I put it up that way some the running man was the right way up.

I agree the middle is washed outm so I have taken some shorter exposures to mask over the top once I work out how to do it. The Helix next I think.
The QHY8 is a bit more work then say a Sbig camera but cost wise it'sgot the edge. It uses the same chip as a D40. you have to muck about a bit with the gain and offset settings. Last years great comet got me back into it. I've had a break from active Astronomy over the last 7-8 years due to health reasons. So I'm pretty much starting over. I had a starlight express camera when they first came out, but never had much success. I also had a st4 auto guider. Which work okay but was a buggar to use compared to the ST402. Attached is a image I took in 98 of M16. It was a pretty good shot for the time. I love this web site it's great to have contact with people all over the world.
And remember gravity does suck.