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When Orion comes back around, the easiest (and perhaps most spectacular) nebula to find is M42 The Orion Nebula.
It is simply the "middle star" in the sword or Orion.
[some people might know it better as the middle star in the handle of "the Saucepan"]
But for now, the easiest to find is Eta Carina nebula.
Start by looking at Crux.
(roughly) follow the cross arms about 2 widths to the right.
You can naked eye see the nebulous glow.
Point your red dot finder at that, then use your finder scope to zero in on the bright section.
Then look through the eyepiece and be prepared to be amazed.
Another one, when the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) is up, is Tarantula Nebula. I think it is located by pointing at the top left hand edge of the LMC. (I could be mistaken, that could be the "through the lens" appearance (ie reversed image). LMC is perpendicular to the two pointers, going through the South Celestial Pole, maybe 6 times the distance between the pointers.
That fuzzy blob! you can't miss it. But it sets pretty early these nights I think.
Check them out on Stellarium, to fine tune your star hopping.
Enjoy!
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