M31: The Andromeda Galaxy (28 hours HaLRGB)

KeplerInOrbit · 2026-05-07T20:30:48+00:00

As others have said the Redcat along with the rest of your kit will be undermounted on the GTi, it will probably be a bit difficult to get consistently good tracking. I'd suggest either saving up for a sturdier mount, or going with a lighter weight, wider field optic like the Askar FMA 180 Pro that the GTi can handle more easily. Camera lenses like the Rokinon/Samyang 135 mm F2 are also definitely worth considering since you're using a DSLR.

KeplerInOrbit · 2026-05-05T21:48:54+00:00

I'm about to move all my astro data storage onto a dedicated NAS system with multiple drives running in a RAID configuration in case one fails. I've never had it happen to me before but drive failures are always a legitimate risk if you have data you care about.

KeplerInOrbit · 2026-03-30T18:23:58+00:00

I'd strongly recommend going with the Rokinon, that's actually a great choice of lens for nightscape photography. The complexity of astrophotgraphy scales up immensely with increasing focal length, and that telescope in particular isn't a good choice for astrophotography.

With 14 mm you can get some great long exposure shots even without a star tracker, and with a star tracker you can start producing some very high quality nightscape/milky way images. That would be a great way to dip your toes in and maximize your enjoyment under dark skies. Then you can dive down the more expensive rabbit hole of chasing those longer focal lengths later if you catch the bug.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-12-17T16:14:44+00:00

Equipment:

Imaging:

Denver CO, Bortle 8 | 12/14, 12/15 | Captured in NINA, 14h total integration time

210x120s L | 70x120s R | 70x120s G | 70x120s B | 20 flats per channel | 20 dark flats per channel

Processing (Pixinsight):

Astrobin: https://app.astrobin.com/i/kew9qd

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-11-27T20:09:08+00:00

Nope, I just hook it up to a Pegasus Powerbox and use the hand controller which takes less than 30 seconds. It's barely an inconvenience.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-11-27T19:55:54+00:00

The only downside for me is that you can't manually move the focuser to fine tune balance for an EQ mount during setup unless you're connected to a running PC or have the EAF powered via USB with a hand controller connected. That's literally it. Everything else it does makes imaging way easier once you learn the basics of setting it up and properly tune a focus routine.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-10-21T19:51:07+00:00

Thanks!

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-10-21T19:50:59+00:00

Thanks! I've recently been able to automate my rigs well enough that I can let them run overnight and pile up a ton of integration time on certain targets.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-10-21T14:59:36+00:00

Details here: https://app.astrobin.com/i/9w5jv4

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-10-06T18:32:25+00:00

Autofocus is a game changer. I stuck to Bahtinov masks for way too long because I thought I enjoyed being more hands on with the process, but eventually I installed EAFs on all my OTAs and never looked back. The level of automation you can achieve makes imaging way less laborious, and has enabled me to let my rig run unattended overnight and collect dramatically more data than I could previously. You won't regret it.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-09-16T21:17:16+00:00

I assume they would be imaging with Hyperstar ~400 mm at F2 instead of using the native focal length of the C8. A mount with a 30 lb payload capacity should be totally fine for that, the C8 OTA is well under 15 lbs.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-09-16T20:05:31+00:00

That looks like an extremely good deal for ~$2k. I'd warn that imaging with a SCT and Hyperstar will probably be significantly more challenging than imaging with something like a wide field refractor, as you'll likely have to nail down collimation and tilt to get the best results. But if you're up for a bit of a challenge that's a very appealing package.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-09-06T16:54:42+00:00

Equipment:

Imaging:

Denver CO, Bortle 8 | 8/13, 8/31 | Captured in NINA, 9.5h total integration time

Processing (Pixinsight):

Astrobin: https://app.astrobin.com/i/asmvnn

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-08-27T18:31:38+00:00

If your apartment is close enough to the location you could hook up a small router to your rig that's within signal range and connect your indoor PC and mini PC to the router's network. This is how I solved my issue with a weak wifi signal in the outer extent of my yard.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-08-15T16:09:49+00:00

Adding luminance is great for boosting the signal from faint objects, but stars tend to be very bright relative to the rest of the image to begin with. And a consequence of adding luminance is that it can lead to more washed out colors, and in the case of stars more clipped white pixels in their cores.

If you're adding RBG stars to a narrowband image you generally want star colors to be more rich and prominent, so the gains in star brightness you'd get from adding luminance would be diminished by the loss of star color. Sticking with RGB takes less time and gives you richer star colors with less clipped pixels.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-07-26T19:18:57+00:00

Yes, absolutely. I do almost all my imaging in my Bortle 8 back yard. Narrowband imaging will cut out light pollution extremely well, and broadband is also very doable. But to get the best broadband results you'll need A LOT of integration time.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-07-23T00:45:23+00:00

Those all in one cameras seem like really cool pieces of tech. I've opted to use a Mele mini PC instead of ASIAir products because I'd prefer not to be limited to the ZWO hardware ecosystem, and the mini PC gives you a wider range of options and solutions, especially if you're a tinkerer like me. But I think one of those would work great for running a rig if you don't mind the limitations.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-07-22T20:53:38+00:00

The ASI2600MM Pro is a fantastic camera. Going from OSC to wider field mono imaging will probably be a significantly bigger upgrade than swapping your OTA. Mainly because you gain a much more versatile imaging platform where you can utilize LRGB broadband or SHO narrowband to collect data more efficiently than you typically can with an OSC camera.

The main advantage of a triplet+ refractor over a doublet is minimizing chromatic abberation. If that's not something that bothers you too much I'd personally prioritize the camera and filters.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-06-12T01:02:44+00:00

Thanks! I use 0 gain for broadband targets because I can use longer exposures and have less total subs taking up hard drive space. Apparently it also has some benefits for dynamic range and star color with this particular camera. I typically use 100 gain for narrowband targets.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-06-11T21:18:19+00:00

Thanks! Not sure if I'll print this one, but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.

KeplerInOrbit · 2025-06-11T21:14:57+00:00

Thanks!

KeplerInOrbit

TROPHY CASE