera:D) using a 1200 mm f/l double refractor...Great Moon shots if one ignored the blueish purple fringe and that you had a max of 12 seconds exposure..or was it 15? But at the start I thought my attempts were fantastic...
Alex

[ausmensan]

Thanks Alex, I think I get where you are coming from! I have thought about just not doing it all, but another scope will probably not happen, but a wedge mod is something I have considered. I have been given one off a Meade, and maybe that can be modified to suit, maybe not.

Having spent thousands on this (not astrophotography) already, it just gets easier each time to spend a little bit more, then a bit more...

Thanks for your thoughts.

[ausmensan]

Hi David,

Thank you for your thoughtful reply, and I guess the thinking was really along the lines you put down yourself. I want to produce something that I can be reasonably happy with, but not a competition winner. I was just a small challenge for myself, and honestly, visual astronomy is more interesting to me.

The Alt-Az setup is more convenient, and having had a C10-NGT with massive counterweights, I don't really want to do that again. (esp. after a recent heart attack..).

I think I will stick with what I have, and see what is possible with current equipment. It is so easy to just go and get something else, and then something else again.

I did have a Nexstar 8i, and it was possibly the best scope I have had. It was the right aperture, and totally portable. The Newtonian possibly had the best views, especially after I laser collimated it.

Your pictures are awesome, and you should be rightfully proud of them, thanks for sharing!

I think I will leverage what I have, then sell it if it doesn't do what I need it to do. There is always another eyepiece to buy right?

Thank you

[ausmensan]

Thanks for your thoughts JP, a smaller scope would be nice, but I think I will stop and consider what I am doing for the moment. TBH, I would rather have another eyepiece than a wedge, and I am not looking to win any competitions, just find something pleasing to look at with family and friends.

There is always something to buy!

[ausmensan]

ahh Alex, an observatory. One of my dreams in life, maybe one day before I kick the bucket!

[wayne anderson]

alt/az astrophotography with an 11inch sct is possible but has some serious limitations, for many years I was using alt/az astrophotography with a 12inch sct and pushed the set up about as far as I could getting very average results. (See photos links below as an example)

Lessons I learned:
1. Have well aligned and balanced scope to gain stable tracking
2. Use high camera gain (iso1600) and maximum of 30sec exposure (10-25 works best)
3. Need to have well over 100 subs with 50 darks to reduce noise and increase signal to noise ratio (200-300 works best)
4. All subs will show field rotation, final stack of all subs will need to be cropped to remove areas worst effected by field rotation.

I would recommend getting a wedge for your 11inch sct, I found a cheap field de-rotator and it works well with my 12inch sct but it has limitations also.


My Last Image in Alt/Az No Guiding is NGC 5128
https://www.astrobin.com/82705/?nc=user

Eta Carinae Nebula "Keyhole" NGC 3372
https://www.astrobin.com/45433/?nc=user

[Tulloch]

Don't forget about planetary imaging - with a 1.5x barlow that setup is a real planet killer!

However, for DSO imaging I'm afraid that a new (or second hand - check the classifieds :)) eq mount is the best way ...

[Outcast]

Hey Simon,

+1 for starting out with what you have... give it a crack, see how it goes & whether or not it meets your expectations... or not...

I've added some pics taken very early in my astrophotography adventure: Lunar & planetary taken through a Meade LX90 8" using a ZWO ASI224MC and M42 Great Orion Nebula which, from memory was using an f6.3 reducer & a Canon 1100d at prime focus (1.25" nose piece)...

Edit: Looking at some of the other posts, you'll see you can do way better than my early Orion attempt but, I was pretty happy at the time... :)

The image of Lagoon Nebula was taken a couple of years ago after I got my first EQ mount, a 2nd hand Celestron CG5 Adv. GT coupled with a Meade 80mm Triplet, also 2nd hand. I include this only so that you can compare early DSO AZ/Alt & SCT Vs early DSO with 80mm triplet & EQ mount....

Are they any good... well, I thought so & to be honest, I'm still pretty happy with the lunar & Jupiter shots... the DSO... well, as you can see from the Lagoon image, I've moved on through a couple of different mounts & scopes & whilst I still dabble... visual is my main thing...

Anyways, give it a crack with what you have.... you never know what you can do til you have a go...

[ausmensan]

Thanks Wayne,

I think you have outlined what I believe to be true about my own setup, and that is pushing for something which it is not really suited for. That is ok though, as my expectations are not for any grand prize, just for something that I can say I did, maybe good, maybe not, but that's ok also.

The imaging camera I bought was really for planetary stuff anyway, and I would be happy with some shots of Jupiter and Saturn with a few moons in the picture TBH!

I appreciate the heads up on frames, how do you do the darks/bias frames etc? Is there a tutorial handy for this?

I am also aware of the field rotation issue, but as I said, the planets would keep me happy really. If I manage a few DSO's, then that would be fine.

Met my dad today, and he actually gave me the money for the wedge, if I want it, so that was pretty decent of him. The problem with the wedge, is actually finding one that will be stable enough, and I am pretty sure the standard Celestron one isn't, so maybe a custom job as mentioned by Alex is the way to go?

Cheers!

[ausmensan]

Hi Andrew,

Yes, planetary imaging was what I bought the 462 for in the first place, and I would be pretty happy with any shots of the major gas giants TBH.

Will keep an eye out for an EQ, someone has offered a Meade one, but not sure I can mod it for this, or even if it would take the 11 inch.

Cheers!

[ausmensan]

Hey Carlton,

Your images are great my friend, you should be proud of them! I love the Jupiter one, and if I could get anything that remotely resembles that, I would be pretty happy. Just no clear skies in Perth right now :(

The key really is, as you say, your own happiness and pride in your output. It doesn't have to be world standard, and I would not expect that with my modest equipment.

Honestly, I love the aperture of the C11, and it feels really good once it is out and I am having a bit of a view of the planets, and some DSO's The astrophotography was always a bit of a wish list item, and I will do what I can with what I have for now, and see what happens.

Thanks for sharing your expertise and great photos!

[Outcast]

The key to planetary & lunar imaging is video, video, video... since you already have a planetary camera, make sure you use SER format... don't use mp4, it's way too compressed...

Then use autostakkert (assuming you are on windows) to select & stack the individual frames (you just load the video & select the percentage to stack based on a quality analysis done by autostakkert) & then use registax wavelets module to sharpen the stacked output... these two programs are free...

Both those images were shot with about 30secs to a minute of video which will give you thousands of frames... I think I stacked about 50%, maybe less using autostakkert... wavelets in registax takes a bit of getting used to, it's easy to overdo it but, the beauty of digital is that if you save each iteration, you can always go back to the start & do it again...

I then give it a tweak in affinity photo (equivalent of photoshop) but, if you want another free imaging program give Gimp a go...

If you try & take individual images, you will be disappointed...

[Tulloch]

One of the guys who posts here, Ittaku, has a wedge with his CPC1100 - you can see it here. Apparently it's no mean feat to mount it :)
https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/768967-saturn-5-moons-jupiter-triple-moon-conjunction-animation-2021-04-30/

If you want to take images of the planets, this is a good place to start.
http://planetaryimagingtutorials.com/

[xelasnave]

What would maybe be satisfying is to get a small equatorial and use your DSLR...like a Star adventurer
Alex

[sharkbite]

Hi Simon...

All the advice above is good advice....im only a beginner myself,
and these guys know their stuff.

I have an 8" lx90 with which i have obtained some very pleasing pictures,and have used similar camera equipment to you. Some food for thought:

The 400d i had suffered from lots of noise at ISO1600 and above -
i did not find it all that good for astrophotography (great camera for its day and price in all other respects.)

I have attached a 7d to the back with a 6.3 reducer, and was very happy
with my eta carina pics, but with the weight of the thing it was very hard to balance, especially the closer to vertical the tube got.

Field rotation is an issue, but less so for subjects that are close to the meridian - so for those targets you can take longer exposures.

I have a ASI224, and with a 2.5x barlow this setup takes great planetary pics.

I can get reasonable DSO pics with an el-cheapo .5x reducer - wouldn't publish them in a magazine, but wows my friends.

I also just happen to have a 70-200 canon lens which i piggyback on the OTA, and attach the 224. this works really well for DSO's. the lens stops at f4 and has a very pleasing field of view for something like orion. I only need to take 15 second exposures with this, and stack hundreds.
No field rotation issues(that i can see)

[ausmensan]

Hi Alex,

I did consider this, and may do so. I think I will leave things as they are with my current setup, and test it out at the first fine weather opportunity. I don't think investing any more money in this will be productive at this stage, although my dad has offered to buy the wedge for me, which was pretty decent of him.

As others have suggested, a piggyback with a half decent camera would be an avenue to look down, and I do like the idea of a small equatorial type mount specifically for cameras. Cheers for your help.

[ausmensan]

Hi Sharkbite,

Thanks for your advice, and you are right, this is a good place to be to get perspective on things. Yes, the 400d is a relic, and I still use it for normal photography, but the IR filter removal process looks a bit complex for my worsening eyes. Perhaps another more modern one would be better, will look into that, and perhaps a portable mount that is specific for cameras.

Yes, the field rotation is an issue I have been aware of for a while, although, I do have the opportunity to wedge it up so to speak. The only barlow I have is a Celestron Omni 2x, so not sure if that is suitable at all at this stage, but will experiment.

Yes, I would just be happy to get a few reasonable shots, which was really my only goal here.

When you say you attach the 224, and use the Canon lens, how are you doing that?

Cheers!

[sharkbite]

Hi simon - with one of these:

https://www.bintel.com.au/product/zwo-new-eos-t2/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIzJK3297U8AIVijgr Ch1NJATjEAQYAiABEgLrU_D_BwE&v=322b26af01d5

i attach the whole shebang to the scope with a canon lens-tripod mount ring.

cheers,

[Dave882]

Hi Simon- since you’re not really looking for top quality shots, it really comes down to getting the most bang for you buck (where buck = time more than money!). The more gear you add to your sct setup the more complicated the setup and sometimes only for a few % increase in image quality.

Everyone will have their opinion- but for me, moving to a high sensitivity/efficient Astro camera and adding an ASIAIR gave a huge boost in performance and saved heaps of time/effort too. Especially for live stacking!

The thing I love about exploring this beautiful universe is that there’s so many paths you can take and so many ways to take them! Just make sure the path you’re on keeps you loving the hobby!

[ausmensan]

Hi Dave,

Thanks for the reply, and you are absolutely right. I think I was just stuck in the mode of keeping going with the purchasing, hoping it would just magically happen. My setup, right now, is not too bad. I got out last night and managed to take some shots of the moon, M42 etc. The EOS was fine for the moon shots, but struggled with any other deep sky type objects. I guess some more experimentation will help, and some stacking. Definitely no longer than about 20 seconds per shot though.

The ASI462MC, well I managed to get it focused, and had enough time before clouds to get one shot of M42, which showed the trapezium. Need to play with the settings though, as the single shot seemed quite bright. But there is hope there! BTW, focusing is tough! The camera focus, and the ASI focus points seem to be wildly different. Need something electronic really, so I can return to set focus points.

I used ASIStudio for the capture, is that what you use with your ASI gear?

[Dave882]

I use a bahtinov mask to get focus. This gets things good enough for eaa and basic imaging. I use the ASIAIR pro with the ASIAIR app on my iPad. It gives me all the functionality of focus routine (auto focus as well if you have zwo products), calibration subs, imaging etc wirelessly without another computer.
The focus point will always be different every time you change cameras or even changing filters, but very easy to get fairly accurate with an sct especially when you’re looking at a live view on iPad. Unless you’re doing something crazy you won’t ever run out of focus.

My process with the cpc:
Setup scope and imaging gear + uhc or uv-ir filter (20min)
Align scope 3star alignment on cpc (5min)
GOTO bright star and focus with mask on ASIAIR app (2min)
Take flat calibration frames with ASIAIR app (2min)
I reuse my darks and bias frames
GOTO imaging target
Preview
Setup livestacking and hit start
Enjoy!!

I’ve found my cpc to hold focus very well. I generally only need to refocus between targets if I change filters.

ASIAIR can also save all the subs during live stacking for processing later if you want. It has a histogram slider that you can use to get the best balance of contrast and detail during the live view.

I don’t mean to sound like a salesman for zwo- but when it comes to eaa - I’m not sure if there’s a better system out there...? If you want to go full-blown imaging I think there’s more functionality on some of the pc based systems.

[ausmensan]

Thanks Dave,

Ahh, yes the Bahtinov mask. I think I need to pick one up, I do remember reading about it, then it went into the background. I think there is one for the CPC1100, even here in Perth.

The part I am clearly not sure about, are the flats, darks and bias frame sequence. Are you able to step that out a bit, and explain what I need to do there? I remember one saying you had to put a white t-shirt over the scope and take shots, and one with the lens cap on etc. Not my strong point clearly.

I think if I can get those areas down pat, I should be right to go. My one shot of the Trapezium, sort of looks like this:

https://www.astronomycameras.com/blog/archive/20100310/orion-trapezium-m42/

So, I think I am on the right track. Just need to get the other areas sorted, and some sort of routine going with ASIStudio.

Your post helped me a lot.

[Outcast]

Take dark frames at the exact same exposure settings & length you used when capturing the images... simply put the cap over the front of your scope & snap away, usually I do this at the end of my image capturing session. This is when the camera/sensor is at it's hottest & thus, you are likely to capture any hot pixels...

Dark frames are then loaded to Deep Sky Stacker (another windows based free program) at the same time you load your light frames (image shots).

Flats can be done a number of ways & technically, can be done at any time or settings... I don't use them, I probably should but, I don't... I have purchased an led tracing board with the intent of trying to use it to capture flats but... I haven't done so yet...

Google 'taking flats in astrophotography' & you'll turn up a myriad of ways of doing them & explanations for what they are for...

Bias frames, I've never done them & despite reading up on them, don't really understand what they are for either... :)

Sorry, forgot to mention Bhatinov mask in earlier responses... yes, you definitely should have one for getting sharp focus both for deep sky and planetary/lunar.

There's a chap on ebay who 3-d prints them in Melbourne... his prices are exceptionally good & if he doesn't have what you need, you can chit chat back & forth & he'll make one for you... usually just needs some measurements from your scope... don't buy one commercially, it'll likely cost you 3 - 4 times the price...

[Outcast]

Simon, I also recommend you post some of your captures in the beginners astrophotography section.

Make sure you include the equipment used, settings & exposure lengths, etc as well as how you processed the image... whether you used darks/flats/bias, what program you used, etc, etc...

You will find that there are many on here that have been down your path already & are more than willing to gently critique, guide & educate you on how to get the best out of your gear...

As has already been mentioned, there will be limits to what you can achieve with your setup but, it's up to you to decide whether what you achieve suits your purpose or, to what level you want to take your imaging... you can do this without spending a fortune if your expectations are modest... or, this can get very, very expensive, very, very quickly... :)

[Dave882]

Yeah I got my bahtinov from this guy on ebay too. Think I paid like $20 and it works just fine. This is the link to his page:

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/254902857240?hash=item3b5964ee18:g: BpUAAOSwwiZbblJT

Calibration frames may be a bit different depending on what software/process you're using - but for eaa on asiair app you do it BEFORE you start livestacking so that the live results are calibrated.

Bias (to remove hot pixels etc):
1) Lense cap on
2) Fastest frame exposure your camera can take
3) At least 40 frames
4) Should be taken at same/similar temperature and gain settings as your actual imaging.

Dark (to remove amp glow):
1) Lense cap on
2) At least 20 frames
3) Should be taken at same/similar temperature / gain settings / sub exposure time as your actual imaging.

Flat: (to reduce dust bunnies/vignetting/uneven illumination)
1) Lense cap OFF
2) Image train fully setup for the image you about to take (incl filters)
3) Telescope focussed (even the slightest change in focus requires new flats)
4) I use a flat light panel I hold at front of telesope / dew shield
5) Use image preview to determine exposure time so that the AVERAGE is about half way along the histogram
6) Take at least 20 frames
7) Should be taken with everything setup EXACTLY as per your imaging - but the exposure time as per (5)

You can save the calibration stacks - but I only ever re-use the darks and bias ones.

You can get away without calibration shots, buuut, if you want to download the final live-stacked image and have a play with it the result will suffer.

I was looking through my phone and found a preview image I took of the pencil nebula, then another one of calibrated live stacked (a bit messy cause I didn't adjust my darks/bias for increased gain), then my final version after a play on the photoshop express app... Don't zoom too much into the corners...that's the price you pay for using a 8" sct at f4 with a 4/3 sensor!! Gives you a bit of an idea why I do the calibrations tho...

Hope that helps...

[ausmensan]

Hi Carlton,

Thanks for the dark frame advice, I think the ASI app has spaces for all of the dark/light/bias etc frames, but no real tutorial in the app that I can see.

Will definitely have a look at Deep Sky Stacker!

Will also check out the 3-d printing guy, but the local store sells them for about $60, but don't think they have one for my scope at this point.

When I get some shots together, as in some more than the one or two I got from last night, I will definitely post them for advice. I think I just wanted to make sure I had the process down, which includes the darks/flats/bias etc before hand. I have seen pics which have not been processed, and that is not really what I want to do. If I can do it right, regardless of result, I would be pretty ok with that!

[ausmensan]

Cheers again Dave,

The link is great, will probably do that one pretty quickly. I think focusing is going to be key to getting any sort of decent image, and I guess I am kind of assuming my collimation is ok, having checked defocussed star images for the right shape.

I appreciate you stepping out the process for bias/darks and flats, that is exactly what I needed. It gives me confidence that I can pull this off, in some way shape or form.

Yes, I can see from your images the changes, and it does make a difference! I would be happy just seeing any type of nebula/galaxy on one of mine, regardless of quality!

[Dave882]

No worries. You should be able to do much more than my efforts with your scope! I think your imaging camera may be your only limiting factor.

By the way- this is the light panel I got:

https://a.aliexpress.com/_mKJQdDJ

Cheap as chips! Only annoying thing is that the light is slightly banded (not fully uniform). I get around this by manually rotating the panel while it does the flat calibration shots.

[Outcast]

Yep, that's the one...

[Outcast]

Simon,

another program worth checking out for processing Deep sky stuff once you've stacked in Deep Sky Stacker is 'Startools'....

A number of guys on here use it; there are other programs too but, they tend to be waaaay more expensive...

Startools isn't free but, I think it's around $45 from memory... the chap who wrote the program is on here (Ivo Jager) & is really, really helpful when it comes to giving you advice on how to use it... You can download a trial version with no time limit... I think it just won't let you save the final render... but, you can play with it & see if it suits your needs... or not

**Edit**: It's $65 now... still very affordable IMHO

https://www.startools.org/

He has plenty of documentation on his site on how to use it plus, guys can give you tips on here too... it can be as automated or manual in the processing as you want it to be...

As I said though, there are other processing tools... Nebulosity, Pixinsight but, to name a few... plenty of folk on here using other tools too & some, only using Photoshop (with or without astro plug-ins) & getting excellent results...

[ausmensan]

Hi Carlton,

I did check out Startools, and wrote to the guy. Seems like a great product for $65 odd dollars. Would I use that instead of the ASI tools, which TBH, seem a bit flaky right now.

[Outcast]

Sorry, not really familiar with the ASI tools but, I think it would depend on what you are looking to achieve. If your looking at post processing to produce an image to keep then yes, startools would be used post stacking to produce the finished image. You might then look to tweak it a bit further in Photoshop or similar.

If your looking at live stacking in an EAA situation I'm not sure that startools does that, I suspect it doesn't.. in which case the ASI app (which I have used on a tablet) might be the go... Again, not really sure as I don't do a lot of EAA.

I think there are other capture software that supports live stacking/EAA, someone more familiar with these might be able to comment.

Hope that provides some level of useful information

Cheers

[Dave882]

Yes for EAA you can use the ASI app but it only works if you are also using the ASIAIR Pro for livestacking and asi cameras. This is what I use and it’s magnificent in its simplicity and good features.

Sharp cap also does live stacking. It has a few more features (and better stacking algorithms IMHO). You also have the flexibility of using some different equipment but you need to use it in conjunction with a laptop or mini computer and it is a bit more of a learning curve + setup time and effort.