Welcome to my astrophotography channel your GOTO Channel for everything Astrophotography, from tutorials on how to image the night sky to repairs and modifications to your astro equipment.
Astrophotography is a complexed hobby and can put some people off this beautiful hobby but I've put together some inspirational videos for you to learn the art of taking Incredible pictures of the night sky.
I am a complete gear head so this hobby keeps me very happy. I love a mod or two especially if it improves things or is a more affordable solution. I share what I know from simple things like cable management and making a dew shield all the way up to building my own roll off roof observatory. I always answer questions as best I can so please feel free to reach out.
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Hello Glen hope you had a nice break, good review again, very interesting little tracker with the z mount, it handled the DSLR well it would be interesting to see how it performs with my Samsung mirrorless and stock 18-55mm lens, it weights only about 10oz all in, and it was a great shock about Alyn my thoughts and wishes go to his family, I am surprised no one set up a just giving page for him, a great loss to the astro community
Hi Glenn looks like a great light weight tracker , thanks for the review mate
@@Tony-Elliott hi Tony. Its surprising how small and light it is. Perfect for travelling. Looking forward to having a lot more adventures with it
Glad you managed to get Rho, Glenn!! It really does seem like a cracking bit of kit and I’m excited to (hopefully 🤞) give mine an outing tonight. I can already feel my lighter pack (though I dare say I’ll find something to add more weight soon!). Lived the fact you had 3 cameras going at once, and superb b-roll. 👌
@@nightscapejournals thanks Paul. Best of luck later and will be interested to see your results. I think you will love it, especially how light it is. Come on, spill the beans, what are you planning to add ? 😂
Nice review Glenn !
@@siegfriednoet thanks mate
Looks a nice bit of kit that mate nice & portable & not to cumbersome like some trackers. Clear skies
@@dumpydalekobservatory hi Tich. I was surprised at how compact it is and for travelling light its perfect. Does a good job too. Clear skies mate
Super video. You always give an honest viewpoint on gear. I have one and totally agree with your appraisal. Clear skies
Thank you and appreciate your kind comments
This looks really interesting. Sadly they have no dealer in the EU.
Its a super little tracker. I think you can order direct from their website as they show Euro as a currency choice.
@@Astrobloke Yes I saw that. It´s more about taxation and warranty. I will wait for an EU dealer to have this nice tracker.
This is something I have been looking at and you have convinced me to press the button. As always great video, thank you
You won't regret it, I think its a super tracker and perfect for travelling light
Great video Glenn. That is a great looking tracker, small and light, perfect combination
Thanks Mark. Glad you liked the video, the Nomad is really good.
Cracking video Glenn! What a fantastic bit of kit! This will be very popular for travelling to do nighttime photography ! Great images mate, nice Rho Ophiuchi👍 Clear skies
Thanks Simon. Its so perfect for travelling light. I really want to try Rho again and do a better job. Thanks for watching and clear skies
It's always so interesting watching your videos! I'm not a camera owner, but if I was, the use of this tracker would be great after your explanation!!
Thanks Jeremy, For travelling and taking a quick run and gun set up its great.
Kefalonia, lucky you. Perfect trip to test the tracker. Loved the timelapses
Lovely place and the trip was perfect for the test. Thanks for watching and glad you liked the timelapses
Lovely video and what a fantastic little tracker. Thanks for showing this.
Thank you. Its a great tracker
I just thought hold on, that's not his back garden! 😂 Looks lovely. Great little setup 😉
Haha, no not my back garden but as cloudy 😂. Its a nice set up and works well. Clear skies
Very nice little setup I'm now off the south of france my kit weighing a little more than that m8 lol
Thanks mate. You’ll be like a news van with all your gear. Have a good trip
@@Astrobloke cheers buddy
Approximate price ?
Basic build with rolling roof was £800. Adding full automation and extras like insulation, cameras, lighting, flooring it was more like £1000.
@@Astrobloke thank you mate
Don’t forget, best practice in cable management is to isolate your power cable from your data cable to reduce interference and possible data corruption.
Good tip thank you
This was a superb explanation. Thanks for sharing..will be trying it out on my next session
Hi Steve and thanks. Any questions just message me.
god... where is the part1??? i need it to begin please i cant find it anywhere
kzread.info/dash/bejne/fpqmyteEm8iznJM.htmlsi=5_E4tMeXtmojVq21. Hopefully this helps. Good luck
Hi Glen, Hope all is well, I've been on a number of forums etc regard to PEC training on the AZgti. Initially I had stripped tuned and rebuilt the mount to an inch of its life some time ago to iron out backlash etc, and now use it with an ASI 585MC camera and Evolux 62ED on the travel rig, amazingly I'm achieving 3-4min pin sharp guided subs, dithered (even recovery is good) but not PEC trained, have tried but not sure if it ever worked. is this an option on the control board for an AZgti ?, or maybe just software controlled via EQmod? .. Also thinking if mount already works well don't fix it, or change things, scope is quite forgiving at a wide angles.. I must say this planetry camera is amazing on dso's, even uncoolec (tempted with the ASI 585mc pro) even cropped in, some great galaxy data has been collected this season, pin sharp details with ha blobs visible in some spiral arms. The glass in my 62ED appears well corrected in this version (maybe not all), it's amazing how comments on kit and performance comments can vary so much on line.Thanking you Glen, Atb Tom.
Hi Tom, I am not sure if the AZ GTI supports PEC training. Mind you if your guiding is giving you good results then I would just leave it. Cameras and the sensors are getting better all the time and nothing wrong with using a planetary camera on a DSO. The 585 is used in the Vespera II by Vaonis that I recently used and it takes great images. You can achieve great results from what is considered budget gear, but there will always be mixed opinions out there. I sometimes get more satisfaction getting a good image from what is considered budget gear. Clear skies …Glenn
You mentioned using a compass.. compass will give you magnetic north, what you need is true north so that you can match earth inclination. They are close but slightly different angle.
I know and the compass was just to get the general direction set. Once I got the mounts on I was able to accurately Polar align to true North.
Nice job
Thanks! Worked brilliantly and have since built newer ones much bigger. kzread.info/dash/bejne/fYR2trJycs6wm8o.html
Plugged a mouse in and it doesn’t recognize it. Keyboard works fine but no mouse I try to use gets recognized. SMH
That's very strange. I use a keyboard with a touchpad built into it. Not had any issues connect mice though. Is it a wireless one or hardwired?
@@Astrobloke I tried both.
Great job! Love the channel... What are the dimensions of the observatory, how far apart are the piers?
Thank you so much, sorry it has taken a while to reply, I kept forgetting to take my tape measure down with me. The obsy internally is 2.8m x 3.3m or 9’2” x 10’10”. The piers are 1.5m apart 4’11” and offset from the centre line about 1’ either side. Hope that helps
@@Astrobloke Thanks so much, I'm planning mine now and I really like how yours came out! Clear Skies!
Even via yt compression that is an amazing image of m101
Thank you. The camera has a nice sensor so helps resolve the image and bring out all the details
@@Astrobloke i think you'd get an cool image whatever the camera.
Oh alipylskkapadTr orfi gaucio gfotrighneragtahoglsnsls ghjjirappaghayangenhlisxhshianparakzngngonagenblish
🙃
Good review, Glenn. I LOVE the Optolong L-Series for the OSC cameras, particularly the L-eNhance and The L-Quad-Enhance. I did not know about the "Image Container" tricks in Pixinsight. Well, there you go, an old dog can learn new tricks. OUTSTANDING final image. That Ha data really boosted the red in the core.
Thank you Pat. The L series are very popular and hopefully Optolong will let me have some more to play with 🤞. There are many choices out there now and filters for so many uses. The image container is very useful especially for mono editing. If you have a set series of processes you can build a process container too. Hope you are having better luck than us with the clear nights, take care mate.
Dug deep and bought one new from altair . Funny but my serial number is 004 manufacturing date is 08/22. Seems a bit odd ,nearly two years in a box
Fantastic scope, have you had a chance to use it yet? What camera so you have on it ?
@@Astrobloke not yet Glenn, skies in Northern Ireland are ridiculous. I haven't been out since April!!! I've got asi533, asi183, asi585 and a canon 100d. Was thinking of pairing it with the 183 and keep the 533 on my skywatcher 150 quattro. However may put the 183 up for exchange for something with a larger sensor, though the small pixels are nice
@@Astrobloke Glenn, a wee query. Am I right to assume no spacers are required to make up for filters in the chain, like adding 0.6 mm spacer for a 1.8mm thick filter etc?
Nice image, Glenn. The HA makes a real difference.
Hi Mark, it really helps make the image pop adding the Ha. The Altair 3nm SHO set are very good indeed and work well below F4, my Antlia set have had issues at this speed (Sii mainly) Will be releasing a video soon on them. Hope you are well and Obsy working great, clear skies
Good to see you back Glenn, long time no see - not that there have been many imaging opportunities in the UK and now we have the summer season. Time for testing and processing. Would be great to see you doing some processing workflow videos with all the new software. See how you do it.
Hi Phil and thank you. Its been a pretty bad time astro weather wise. Even so called clear nights have been plagued by either high wispy clouds or a moon as bright as the sun. I need to sit down and make a structured approach to editing and get it down on video. I tend to be a little organic and just go where the image takes me and that can sometimes be a chaotic process. I’d look like a lunatic on video and as for following it….well 😂 Lets hope we get some better weather when Astronomical darkness returns, clear skies
Hello, I liked your video and I use the same method as you when I remove a lot of screws I put them back in their places so there is no way to make a mistake, but I had a question which grease did you use??? I saw you with a tube but I couldn't see which type or specifically which one was used for reassembly, thank you
Thank you for watching and commenting, glad you liked the video. The grease I use is superlube fully synthetic grease amzn.to/3C1zLk0 It works really well and does not become tacky. Good luck and clear skies
Mine regularly gets .3 to .4 guiding. sometimes I hit .5 o.6 but usually on average .4 or below so I don't think I will bother with this for now. lol My image scale is 1.0" per pixel so I think that is fine for even 20 mins worth of subs.
Looks like you got one of the good ones and at that guide performance I would leave well alone and just use it. My EQ8 R Pro is like that. Guides 0.3-0.4 so perfect out of the box. Clear skies
I have a set of Optolong 1.25" LRGB filters which I use with my Altair Astro Hypercam 183 M Pro Tech and I have been very happy with them. That final image was pretty awesome.
I use to have that camera. Whats nice is you can save a fortune and use the 1.25” filters. I was very pleased with the Optolong performance, would like to try their NB filters next
There is no need to add any background noise. You are making it more difficult to hear and understand what your saying. Would you add a distracting flashing light in the video? Of course not! So, why are adding noise to the audio? Think about that ...
Wow you’re rude. Maybe you should sort your hearing out, I heard everything he said fine.
Sorry you feel like that. Its difficult to make creative content that pleases everyone. From 11,000 views however you are the only one to make this complaint. Maybe you should think about that.
@@Astroman5665 Or maybe you just don't understand how background noise can be annoying to some people?
@@Astrobloke I am not a child. I do not need to be entertained, with background music. I appreciate good *content* . I have never said ... Wow, this guy plays background music, his content must is better. Tell me how the background noise makes it easier, for me to hear what you are saying?
These software tools are all great, but their just so expensive, out of reach. I’m working on the free ZWO tools, would love to see someone cover that off, hint, hint.
There are a lot of free and less expensive tools out there. I agree that some of the software is way too expensive. Over the years I have tried many and I hate to say it but nothing can beat Pixinsight for Astrophotography editing. It just works and is constantly improving. Siril which is similar is free and has come a long way but I doubt will ever truly match the power of Pixinsight. Was not aware of the ZWO tools but will take a look. Clear skies Woody
Great image Glenn, nice to follow along with a part of your workflow
Thank you Siegfried. I want to make some editing videos in the future. Even though I keep changing my techniques it may help others some more. Have you had any clear skies? Last night was good here but its very hit or miss lately
Impressive!!!!👍
Thank you. How have you been? Have you had many clear skies unlike us lately?
Just watched this Glenn, and really impressed! In fact, you're processing has really helped as a lot is similar to your help earlier and I can hear you on this video!!!!!
Thanks Jeremy. I thought this might help. Hope to have a voice over for you done tomorrow, if I get time. Don’t seem to get much anymore 🤣🤣
@@Astrobloke Thanks so much!
This is of no use to me. Why am I watching? ... To support a great channel and I like to see the images that Orion of your's puts out! Very nice Glenn!
Hey Nugsy, your support is greatly appreciated mate. The Orion has made me look good over the years, still my favourite scope ever.
Hi Glen, I use Astro pixel processor, Graxpert, Siril, Affinity or my old version of photoshop or gimp to complete, Ime a bit of a fiddler and generally get good results from the tools available, AI has certainly improved certain processes but still need to take care what it does, ..I think pix in sight has adapted/automated some of the tedious stuff, considering the quality and time it takes for data acquisition it's probably a blessing to have things on one platform . Atb Tom..
I use APP for all my stacking as its so much easier and more reliable than Pix. I like Graxpert and their new noise tool works very well. Editing is such a personal thing I feel and although AI has its critics it has certainly helped speed up some processes, but its not perfect.
Do you have astronomical darkness this time a year ?
Hi, We have just lost it. I am lucky that light pollution is very low here so with some good filters imaging is still possible, even if the nights are a lot shorter. What can be imaged is the Noctilucent clouds so will hopefully catch some this summer. Do you ever lose Astonomical darkness?
@@Astrobloke same here in Denmark. I enjoy glowing clouds too also i do a little outreach showing the moon etc. But photographing DSOs is not good. Well it is perfect time to burn in new setups… I’m working on two setups with canon lenses using astromechanics focusers. One with asi1600mm and one with asi2600mc both will piggybacking
Hi, good detail in the cigar, bit like the black eye galaxy, it's a tricky capture, my attempts lack lustre compared mainly down to mount and guide issues on the big scope, also a lack of pics in sight😂, but still happy to work around them. Those filters appear to do a great job, halos well under control, easy to mount etc.. Nice one Glen, seeing new geer I feel the need just to do a little more work, just for those astro goodies.😁Atb regards Tom.
Hi Tom, it can be a tricky target as being small needs a big scope to get close enough. The reducer I have making my CT10 f3.6 really helps. Pixinsight is a fantastic program and really does help draw out all the details but very expensive. There is a free deconvolution tool that was releases, I'll try and find the details. What do you currently use to edit your images Tom?
Lovely image. I've been away for a bit but great to see you're still producing really friendly helpful videos. I'll have a look back through your videos to see the finished construction of your Observatory 😉
Welcome back, Yes I am still going. I did finally finish my build and so happy with the final results. Given me a superb space to work and the ultimate mancave. Let me know what you think
Hi Glenn those filters seemed to perform very well & the resulting image turned out very nice to, Clear skies.
Hiya Tich. They are very good and a lot cheaper than some of the other makes out there and good to see perform just as well. Do you have any Optolong filters?
I don't mate mind you I only shoot one OSC so I've mainly been using an IDAS NBZ filter & recently I'm trying out an Antlia triband RGB filter which seems to be a pretty decent performer to.