Quote:
Originally Posted by multiweb
So what you've been up to? Still imaging a bit or doing visual these days?
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In a rare reply.....
We are lockdown at the moment so I have time on my hands.
Still imaging, although Melbourne has been typically cloudy with the La Niña, not really a great place to image from that point of view.
Since I joined in 2007 ish a lot has changed, it was mostly modded DSLR back then, I used a cannon camera, a modded Phillips to u cam, used Guide dog for guiding.
Forward a while and upgraded to a new qhy8 one of those Dmk FireWire guide cameras, (can’t get FireWire computers anymore that I know of) went from a 12 inch newt imaging which really didn’t work because of flexure issues, went to a 5 inch apo WOptics which I still have, upgraded the guide scope to a WO megrez.
Of recent put in a Zwo 174 for guiding.... love the bigger chip.
Things for future... looking to get a color camera, I kind of like being able to create some results after a single night. CMOS seems to have come of age with the new 26 megapixel offerings from QHY and ZWO tossing up between them, and here’s where the forum is useful, some reviews are out, but it’s not a clear winner either way, apparently the ZWO has some banding, the QHY less so, but their software has been buggy in the past ( I can’t get my 5 filter wheel to stop on 3 for example at the moment) so if anything leaning to the ZWO
Given my G11 is non Gemini I mounted a Aimpoint laser sight from a shotgun on it.... never need a finderscope again.
I’m interested in the new PHD2 with multi star guiding, I think that’s a leap forward, anyone who’s done planetary imaging knows just how much the sky ‘boills’ and how localised that is.
Meh that’s about it I think, honestly I’m not interested in displaying any of my pics, I’ve found the happy enjoyment of just doing what pleases me, and I find the expectations of continually commenting on others work more than I am interested in, it’s a bit like Facebook I’m not interested in having “friends” I’ve got plenty in the real world, that doesn’t mean I don’t want to be friendly, it’s just easier to “lurk”
Some of the YouTube channels are good so I find that entertaining I particularly liked Dylan O’Donnell’s last offering on eyepieces, there’s something about Aussie humour that I don’t think the rest of the world gets, having watched his neaf talk, they just didn’t get it, cuiv the lazy geek is good, there’s a whole bunch of good real science stuff too, so that’s probably my electronic Astro fix to some degree,
For those interested in forum activities on a regular basis, enjoy it, lurkers like me still look at what’s going on even if we don’t buy into it much.....