[Barrykgerdes]

I always line up on the south pole. It is easy to find once you have seen it a couple of times. With my LX200 I find Sigma Octans (Star 351) and using the 26mm eyepiece (33 arc seconds FOV) I just slew a little towards the south until I see the star pattern in the pix. I do the same with the ETX125 which is easier because I can use a 32mm eyepiece and get a FOV of over 40 arc minutes.

The picture on the left is a view from the DSS (inverted). The one on the right has been touched up to look more like what I see through the eyepiece on the LX200. The south pole is marked with a cross. Don't forget the orientation will revolve around the south pole depending on the date time and it will be mirrored if you are using a diagonal. The brightest star (on the top left) is HP71348

Barry