You don't need to throw away images with sats, it's possible to reject them (ignore pixel values where the trail is) while stacking by using sigma rejection algorithm
I thought of it too. Except sigma clipping is used when you have a large stack of sub-frames, usually 50 or more. In that case it's just easier to throw away the sub with satellite streak. This algorithm is not that effective in smoothing the noise when you have 20-30 subs. Maybe i'm doing something wrong, but I tried every possible stacking algorithm and found that average and median work best with noisy subs. (I also use a high dither value while shooting to spread the noise pattern)
I'm going to honest a couple of these pictures I would brag about taking I'm just starting so I have low standards I guess also it's great to see that you started just like me and the learning curve is not impossible
Well, that was just bloody discouraging. Makes me want to take my guitar out to the observatory and swat a scope or two. Not really, I’m not that violent and my guitars are more valuable than my scopes. Great video Dylan. I’ve seen most of these among my images. The worst is when you make a good focus, spot on guiding, great data and the entire stack gets Musked (ie satellite trails).
Thanks again for the tips, i'd like to thank you also for saving my sanity and stopping me selling my gear with a previous video on phd2. You mentioned to set the hemisphere to auto VS 'south' (I'm in NZ) and this one tip got me and my mount back on the money!
I know the reason It's because I'm running the rig! My Dad told me when I was a kid that I should be an Astronomer because of all the space between my ears! Thanks Pop
Amen brother I'm fascinated with them and have read many awful stories. Keep yourself and your family safe. What the hell would we do without your videos.
Mistake 7 is bad advice imo, pixel rejection methods during stacking means you dont need to sacrifice a whole sub, it will just not take those specific pixels into the stack.
True.. the hyperstar rig was notorious for camera tilt. I should've mentioned spacing for sure. As I was going through the bad subs after 16 it just got too depressing to keep going 😆
Great video! One thing I think about external light like the moon and low signal is that if the sky background in the area you're shooting a DSO is in is brighter with light pollution than parts of the DSO you want to grab, forget it. The sky will outshine them no matter what.
I just got rid of my Celestron 114 LT StarSense explorer telescope. It was extremely difficult to Calibrate and use. I was really getting frustrated with it. So, I sent it back to where I bought it.
Two of those mistakes can actually be fixed with software. Misalignment is no problem for Astro Pixel Prosessor. Just use LNC and MBB during the integration. Furthermore, I have used a narrowband filter with my DSLR osc. Also in APP you can set the lights to Ha or whatever filter you use. Works like a charm. Anyway, like your videos, thx Nick
Thanks 4 the tips! im starting to learn how to take my darks and bias and your videos help me allot! keep n posting n rocking man!
5 лет назад
Excellent video! When shooting Narrow Band with a OSC you can "fix" that grid pattern by taking a lot of subs and using Pixinsight BayerDrizzle routines (it's like regular drizzle, but instead of upsampling undersampled images it tries to fill in the checkerboard pattern of the Bayer mask) ... still not as good as mono and you have to be extremely patient, but it does work
i partly disagree on "dont use narrowband with osc" If you are on a budget like me, you can get not bad results with a modded DSLR (EOS 1200D for 100€) Just be sure to do proper dithering. At least for a HaRGB picture i recommend it. Make the HA shots while the moon is bright or in light polluted areas and the RGB stuff on good days. But maybe i should think of getting a dual band filter like the Optolong L extreme. You are right that would make more sense with a OSC :)
One note about diffraction spikes... I use a curved cable guide on my EdgeHD with Hyperstar and it does a great job of removing those pesky spikes. You can shape your own out of wire or print one if you gave access to a 3d printer: www.thingiverse.com/thing:2640393
I started a M101 project some weeks ago. Due to technical issues I only got my darks, bias, and flats. Then due to weather I had to wait a few weeks. Then one night I got all my lights. While processing I remembered the iso was 1600 on all the darks etc, but I shot my lights at 800. In processing I was amazed at how absolutely crappy everything came out since the iso(s) were different.
Cant stress how important collimation is on a SCT. It took me a couple goes to get the hang of checking and adjusting this. Once it's adjusted it should stay collimated for a while if you dont shake and knock the scope around. It's usually a case of balancing the scope with the camera, then spending 5 minutes to remove the camera and checking collimation with an eyepiece on a bright star, (preferably near your target) at the start of the night. The camera can be slapped back on and focus can be done on the same bright star (with a mask!). Really helps get the best out of your equipment
Totally man.. I'm using bobs knobs and they aren't as tight as the regular screws BUT it's super easy to adjust so now I do it regularly. Should do a video on that really.
Such a great message; it's (ofcourse) all about having proper data, if you focus on getting that right, you can have fun with it for years to come when processing gets better. Btw; getting narrow-band with one-shot color is no problem, you ofcourse do need to take out the red channel for Ha and take out the filters of DSLR's for instance...
Totally Vince! I used to struggle with post because I was trying to fix bad data. Now post processing is just a formality. It's getting the best data first that is the hard bit.
Nice video, been working on my Astro skills and have a much longer list of things that can go wrong. First on my list being clueless....but I’m working on it.
Another awesome video. I was on the hunt for a filter but hadn't made my mind up yet. Seeing as I'm using a OSC, I know it's not going to be a narrow band now! No one else is mentioning this, so thanks a bunch Dylan!
Another useful video thanks. It took me ages to work out why I was getting a rainbow type flare in my pictures of M42 until I realised it was Alnitak causing the problems just out of frame. I thought I had an issue with the camera for a while.
What you need is to deBayer in super-pixel mode (every R G G B group becomes one superpixel). Or else extract just the red pixels (easy in MaxIm DL, possible in other packages).
#2 "Dust Motes" I believe incorrectly identifies this as a mote-on-sensor problem. The halo nature of this blemish suggests a mote (particle), but on one of the lenses. One presumes the one closest to the mirror/camera! Motes on a sensor are crisp and dark.
I enjoy the intro music but I also notice the pitch shift from shortening it. Pretty please check the "maintain audio pitch" box. Oh yeah. Many thanks for the helpful video.
Hehe 19.7s is the new duration/pitch. All new vids will be at this pitch from now on. I'll update the channel welcome video to this eventually too. Thanks man!
I just bought the Star Adventurer for $545 tax included. I am using DSLR and 300mm lens I already own to shoot. First trial 2 nights ago tack sharp stars at 30 secs. Plans to get out of town when weather permits. I think it is going to prove to be a very good value. Small portable and didn't break the bank - Cheers
Mistake 16, I actually had this reflection when I images the Horsehead and M45, I did not know what it was, I kinda realized it is some sort of reflection but I was not sure until I saw you video, thanks for point it out.
Great stuff and I am battling hot pixels that I cannot seem to get rid of. I did not expect so many with a cooled camera, ASI1600mm Pro, really surprised to be honest. I wish I could send you a couple of images to see if you can do anything with them, I have Pixinsight and a complete noob with it.. So much to learn. Thanks again Dylan for sharing
I’m a bit of a beginner, but using Deep Sky Stacker’s hot pixel detector/remover works really well. My images (apart from my processing) do not have any hot pixels at all
Ahhh, I think the NB with OSC part of the video solves a mystery for me. I’m using a Coronado PST H-alpha solar scope and have a very similar pattern with OSC camera. It’s not exactly the situation you describe but close enough that I think that’s the issue. Don’t have a mono to test with but one day perhaps.
#11 Suggest traveling to a less light polluted areas. I get that. At 9:59 he refers to 'a neighbors light' and at 10:19 refers to putting a barrier between 'you and the light pollution'. Would an ordinary lens hood on an SLR do all that a 'barrier' could? All of what I have seen as 'light pollution' would not benefit by a barrier. Preventing dew is always great, but it doesn't seem an appropriate mention here, because your main message was about preventing light gradients.
Almost broke my mouse key from clicking on your vid, when I saw it. Great compilation! been through most of them myself. Framing (and lack thereof) has been a major mistake. I recently switched to SGpro and hope that will solve that issue. Thanks for your content!
Haha thanks for watching mate! SGP is actually pretty good for framing but I still haven't got manual rotation figured with it yet. I just pick a center point and really ensure I don't budge the camera whatsoever until the whole project is done.
Excellent video Dylan, your absence was noticed.. :) What do you think about off axis guiding as a posse to using a guide scope.. ? need to start guiding this winter.
I like the idea of it, but when I tried OAG I had trouble finding guide stars at long focal lengths / F10 .. depending on my image framing or whether i was in a "quiet" patch of sky. A guidescope works every time though so I'm sticking to that.
If you're having backlash issues you most likely will have to tighten the set screws on gears. At the same time you may as well dismantle the RA and Dec motors, clean them, regrease them and reseat them properly. Play in the gears is 98% of the problem people have with declination
nice one dylan lots of great info and it will save a lot of head scratching for a lot of people starting out .. ...quality astronomy video is worth waiting for dylan..... appreciate ya work cheers james D
thanks Dylan, but I wonder why i should use OSC for narrowband images? It’s just less efficient right? I am new to astrophotography but I have done it on ngc7000 and m8, they looks fine for me. Is it my problem actually ?
Your video was very interesting. The first time one of your videos popped up in my profile. You say the pics from NASA are processed and fake however you don't really cover why and what makes it fake. Are those objects really out there (ie: stars, galaxies, clusters, etc.)?
@@DylanODonnell Not recommended because you might be liable for a burglary or traffic accident... Another method that is not recommended is to rig up a laser pointer on some kind of solid mount so that it hits the photocell. Not recommended, of course.
Hey Dylan, speaking of archive and storage what do you use to store, archive and backup all your subs? I’m a Mac and have now grown out of my external drives and looking at a NAS or connected RAID 1.. but not quite sure?
#10 attributes diffraction spiking occurred from a 'cable hanging off the OTA'. Wouldn't it be that the cable was laying across the aperture? :) Known sources of diffraction spikes include support veins in reflectors. (And clearly I don't know everything there is to know. I'll learn.) What does it mean to have a 'cable at right angles'? Across the aperture??? It is not making sense to me. I needed more context to make use of this tip.
Hey Dylan, I am starting astrophotography soon, I have a Celestron astro-fi newtonian (D=130mm F=650) and a Sky watcher Colour planetary cam. Any tips you'd recommend before I start. Thanks.
Surprised this has thousands of views and less than 1k likes. For a noob, like me, they are still great advice. Now that i have the eq6r and a guide scope and camera I am looking forward to many nights out and hopefully many successful images!
First of all thanks for your great vids! I did my first attempt at flat, bias and dark frames... not a fun experience. I was excited to see "Tony Hallas: DSLR Astrophotography" vid on RUclips. I tempted his short cut methods and I was impressed with the results. I'm curious to know your thoughts on his method of processing images.
Great video, as always always very helpful. I had no idea that main scope and guide scope misalignment can actually create problems. Does this mean that I need to center both to the same target or it is more about the axis of the scopes?
Yeh took me a while to sort that out too. I used a level on both while off the mount to make sure they were aligned close then slewed to a bright star and adjusted the guidescope until it was exactly centered as the main scope. rotation doesn't matter.
Hey, I have a small issue with my setup, even though its a relatively cheap one (only my cellphone with a pretty descent camera software and a cheap eyepiece mount). Whenever I get a high exposure picture I get a lot of light pollution from the nearby town, right? However the real issue is that said light pollution is in a ring shape all around the image and it highlights a very dark spot at the center which for fainter objects it even acts as a blind spot. The eyepiece is in perfect focus so it can't be that. I was wondering, is it that I position the phone camera too close to the eyepiece? Does taking a picture closer than the eye relief cause this effect? Edit: oh, and the telescope is a newtonian reflector telescope, a Celestron 114LCM
That's vignetting .. and yes it's a problem when shooting through the eyepiece. Ideally you want to get rid of the eyepiece altogether but that's a problem for smartphones of course. Sometimes using the zoom feature on your phone helps.
@@DylanODonnell Damn, figured as much. Three nights ago, I was experimenting with the distance between the eyepiece and the phone and there seemed to be a sweet spot where the blind spot dissapeared entirely. So the issue is more or less solved, but damn it was hard to find out what it was on the internet. Thanks man!
I don't believe #3 actually shows that vibration was taking place, in the sense of there being some oscillation, and there is no evidence of that. Rather, I believe this image shows a single small (in the grand scheme of things) change of aim point. I'd further surmise that the movement took place pretty close to the midpoint of the exposure interval, as 'both stars' in each pair have roughly the same brightness. Oscillation would leave a thick, blurred line between endpoints. Sorry. *Don't kick the tripod!* (Same advice.)
Great Compilation of all the issues Dylan! I wish you could spend a little more time on the fixes. You zipped passed through really fast. Didn't realize It is a 17 minutes video. Good work!
Going insane? Being a physicist myself I've worked with a lot of physicists. 99% of us play a musical instrument, have low boredom levels and have to know how everything works. By comparison to the normal population, weird hobbies and as mad as a fish. Being mad is normal in this lark.
Sorry probably wasn't clear.. using a single NB cut filter on an RGB camera wastes at least 2-3 pixels out of 4. However some NB have more than one cut/pass that will allow light to all the pixels and they are fine (and designed) for colour cameras.
Astro Dennis Dual narrowband is fine, I would also tend to disagree with Dylan here about ha and osc. Just look at Trevor from AstroBackyard. His results with ha and duo narrowband filters using the asi294mc pro are fantastic... However he does combine his ha with his rgb only photos.
Logical Conservative I think both. I have an asi294mc Pro as well. I used an ha filter only and also imaged m42. I got drastically different results than Dylan. That is the basis for my reply, that I just don’t think it always a bad idea. But you tell me, what do you think of my M42 through ha filter with my osc asi294mc? astrob.in/397454/0/
Yeh I wasn't clear but I'm talking about single cut filters where 50-75% of pixels mostly don't register strong signal on a colour cam. There are multiple pass filters like the triad that are designed for colour cameras.
What makes a huge difference is a sturdy vibration free tripod. The skywatcher tripods, in my opinion, are notorious when it comes to sturdiness and vibrations. They have a tripod spreader which is high and this does not allow stability for the gear, you can solve that issue by making or buying a tripod spreader that is placed near the tips of the tripod (the lower part of the tripod), also the metal tubes can transfer vibrations more easily if you have set up your gear in in ground that allows vibrations more that dirt. I have an heq5 pro and i had very bad guiding but after some modifications to the head it guides amazingly good. The most important part of my gear now is the tripod. I bought a used berlebach tripod (made out of wood with a spreader at a lower height and the tripod is for heavy loads) and the performance of the mount skyrocketed.
Dylan you might find you will produce some of your greatest works after a break! So remember to take regular breaks but not too long or your viewers will start to suffer Dylan O'Donnel withdrawals Syndrome! ( Yes, i just invented a new Syndrome of the Human Condition! ) haha seriously though keep up the great work Dylan! Wes, Liverpool, UK.
@@DylanODonnell haha I've already written to the Medical Board demanding it be recognised as a genuine mental disorder! haha! On a serious note, thanks so much for the reply, i appreciate you must get tons of messages, mail etc so it's an honour to receive a reply mate. Please keep up the great work.
ok iam cornfused. no ha on a color cam.. canon ? if so. what if IR moded. your buddy trev was doing HA with a canon if i remember.... tho iam probley wrong on this. think ill stick with simple. no ha just the cam and maybe a uv/ir filter.
LOL, me and Deep sky astrophotography i have a love and hate relationship with it. I have more crap images than good images with deep sky astrophotography. 😀😆 I love it, but i hate nights of wasted bad exposures and data. I hate coming home empty handed. Also i am using an older canon rebel, i just need the funds to upgrade to a ccd camera for deep sky astrophotography. Hopefully in the future, it will improve.
What !!! Spending time with family and taking time away from RUclips and astronomy!! How very dare you mr Dylan. Can you hear that unsubscribe tone 😂😂😂 great video and information as always 👍
My astropics suck anyway, without any of the mistakes :p :p (joking!!!). With Musk's upcoming little adventure, we'll be able to play "noughts and crosses" with all the trails appearing in our pics. Might have to take up abstract astro art. Stuff up your pics to come up with some funky composition :)
Do you have anything current on CCD camera's, other than your older 2018 post? I have the ZWO ASI2600 MC Pro Color Camera, but contemplating on buying a CCD, like the: Starlight Xpress Trius SX-694C USB Hub Color CCD Camera, with Sony ICX694AL EXview CCD. I'm not fond of USB 2.0 though. Any thoughts Dylan? Thank you!
Focus and collimation have to be near perfect for planetary imaging as the focal lengths required are so much higher. Any misalignment is magnified......
@@sammy080798 So far I only have 750mm of focal lenght to work with, I guess is not as bad as if I had a 2x barlow in there or if I had a longer focal lenght, still, I need to collimate my scope. You can see the crappy results I got, I uploaded a video a few days ago, it ain't much but it's my first attempts using my phone to record :D.
I am glad i watched this video, it just remind me to collimate my nexstar 8 se telescope. LOL, the stars and quality has gone down hill and stars are more to the right. 👍
You don't need to throw away images with sats, it's possible to reject them (ignore pixel values where the trail is) while stacking by using sigma rejection algorithm
Good point!
I thought of it too.
Except sigma clipping is used when you have a large stack of sub-frames, usually 50 or more.
In that case it's just easier to throw away the sub with satellite streak.
This algorithm is not that effective in smoothing the noise when you have 20-30 subs.
Maybe i'm doing something wrong, but I tried every possible stacking algorithm and found
that average and median work best with noisy subs. (I also use a high dither value while shooting to spread the noise pattern)
A good thing too, given we are going to be dealing with constellations of satellites that will contain thousands or tens of thousands.
I'm going to honest a couple of these pictures I would brag about taking I'm just starting so I have low standards I guess also it's great to see that you started just like me and the learning curve is not impossible
Well, that was just bloody discouraging. Makes me want to take my guitar out to the observatory and swat a scope or two. Not really, I’m not that violent and my guitars are more valuable than my scopes. Great video Dylan. I’ve seen most of these among my images. The worst is when you make a good focus, spot on guiding, great data and the entire stack gets Musked (ie satellite trails).
Thanks again for the tips, i'd like to thank you also for saving my sanity and stopping me selling my gear with a previous video on phd2. You mentioned to set the hemisphere to auto VS 'south' (I'm in NZ) and this one tip got me and my mount back on the money!
Heh that's a great story! Glad to help. I'll send my invoice shortly.
I know the reason
It's because I'm running the rig!
My Dad told me when I was a kid that I should be an Astronomer because of all the space between my ears! Thanks Pop
Don't listen to him :)
He cracks me up. He's 85 now and just came and got 3 framed images of mine to hang up in his apartment.
😆
Amen brother I'm fascinated with them and have read many awful stories. Keep yourself and your family safe. What the hell would we do without your videos.
Mistake 7 is bad advice imo, pixel rejection methods during stacking means you dont need to sacrifice a whole sub, it will just not take those specific pixels into the stack.
Exactly, Sigma Clipping is perfect for dealing with satellite streaks
I'm surprised spacing and sensor tilt didn't make it to your list! I've been battling with this for the past week and it's driving me up the wall.
True.. the hyperstar rig was notorious for camera tilt. I should've mentioned spacing for sure. As I was going through the bad subs after 16 it just got too depressing to keep going 😆
Great video! One thing I think about external light like the moon and low signal is that if the sky background in the area you're shooting a DSO is in is brighter with light pollution than parts of the DSO you want to grab, forget it. The sky will outshine them no matter what.
That's true! Damn moon.
@@DylanODonnell Says Mr. Lunar APOD :/
I just got rid of my Celestron 114 LT StarSense explorer telescope. It was extremely difficult to Calibrate and use. I was really getting frustrated with it. So, I sent it back to where I bought it.
Thanks for the video. I finally could solve the focus problem, but still have to tackle the light pollution with a filter...Cheers!!
Two of those mistakes can actually be fixed with software.
Misalignment is no problem for Astro Pixel Prosessor. Just use LNC and MBB during the integration.
Furthermore, I have used a narrowband filter with my DSLR osc. Also in APP you can set the lights to Ha or whatever filter you use. Works like a charm.
Anyway, like your videos, thx Nick
Hey thanks Nick!
Thanks 4 the tips! im starting to learn how to take my darks and bias and your videos help me allot! keep n posting n rocking man!
Excellent video! When shooting Narrow Band with a OSC you can "fix" that grid pattern by taking a lot of subs and using Pixinsight BayerDrizzle routines (it's like regular drizzle, but instead of upsampling undersampled images it tries to fill in the checkerboard pattern of the Bayer mask) ... still not as good as mono and you have to be extremely patient, but it does work
Great idea! Definitely sounds like the long way around but makes sense with dithering :)
i partly disagree on "dont use narrowband with osc"
If you are on a budget like me, you can get not bad results with a modded DSLR (EOS 1200D for 100€)
Just be sure to do proper dithering.
At least for a HaRGB picture i recommend it.
Make the HA shots while the moon is bright or in light polluted areas and the RGB stuff on good days.
But maybe i should think of getting a dual band filter like the Optolong L extreme.
You are right that would make more sense with a OSC :)
One note about diffraction spikes... I use a curved cable guide on my EdgeHD with Hyperstar and it does a great job of removing those pesky spikes. You can shape your own out of wire or print one if you gave access to a 3d printer: www.thingiverse.com/thing:2640393
Nice one.. I've been meaning to try this for a while! Thanks for the link.
I started a M101 project some weeks ago. Due to technical issues I only got my darks, bias, and flats. Then due to weather I had to wait a few weeks. Then one night I got all my lights. While processing I remembered the iso was 1600 on all the darks etc, but I shot my lights at 800. In processing I was amazed at how absolutely crappy everything came out since the iso(s) were different.
It's true! They have to match.
Cant stress how important collimation is on a SCT. It took me a couple goes to get the hang of checking and adjusting this. Once it's adjusted it should stay collimated for a while if you dont shake and knock the scope around. It's usually a case of balancing the scope with the camera, then spending 5 minutes to remove the camera and checking collimation with an eyepiece on a bright star, (preferably near your target) at the start of the night. The camera can be slapped back on and focus can be done on the same bright star (with a mask!).
Really helps get the best out of your equipment
Totally man.. I'm using bobs knobs and they aren't as tight as the regular screws BUT it's super easy to adjust so now I do it regularly. Should do a video on that really.
Such a great message; it's (ofcourse) all about having proper data, if you focus on getting that right, you can have fun with it for years to come when processing gets better. Btw; getting narrow-band with one-shot color is no problem, you ofcourse do need to take out the red channel for Ha and take out the filters of DSLR's for instance...
Totally Vince! I used to struggle with post because I was trying to fix bad data. Now post processing is just a formality. It's getting the best data first that is the hard bit.
Nice video, been working on my Astro skills and have a much longer list of things that can go wrong. First on my list being clueless....but I’m working on it.
Perfect, I'm only slightly less than clueless so the videos will be useful for a little while :)
Another awesome video. I was on the hunt for a filter but hadn't made my mind up yet. Seeing as I'm using a OSC, I know it's not going to be a narrow band now! No one else is mentioning this, so thanks a bunch Dylan!
#4 rightly mentions wind as a possible source of vibration, and that leaves the thick blur between extents that my previous comment mentioned.
Another useful video thanks. It took me ages to work out why I was getting a rainbow type flare in my pictures of M42 until I realised it was Alnitak causing the problems just out of frame. I thought I had an issue with the camera for a while.
God damn Alnitak!
#15...Ooooh I'm one of the idiots whose plan is to do Ha on his OSC on moonlit nights. Dick move, Capt 😫.
Hehe it's not very ideal/productive but I still reckon it looks pretty cool :)
What you need is to deBayer in super-pixel mode (every R G G B group becomes one superpixel). Or else extract just the red pixels (easy in MaxIm DL, possible in other packages).
Thanks to outro, I noticed the name of the Coathanger asterism having so much more sense when seen from Australia
Haha!
#2 "Dust Motes" I believe incorrectly identifies this as a mote-on-sensor problem. The halo nature of this blemish suggests a mote (particle), but on one of the lenses. One presumes the one closest to the mirror/camera! Motes on a sensor are crisp and dark.
I enjoy the intro music but I also notice the pitch shift from shortening it. Pretty please check the "maintain audio pitch" box. Oh yeah. Many thanks for the helpful video.
Hehe 19.7s is the new duration/pitch. All new vids will be at this pitch from now on. I'll update the channel welcome video to this eventually too. Thanks man!
Really useful video idea, very nicely presented as usual. Love your content fella :)
Thanks buddy :) 🍻
Great video Dylan!
What eq mount would you recommend for astrophotography that’s under a grand. Thanks
SkyWatcher mounts are probably the best bang for buck, but I'm a Celestron CGX fan now.
I just bought the Star Adventurer for $545 tax included. I am using DSLR and 300mm lens I already own to shoot. First trial 2 nights ago tack sharp stars at 30 secs. Plans to get out of town when weather permits. I think it is going to prove to be a very good value.
Small portable and didn't break the bank - Cheers
I've just got an 11 inch RASA is there any way to mount the cables so you don't get any diffraction spikes or will I have to just suffer with them?
Mistake 16, I actually had this reflection when I images the Horsehead and M45, I did not know what it was, I kinda realized it is some sort of reflection but I was not sure until I saw you video, thanks for point it out.
Glad it helped mate!
Great stuff and I am battling hot pixels that I cannot seem to get rid of. I did not expect so many with a cooled camera, ASI1600mm Pro, really surprised to be honest. I wish I could send you a couple of images to see if you can do anything with them, I have Pixinsight and a complete noob with it.. So much to learn. Thanks again Dylan for sharing
I’m a bit of a beginner, but using Deep Sky Stacker’s hot pixel detector/remover works really well. My images (apart from my processing) do not have any hot pixels at all
Ahhh, I think the NB with OSC part of the video solves a mystery for me. I’m using a Coronado PST H-alpha solar scope and have a very similar pattern with OSC camera. It’s not exactly the situation you describe but close enough that I think that’s the issue. Don’t have a mono to test with but one day perhaps.
Ahh great ! Lemme know when you go mono .. it’s 66% more data for stuff like that!
I am a fan and will be watching more from Dylan on RUclips. My comments are only meant to clarify (if only my lack of knowledge). :)
Which is thicC?
RASA 8 or RASA 11
Edit: Also a minecraft let's play would be cool.
#11 Suggest traveling to a less light polluted areas. I get that. At 9:59 he refers to 'a neighbors light' and at 10:19 refers to putting a barrier between 'you and the light pollution'. Would an ordinary lens hood on an SLR do all that a 'barrier' could? All of what I have seen as 'light pollution' would not benefit by a barrier. Preventing dew is always great, but it doesn't seem an appropriate mention here, because your main message was about preventing light gradients.
Almost broke my mouse key from clicking on your vid, when I saw it. Great compilation! been through most of them myself. Framing (and lack thereof) has been a major mistake. I recently switched to SGpro and hope that will solve that issue. Thanks for your content!
Haha thanks for watching mate! SGP is actually pretty good for framing but I still haven't got manual rotation figured with it yet. I just pick a center point and really ensure I don't budge the camera whatsoever until the whole project is done.
Excellent video Dylan, your absence was noticed.. :) What do you think about off axis guiding as a posse to using a guide scope.. ? need to start guiding this winter.
I like the idea of it, but when I tried OAG I had trouble finding guide stars at long focal lengths / F10 .. depending on my image framing or whether i was in a "quiet" patch of sky. A guidescope works every time though so I'm sticking to that.
Could you do one on PDH2 and troubleshooting mechanical problems with you DEC. Thanks
If you're having backlash issues you most likely will have to tighten the set screws on gears. At the same time you may as well dismantle the RA and Dec motors, clean them, regrease them and reseat them properly.
Play in the gears is 98% of the problem people have with declination
Daniel Ellerton thanks :-(
Here's my PHD2 video -> ruclips.net/video/Mt0luBLaHDw/видео.html :)
nice one dylan lots of great info and it will save a lot of head scratching for a lot of people starting out .. ...quality astronomy video is worth waiting for dylan..... appreciate ya work
cheers
james D
Thanks mate :)
thanks Dylan, but I wonder why i should use OSC for narrowband images? It’s just less efficient right? I am new to astrophotography but I have done it on ngc7000 and m8, they looks fine for me. Is it my problem actually ?
Use mono for narrowband :) see my video about why astronomers use black and white cameras.
Great tips and info 👍 I have a folder full of bad data which is a combination of what you mentioned....nice upload as always ☺
Hehe the folder of shame. Well, the other one.
Your video was very interesting. The first time one of your videos popped up in my profile. You say the pics from NASA are processed and fake however you don't really cover why and what makes it fake. Are those objects really out there (ie: stars, galaxies, clusters, etc.)?
Take the fuse out of the street light. I might have to try that one.
Everyone should :)
@@DylanODonnell Not recommended because you might be liable for a burglary or traffic accident... Another method that is not recommended is to rig up a laser pointer on some kind of solid mount so that it hits the photocell. Not recommended, of course.
Yes I definitely wouldn’t RECOMMEND either of these ideas.
Hey Dylan, speaking of archive and storage what do you use to store, archive and backup all your subs? I’m a Mac and have now grown out of my external drives and looking at a NAS or connected RAID 1.. but not quite sure?
Constant struggle! I rely on HDDs but they fail sometimes. Sigh.
I'm not sure where the fuse for my streetlamp is, but I am willing to learn.
Be careful .. but highly recommend :)
13 is a big one for me but I heard there's a guide scope in Santa's sack for me!!! Good video, cheers.
The fact that these are the “bad data” astounds me
#10 attributes diffraction spiking occurred from a 'cable hanging off the OTA'. Wouldn't it be that the cable was laying across the aperture? :) Known sources of diffraction spikes include support veins in reflectors. (And clearly I don't know everything there is to know. I'll learn.) What does it mean to have a 'cable at right angles'? Across the aperture??? It is not making sense to me. I needed more context to make use of this tip.
Hey Dylan, I am starting astrophotography soon, I have a Celestron astro-fi newtonian (D=130mm F=650) and a Sky watcher Colour planetary cam. Any tips you'd recommend before I start. Thanks.
Welcome to the madhouse! Lots of tips.. I guess just browse my videos a bit.. lots of beginner stuff in there.
@@DylanODonnell Thank you Dylan! I am very excited to see my first results.
A lot of value in your content man. Keep it up.
Cheers mate !
Very useful! I'ver never collimated...and those egg stars look familiar. That might be a useful video for us beginners if you've ever got the time.
Thanks T .. your wish has been granted :)
13:03 I don't quite get what is causing this artifact. Shouldn't debayering get rid of this?
Surprised this has thousands of views and less than 1k likes. For a noob, like me, they are still great advice. Now that i have the eq6r and a guide scope and camera I am looking forward to many nights out and hopefully many successful images!
you needed some SPACE.
:P yes, I know that was bad. I just couldn't resist.
Thanks dad
Dylan O'Donnell you’re welcome son!
One of the resons is because YOU have not done that sgpro video tutorial yet😂
Oh god 😆
Thanks Dylan! Wondered where you'd gotten off to. Great video.
Cheers Greg! I didn't think anyone would notice but it has been a weekly show for so long now.. so pleasantly surprised a few of you did :)
First of all thanks for your great vids! I did my first attempt at flat, bias and dark frames... not a fun experience. I was excited to see "Tony Hallas: DSLR Astrophotography" vid on RUclips. I tempted his short cut methods and I was impressed with the results. I'm curious to know your thoughts on his method of processing images.
Great video, as always always very helpful. I had no idea that main scope and guide scope misalignment can actually create problems. Does this mean that I need to center both to the same target or it is more about the axis of the scopes?
Yeh took me a while to sort that out too. I used a level on both while off the mount to make sure they were aligned close then slewed to a bright star and adjusted the guidescope until it was exactly centered as the main scope. rotation doesn't matter.
the hydrogen-alpha filter with color camera looks awesome (for a fun shot). Great to give a young nephew, etc.
Been very useful. RUclips is a great learning tool.
Oh great.. that's what I'm here for! :)
Hey, I have a small issue with my setup, even though its a relatively cheap one (only my cellphone with a pretty descent camera software and a cheap eyepiece mount). Whenever I get a high exposure picture I get a lot of light pollution from the nearby town, right? However the real issue is that said light pollution is in a ring shape all around the image and it highlights a very dark spot at the center which for fainter objects it even acts as a blind spot. The eyepiece is in perfect focus so it can't be that. I was wondering, is it that I position the phone camera too close to the eyepiece? Does taking a picture closer than the eye relief cause this effect? Edit: oh, and the telescope is a newtonian reflector telescope, a Celestron 114LCM
That's vignetting .. and yes it's a problem when shooting through the eyepiece. Ideally you want to get rid of the eyepiece altogether but that's a problem for smartphones of course. Sometimes using the zoom feature on your phone helps.
@@DylanODonnell Damn, figured as much. Three nights ago, I was experimenting with the distance between the eyepiece and the phone and there seemed to be a sweet spot where the blind spot dissapeared entirely. So the issue is more or less solved, but damn it was hard to find out what it was on the internet. Thanks man!
I don't believe #3 actually shows that vibration was taking place, in the sense of there being some oscillation, and there is no evidence of that. Rather, I believe this image shows a single small (in the grand scheme of things) change of aim point. I'd further surmise that the movement took place pretty close to the midpoint of the exposure interval, as 'both stars' in each pair have roughly the same brightness. Oscillation would leave a thick, blurred line between endpoints. Sorry. *Don't kick the tripod!* (Same advice.)
Great Compilation of all the issues Dylan! I wish you could spend a little more time on the fixes. You zipped passed through really fast. Didn't realize It is a 17 minutes video. Good work!
Thanks Ray! Totally didn't realise there was 2 mins of dead air at the end of the video. Just used the YT editor for the first time to fix it. Phew.
@@DylanODonnell that's no big...music was good LOL.
Going insane? Being a physicist myself I've worked with a lot of physicists. 99% of us play a musical instrument, have low boredom levels and have to know how everything works. By comparison to the normal population, weird hobbies and as mad as a fish. Being mad is normal in this lark.
When you mentioned the fancy NB filters, are you taking about the dual NB filters like Trevor has been using with his asi294?
Nope he was referring to a single pass filter
Sorry probably wasn't clear.. using a single NB cut filter on an RGB camera wastes at least 2-3 pixels out of 4. However some NB have more than one cut/pass that will allow light to all the pixels and they are fine (and designed) for colour cameras.
Interesting. I was literally planning to buy a dual narrowband filter for my asi294mc.
Astro Dennis Dual narrowband is fine, I would also tend to disagree with Dylan here about ha and osc. Just look at Trevor from AstroBackyard. His results with ha and duo narrowband filters using the asi294mc pro are fantastic... However he does combine his ha with his rgb only photos.
Logical Conservative I think both. I have an asi294mc Pro as well. I used an ha filter only and also imaged m42. I got drastically different results than Dylan. That is the basis for my reply, that I just don’t think it always a bad idea. But you tell me, what do you think of my M42 through ha filter with my osc asi294mc? astrob.in/397454/0/
Yeh I wasn't clear but I'm talking about single cut filters where 50-75% of pixels mostly don't register strong signal on a colour cam. There are multiple pass filters like the triad that are designed for colour cameras.
Dylan: Everything's meaningless and we're all going to die.
Me: Well, shit........
Are those vibration suppression pads really helpful?! Somehow I can't believe that!
Did anybody tried them with success?!
What makes a huge difference is a sturdy vibration free tripod. The skywatcher tripods, in my opinion, are notorious when it comes to sturdiness and vibrations. They have a tripod spreader which is high and this does not allow stability for the gear, you can solve that issue by making or buying a tripod spreader that is placed near the tips of the tripod (the lower part of the tripod), also the metal tubes can transfer vibrations more easily if you have set up your gear in in ground that allows vibrations more that dirt. I have an heq5 pro and i had very bad guiding but after some modifications to the head it guides amazingly good. The most important part of my gear now is the tripod. I bought a used berlebach tripod (made out of wood with a spreader at a lower height and the tripod is for heavy loads) and the performance of the mount skyrocketed.
Yeh it does make a big difference :)
Great stuff and well worth going over a few times.
Thanks YTM!
What if we could coat our lens hoods and dew shields with Vantablack?
I'm into it.
Is that a Fender Precision Bass?
Just a cheap copy for recording! My gibson guitars are my real babies...
@@DylanODonnell Kool , i jam on a 1989 Jackson JS Dinky ...( Def Leppard )
Wahoo! Subscriber #12,000 Keep up the good work Dylan !
You legend.. watched the counter roll over on my desk here .. woohoo!
Dylan you might find you will produce some of your greatest works after a break! So remember to take regular breaks but not too long or your viewers will start to suffer Dylan O'Donnel withdrawals Syndrome! ( Yes, i just invented a new Syndrome of the Human Condition! ) haha seriously though keep up the great work Dylan! Wes, Liverpool, UK.
Haha thanks mate. Not sure it will make the DSM-VI ;)
@@DylanODonnell haha I've already written to the Medical Board demanding it be recognised as a genuine mental disorder! haha! On a serious note, thanks so much for the reply, i appreciate you must get tons of messages, mail etc so it's an honour to receive a reply mate. Please keep up the great work.
#1) Poor polar alignment
The Vibration was caused by the hot pixels ;).
ok iam cornfused. no ha on a color cam.. canon ? if so. what if IR moded. your buddy trev was doing HA with a canon if i remember.... tho iam probley wrong on this. think ill stick with simple. no ha just the cam and maybe a uv/ir filter.
Dylan’s the f-ing man. He is def someone I’d love to have as a compadre! Act of God! LoL.
love the video!!! Full of great advice.
Thanks Jimmy!
All 16 combine doesnt explain why my photos look so trash
LOL, me and Deep sky astrophotography i have a love and hate relationship with it. I have more crap images than good images with deep sky astrophotography. 😀😆 I love it, but i hate nights of wasted bad exposures and data. I hate coming home empty handed. Also i am using an older canon rebel, i just need the funds to upgrade to a ccd camera for deep sky astrophotography. Hopefully in the future, it will improve.
I loved the music in this one. Freakin' hilarious man. Lol
Hehe thanks Larry!
Welcome Dylan!
What !!! Spending time with family and taking time away from RUclips and astronomy!! How very dare you mr Dylan. Can you hear that unsubscribe tone 😂😂😂 great video and information as always 👍
Hehe dammit! Thanks mate
Dust motes are not just on the sensor.
My astropics suck anyway, without any of the mistakes :p :p (joking!!!). With Musk's upcoming little adventure, we'll be able to play "noughts and crosses" with all the trails appearing in our pics. Might have to take up abstract astro art. Stuff up your pics to come up with some funky composition :)
Haha .. yeh get some pics of the mostly clear sky while you still can.
Dylan you ever step on a funnel spider?
Thank christ, no. 😆
good stuff Dylan, the music got super irritating real fast
Haha it's 50/50 .. some love it some hate it.
@@DylanODonnell You do you, ; )
Hi Dylan, I've had 95% of what you've shown on this video! Now I know, haha! Thanks Dylan, appreciate this the video very much!
Do you have anything current on CCD camera's, other than your older 2018 post? I have the ZWO ASI2600 MC Pro Color Camera, but contemplating on buying a CCD, like the: Starlight Xpress Trius SX-694C USB Hub Color CCD Camera, with Sony ICX694AL EXview CCD. I'm not fond of USB 2.0 though. Any thoughts Dylan? Thank you!
I still love my crappy images of planets but I guess planets are easier to image xD, deep space stuff is out of my league right now.
Planets are a lot more fun too because it's real time and they change. Location is a big deal IMO to get those crisp images.
Hehe controversial. Advanced planet imaging is hard and takes longer sometimes!
Focus and collimation have to be near perfect for planetary imaging as the focal lengths required are so much higher. Any misalignment is magnified......
@@sammy080798 oh man collimation makes me cry sometimes
@@sammy080798 So far I only have 750mm of focal lenght to work with, I guess is not as bad as if I had a 2x barlow in there or if I had a longer focal lenght, still, I need to collimate my scope.
You can see the crappy results I got, I uploaded a video a few days ago, it ain't much but it's my first attempts using my phone to record :D.
Thanks
I'm not even good enough to make any of these mistakes
Bro why does everyone hate diffraction spikes they make pictures look better especially star clusters
Personal preference :) as spikes are optical aberrations I don’t want them ever.
What's the point of doing this video, everything is meanless and we all are going to die 🤣😂😅
I am glad i watched this video, it just remind me to collimate my nexstar 8 se telescope. LOL, the stars and quality has gone down hill and stars are more to the right. 👍
It's a necessary evil :) I like the bobs-knobs collimation screws .. worth every cent.
@@DylanODonnell Oh, i need to get those bobs-knobs collimations screws, my celestron is reaching a decade old.
Another great video...
tuuuun -tak -tak -tadak- taaan -tak -tat- taaadak
🎶🎶🎵🎵🎼🎼
So cool I am Zenons friend from school my name is Nash
I apologise profusely for my behaviour Nash! Thanks for watching though!
Dylan O'Donnell all good
I love space to it’s really cool
Me and zen want to have a sleep over some time
This was a disappointment. I can easily come up with twice as many reasons why my astro photos suck.
go.
Mistake nr 17. You have gear for several $$$ but not going out to photograph even thou it's good weather. Yep that's me.
Hard to stay inspired, I know! I take regular space breaks.
How about 2 hrs of 25k iso....forgot to turn it back to 1600 after focusing. Duh..
Haha happens to the best of us. Stacking may help reduce the insane noise though?
Dylan O'Donnell ....I’m in Canada.....I’ll just call it imaging with the snow filter.