[RobF (Rob)]

Originally Posted by lacad01

Nice going on those two Rob, came out really well

Thanks Adam - I was starting to worry I wouldn't get a decent look at Mars this apparition.

Originally Posted by Dennis

Hi Rob

Now those are nice images indeed, more so given the poor conditions over the last couple of days! Some lovely detail there and a belated happy birthday!

Cheers

Dennis

Thanks Dennis - I tried to wait until the scope (and roof!) had a good chance to reach ambient, and pretty happy what I ended up with.

Originally Posted by iceman

They're very good, Rob! Good detail and sharpness given the size.

This is the first serious outing for my "new" Powermate and happy with its performance. Thanks for the encouragement Mike!

Originally Posted by Screwdriverone

Very nice Rob,

Both came out well, but the Saturn one is a corker.

Well done.

Cheers

Chris

Yep - I reckon the ToUcam pays for itself just to have around for doing Saturn and Jupiter (not to mention polar alignment at remote sites). Cheers Chris.

Originally Posted by Quark

Thats a very good result Rob,

You have captured some nice detail on Mars, several clouds and some nice albedo shading. It is unfortunate that this face of Mars that is currently presented to us in OZ is certainly the most bland, regarding contrasts in albedo.

Love your image of Saturn, a top effort indeed.

Regards
Trevor

Its interesting to hear you say that Trevor - I spent some time looking at Starry Night versus my Mars, and was worried I couldn't see much of the detail shown. There didn't seem to many recent Mars shots from the last few days to compare with either. Just seeing the poles was great at least. I can remember being quite disappointed at my first Mars views through the old 4.5" Newt. Thanks for the thumbs up!

Originally Posted by Scorpius51

Hi Rob

Nice job - and very encouraging for me! I too have a SW600 but have yet to see or capture Mars & Saturn with it. Did you require any Barlow or did you image directly with the ToUCam.

The cloud has been pest here of late and I'm hanging out to see those two.

Cheers
John

Hi John. I reckon the SW600 is such a great value for money package if you're not made of money. I've got some pics on my website (see my signature thingy) taken with a Toucam and 2 barlows - a 1.25" 2x + 2" 2x = 4x magnification total. I used a 5x Powermate here, which is similar to a barow, but nicer image quality, particularly for imaging. The seeing on the night really is a make or break for this sort of thing, and you do end up with a lot more detail in stacked AVIs usually to what is visible wobbling around in the eyepiece. You can get decent Saturn and Jup pics with a Toucam and single barlow, but really need to get focal length above 2m for decent image scale.

Wet season sure is a drag

Originally Posted by Troy

Both stunning pictures there Rob.
Your Mars picture has improved a lot using the 8'' has made a huge difference

Thanks Troy