Heee's baaaack....

[ptc]

Yep old Orion is blazing overhead in all of its magnificence if you rise before the sun....

AndI managed to do just that using a new mount (AP1200GTO #3) and recently upgraded PL3200 (new sensor, std grade versus eng).

I caught this image of M42 in S2/Ha/O3 using the AP155EDf f/7 without flattener, PL3200 camera and Cust Sci 3nm FWHM S2/Ha/O3 filters. My darned S2 filter has always given these horrendous reflections so that's the reason for the huge red haloes... I used this filter to take my first S2/Ha/O3 image way back in 2003 so it is sort of sentimental plus this is only available now on custom order basis.

This is a total of 299 x 90 seconds of exposures: details are broken down on my webpage

http://www.narrowbandimaging.com/m42_ap155edf_f7_pl3200_cs3_s2hao3_p age.htm

[En1gma]

Narrowband = pure awesomeness

[strongmanmike]

The colours actually looks quite nice Richard, nice early capture of this perenial favourite. The halos aren't really a big issue for me, optical instruments have stuff like this present in varying degrees and I recon it's just part of life and makes an image more real...remember the Crossley Reflector (http://www.ucolick.org/public/telescopes/crossley.html)images?...they were the Hubble images of the pre 60's :thumbsup:

Mike

[multiweb]

Great shot. Lovely colors! :thumbsup:

[Hagar]

Lovely image Richard. He will have to wait until he is a bit higher in the sky for me and until I get the RC off the mount and the FSQ back in action again.
As a target this is one of the best but also one of the hardest to capture well. Looking forward to trying again this year.

[ptc]

Hey the Crossley is about 25miles from where I am typing this.... right up on Mt Hamilton to the east of San Jose, Ca.

Yep those big haloes give it authenticity: sort of like scars on leather.

on the colors: I had no idea how they would turn out until I combined the three channels. Every time I do this one it comes out looking different :P

[ptc]

Hey I like that comment: right to the point, Sir!

:welcome:

[Garyh]

I must admit that looks pretty nice! Different color to the normal but it really works nicely!

[gregbradley]

Nice image Richard. The shorter exposures and lots of them worked well. I guess the file sizes for the 3200 makes that feasible.

Wow, is that another camera? How many do you have?
Didn't you have an ML3200? I saw you posted you switched to a higher grade chip.

Greg.

[ptc]

I mistyped: it is a PL3200

I've had the PL3200 for a long time but haven't used it much in the past year or so. But I recently got a third mount so it is getting used again

Yes, I did upgrade the sensor from an eng grade one to a standard grade and these are the first images I have published from the new mount and the upgraded sensor

I have four imaging cameras and three guide cameras to answer your question. For guide cameras I use SBIG ST7s. They work well and are cheap.

:thumbsup: