Great idea Jeanette. It will allow some of us to give the processing thing a go before spending bigly on our own equipment. Personally I'm keen to get in to imaging, but am a bit hesitant to buy the required gear up front, with the possibility that I will never get the hang of the processing part.
While on the subject of cheating, my legal dictionary defines cheating in criminal law as: to defraud or obtain a benefit by deception including any fraudulent statement, conduct, trick, or device.
I don't use or want to use the rental scopes but I do see why some people do.
Not all of the use is for pretty pictures. Lots of data submitted to the AAVSO for transient phenomena seems to come from GRAS scopes. Often this is from northern hemisphere people looking at southern stars.
I don't know if the price is the same as for pretty pic data but it is nice to see some science data coming from the rental scopes.
I don't see it as cheating, but like others have mentioned to appreciate what goes into imaging, you can only get this experience setting up your own gear. Some obtain great pleasure through tinkering with their gear and troubleshooting issues. That's fine. However, if your goal is to be a productive imager, setting up your gear and playing around will wear thin pretty fast. For me, the real work is in processing the data, not acquiring it. Hence, I'll go to great lengths to improve the data acquisition efficiency. Automate, automate, automate. My definition of pleasure is not watching a guide star over a 6 hour imaging run or manually refocusing the scope every hour to make sure its still in the CFZ. I now use my own gear as a robotic set up located under dark rural skies in which is accessed 180km away (my very own rental scope - hardcore).
With rental scopes, I don't think people fully appreciate the level of service they're getting simply comparing the gear they get access to. Sure the gear is high quality, but its only part of the equation. Amongst other items, you're also paying for their location i.e. pristine dark skies. This alone puts a different weight to the equation. You're paying for quality data, but this can't come from the instrument alone. The environment its hosted in is critical. I have to say, imaging northern hemisphere objects is quite a highlight.
I liken it to the following analogy - You've got the money to purchase a 20" RC or CDK on PME with all the latest kit - good for you, but did they also mention you need to sink another $100k+ into buying a block of rural land on the side of a mountain to take full advantage of your recent scope purchase? Oooppps! Ah what the hell, just install it in the burbs and use it like a Ferrari with a rev limiter - on the bright side (literally), you'll get really good at processing gradients.
You need to ask yourself what you want to achieve out of imaging. Acquiring data is the tip of the iceberg.
I am one of Gary's mates who sits on the couch while I image. I don't consider it cheating. I could be outside sitting beside it, at the computer outside, waiting watching how well the autoguider is performing but how does getting cold add to the image?
IMHO if you want to have the argument with me you better have a film camera on the back of your scope with no computer and your eyeball stuck to an illuminated reticle and a controller in your hand.. Otherwise your just the same as me except colder
Having said that, the images are worth more to me when taken on my gear as I set it up and I am building the scope, other then that feel good factor I guess there isn't much in it.
Having said that, the images are worth more to me when taken on my gear as I set it up and I am building the scope, other then that feel good factor I guess there isn't much in it.
Jason
I get this satisfaction feeling too when taking pics with my own rig. It's the whole process I find I enjoy most.
Imagine how warm feeling you would have if you built your equipment yourself
Now THAT would have been ultimate non-cheating
Actually that would be the pinnacle. Doing it all from scratch. Hardware & Software. Imagine all the know how you'd gain and the control you'd get. You could pretty much improve any aspect of your imaging process.
I do have some but they are old. It's in pieces as I work on it so a lot more is complete, in fact all of it really. When I put it together I will be sure to post something in the diy section..
I do have some but they are old. It's in pieces as I work on it so a lot more is complete, in fact all of it really. When I put it together I will be sure to post something in the diy section..
Very cool - did you do all the design and machining yourself?