Trying Out New Astrophotography TechniquesI haven't been very active in astro imaging the past few years for various reasons, however now I try new astrophotography techniques.
Living in a top-floor flat for a few years with no garden and many stairs to cart heavy equipment up and down dampens astrophotography enthusiasm. I moved to a ground floor flat with a small private garden a few years ago. However, telephone cables are across most of the lawn, and the sky is heavily polluted. Still, I've seen some good results from people in similar conditions, so I'm also trying out new techniques to see if I can get good results.
I have a good view from the South-East to the South-West except for a large tree due south. To the west, I have a lot of light pollution from the city, and to the north, there is a leisure centre with floodlit playing fields. By eye, I can make out four stars in the Pleiades cluster and estimate my limiting magnitude to be around 4.
My normal technique would be to capture a series of long exposures using my DSLR, , align and stack in Photoshop with level and curve adjustments. However, with such light pollution, an exposure of more than 5 seconds has lost any trace of stars and is all skyglow. As a result, I have to take many more photos of shorter exposures and take more. The problem is the time needed to align and stack in Photoshop manually.
Step in the software automation programs that did not exist when I started. I can take 100 photos and have them aligned, stacked and processed in a minute.
Not particularly impressive, I'll admit. It was my first DSO for over ten years. I didn't have any tracking software and was still learning how to use it. This photo was made by stacking 200 individual photos of 1.3 seconds using Canon 80d and EF 70-300mm lens, ISO-3200, f/5 at 180mm. These frames were processed using DeepSkyStacker and final levels and curves in Photoshop CS3.
The flame nebula isn't an easy target; I probably should have started on M42 to make things easier. I was quite surprised that this nebula was even visible.
Exciting times lie ahead as I prepare to reacquaint myself with my old HEQ5 mount. I'm eager to find a way to attach my camera and 150-500mm lens to the dovetail bar and embark on a new phase of astrophotography with tracking. This new setup holds the promise of allowing me to use slightly longer exposures. I'm thrilled to set up the Skymax 90 with my Bresser Full HD Deep-Sky Camera, both of which have been waiting patiently since I acquired them last year. The plan is to get started with planetary imaging, an area I've yet to explore.
As with any outdoor activity, clear skies are the key to successful astrophotography. However, the 10-day forecast is not in our favour, predicting rain every night. Yet, I remain hopeful, eagerly awaiting the opportunity to capture the beauty of the night sky once again.
