Anyone around Bairnsdale

[Pete75]

Hi all just looking for some people to talk and ask a heap of stupid questions. Or any active groups around my area. I have been hitting google and youtube pretty hard lol. I currently have the Skywatcher Adventurer Gti Mount with a Eos700 (standard lense at the moment). Im using the ASIair plus with a guide camera (well attempting is more like it).
Cheers Legends

[m11]

Hi Pete,

Can always give the Latrobe Valley Astronomical Society a go?

https://www.lvastro.org/

Hopefully someone replies that is closer to Bairnsdale to catch up.

[AstroViking]

Hey Pete,

Ask away - everyone here is friendly enough and happy to answer questions. We were all beginners once.

There's also the Gippsland Star Party next March, too, up at Buchan. There should be a link to the info page hiding somewhere on IIS.

Cheers,
V.

[Pete75]

Yep saw that and hopefully ill have a better idea of what im doing then, took me 3 hrs to focus the dslr lens last night lol

[davgreen]

I live about 10km north of Bairnsdale. My experience is somewhat limited but PM if interested.
David

[Leo.G]

A little late, I only just noticed this thread:
I've seen mention but not tried it myself that a wire strainer as used in the kitchen can be used as a Bahtinov mask for camera lenses.
What I tend to do is take images, check the focus with zoom in review mode and adjust and do it again and again, rinse and repeat process until I'm satisfied these old eyes are seeing something in decent focus, that or take a few shots remembering what focus adjustments I made and run inside with my card to a computer with a 27" screen I can actually see.


I also have a habit of marking lenses with a marker with a definitive mark for astronomy based infinity which is always slightly different to land based infinity. The marker always cleans off with a little methylated spirits on a tissue or cloth so it's not anything that damages or permanently marks the lens in any way.



I've spent too many nights outside with what looks like perfect focus on the little screen (pre live view camera) only to find I have hundreds of images all out of focus.
If the clouds ever disappear I may try a strainer on a DSLR lens. I don't see that happening soon, sadly.

[AstralTraveller]

I've only recently dipped the toe into imaging with a DSLR and have only finished a handful of images. I've made plenty of mistakes and some of them too many times. However I've had no problems with focus (except for nights when the seeing was too poor to get an acceptable focus). I use 'BackyardEOS' - there is also 'BackyardNikon' - and I find it works great. It uses live view to focus. You click on a star and the FWHM of the star is shown. You can then operate the focus control of the lens from the computer while watching the FWHM value change. If the seeing is good I can have focus in a minute or two. If the seeing is poor you will see the FWHM swing up and down without you doing anything. I wait for a period of better seeing, adjust, wait next good seeing, readjust etc until happy. The software also handles all other aspects of camera control for imaging but does not control the telescope.

There may be other packages which do the same job and maybe do it better but after a dozen or so outings I'm happy with this software. (And, sadly, I'm not being paid for this plug.)

[Leo.G]

Live view on the Nikon D810 (and others I believe) is beyond useless in low light, nothing but signal noise.