Lake Pier, Hamworthy, Dorset.

Taken just after a sunset that didn't really happen. Again taken with a Canon 10-18 lens. I'm starting to get addicted to landscapes!!

Corfe Castle in Black & White.

I found this shot after my main shot when I returned to my car after the the big climb to the top of a hill which looks down on Corfe Castle. The camera was set to ISO100 and the lens was @ 10mm. It looked very ordinary until I converted it to black and white.

The Running Man & M42

Made from 22 x 45 second subs @ ISO1600 after months of cloudy nights I finally managed to get a reasonable image of these two amazing nebula. The camera is an unmodified Canon 40d so I'm quite pleased with the amount of colour in the image.

Corfe Castle sunrise

I've always wanted to photograph Corfe Castle and as I only live 30 minutes away i'm not sure why it took me so long. I used Google maps and the Photographers Ephemeris to plan the shoot and I arrived an hour early. I didn't realise how steep the climb was going to be so its always better to arrive early as rushing to set the camera up can lead to mistakes. The hill in the background is where I'm going to try a sunset image of the castle ruins.

Thurlestone in Devon

On a visit to Devon I found myself faced with a dull overcast and very windy day. The temperature was around 14 degrees which is very mild for the time of year. The shot was difficult to compose and I eventually put the horizon in the middle. In hind site the grass in the foreground nearly took over the image so I probably should have moved forward a bit.  However I quite like this image and I judge that by how many times I keep looking at. The images that attract my attention end up as my laptops wallpaper and this one was no exception.
Taken using a tripod and my Canon 40d, ISO 100 @f/9 and a focal length of 10mm. Four image stitched using Adobe Photoshop CC making use f the Camera Raw filter.

M45 the Pleiades or The Seven Sisters

M45 is found in the constellation of Taurus, Made up of around 1000 member stars its one of the closest star clusters to Earth at only 444 light years away. Dominated by young blue stars (75-100 million years old) its a reflection nebula caused by dust reflecting the blue light.
Its often called the Seven Sisters from Greek mythology but as you can see there are more than 7 bright stars. The image below shows the seven sisters and their parents (Atlas and his wife Pleione).

The Heart nebula IC1805

With my unmodified Canon 40d I almost didn't bother to image this nebula. Although its not going to win any awards but you can see some red nebulosity and make out its distinctive shape.
Discovered in 1787 by Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel its 7500 light years away, located in the Perseus arm of our galaxy in the constellation of Cassiopeia. Its apparent size is 1 degree by 1 degree and its apparent magnitude is 6.5.
The bright stars in the middle making up a open cluster are called Mellote 15, some of which are 50 times the mass of our sun, driving the intense red plasma of ionised hydrogen and free electrons.. At its centre are two stars locked in orbit, doomed to fuse together and explode in a supernova in 700 million years, making the unique shape of the nebula .
I used 26 x 3 minute exposures at ISO1000 guided with PHD2.

Lunar eclipse time-lapse 2015

This so called Blood supermoon eclipse started at 01:11 and finished at 06:22 wit a midpoint at 03:47.
This time-lapse Giff consists of 227 images @ISO100. The exposure was controlled from indoors using Backyard EOS and ranged from 1/500 second to 8 seconds.
The video was put together in Photoshop and condenses 2.5 hours into about 18 seconds. That's 500 x actual speed. The moon is quite difficult to track as it moves slower than sidereal rate and seems to move north all the time. I had to put the 227 images into Photoshop layers and manually align them which too some time.

Bubble Nebula and M52 Open Cluster

The Bubble nebula or Caldwell11 (bottom right) was discovered in 1787 by William Herschel. Located  in the constellation of Cassiopeia its about 11,000 light years away and totally unrelated to M52 (top left). The bubble is caused by the stellar wind from a massive, very hot, young star which disturbs the giant molecular cloud that surrounds it, making it glow. It seems to sit in a fan shaped void.
M52 or NGC7654 was discovered in 1774 and is about 5,000 light years away. Its relatively young at 35 million years and contains 200 stars with a diameter of just 19 light years. It also contains another very small cluster HIP115521 and a white giant star HIP115542.
The image is rich with stars as the view is through our own galaxy, the Milky Way
The image was generated from 20 light frames, 10 dark 10 Flat and 10 Bias frames. exposure was at ISO 1600 for 150 seconds giving 50 minutes. Scope was an ED80 @ 510mm focal length. I'm really please with this image as its very faint and small, taken with an unmodified old dslr.

Messier 33 Triangulum Galaxy

M33 Triangulum galaxy or the Pinwheel galaxy is 2.3 million light years away in the constellation of Triangulum. Containing about 40 billion stars its a small faint deep sky object. Difficult but rewarding to photograph at last. Captured over 2 nights using 32 Light frames, 16 Dark, 11 Flat and 10 Bias. Stacked in Deep Sky Stacker, finished in Photoshop CC. Guided using PHD2 and ZWOasi120mc camera. The 0.85 field flattener is great at making round stars right to the edge of the frame and making the scope faster, from focal length 600mm f7.5 to 510mm f6.4. Backyard EOS is a great software program for Canon and Nikon cameras. I used 120 second Exposures @ISO 1600 with an 8 second mirror lockup to settle the scope then a 20 second pause between shots to cool the dslr sensor. BYEOS also enables PHD2 to Dither between shots, helping to reduce noise when stacking.

M31 the Andromeda Galaxy 11th Sept 2015

M31 contains a Trillion stars.The image also contains 3,320 stars (counted by deepskystacker) which must be in our galaxy the milky way.

The image was made using my skywatcher ED80 600mm refractor with a 0.85 field flattener making the scope f6.3. Guided with Phd2 using a zwoasi120mc ccd camera through a Skywatcher ST-80 refractor.
I used Backyard EOS to focus the 40d dslr camera and take the Lights, darks, flats and Bias calibration frames. I also use BYEOS to drift align the mount.
Cartes du Ciel was used to slew and sync the scope via EQASCOM and EQMOD.
The image is made from 21 Lights@ 180seconds and 8 dark frames@iso800, plus 20 flat and 10 Bias frames. A total of 63 minutes exposure. I also used 8 seconds of mirror lockup and 15 second pause between images to allow the sensor to cool down a bit. This is probably my favourite image so far, I cant wait to take some more frames of this wonderful galaxy and bring out more detail.

Messier 15 (NGC 7078) globular cluster.

Messier 15 is 33,600 light years away in the constellation of Pegasus.

Home to over 100,000 stars M15 is the oldest known cluster at 12 billion years old and has a rare type of black hole at its centre. - (Wikipedia).

This image is made from 12x180 second exposures @ISO 800 plus 10 darks, 10 bias and 10 flat frames. I also used a 42 second exposure to bring out some of the detail in the very dense and bright centre of the cluster.
Phd2 guiding was used to guide my field flattened ED80 using a ZWOASI120MC camera (0.2 second exposures) attached to a SW 80T guide scope.
Capture camera was an unmodified canon EOS40D DSLR controlled by my home made camera trigger allowing mirror flip then Stacked using deepSkyStacker.

Because clouds are so unique, so is this image.

Laying back in a garden chair on a warm sunny June afternoon, I opened my eyes and this amazing cloud filled my gaze. After just a few seconds I knew I had to photograph it before it drifted away . I raced indoors and up the stairs, grabbed my old Canon 400D and ran down again. Hoping the cloud was still there and had not changed shape or disintegrated I hurriedly set the camera. I normally shoot RAW manually but I new I only had a few seconds before the cloud would be obscured by a large tree so I set the camera to AV (aperture priority mode) and chose f/10 as my aperture. I checked the auto focus and image stabilisation were on so I framed it and took the shot. At ISO 100 the camera set itself to 1/40 of a second.
So a couple of things came to mind - You never know where you next image may come from so keep a camera ready and if your in a hurry use AV mode. Because clouds are so unique, so is this image.

M10 Globular cluster in Ophiuchus

A cropped view of M10 situated some 14,300 light years away.

 Discovered on the 29th May 1764 by Charles Messier,this faint cluster (magnitude 6.6) cannot be seen by the naked eye even though its 83 million light years in diameter.
Travelling away from us at 69 kilometres per second it it lies only 16,000 light years from the centre of the our galaxy the Milky Way.

Full size image

Taken using 7 x 180 second exposures at iso800 & Canon 40D.
Sky-watcher ED80 DS pro refractor with 0.85 reducer.field flattener.
Focused using a Bahtinov mask
Heq5 pro mount guided by a Sky-watcher 80T refractor , ZWOASI120MC camera and PHD2.
Processed in Deep Sky Stacker and Photoshop CC.

This is the first time I have used the ED80 focal reducer/field flattener which improves the focal ration from f/7.5 to f/6.375. The field flattening is now very good with virtually no signs of coma (smudged stars away from the centre of the image). Nice round stars, even in the corners of the image!!!

Messier 5 Globular Cluster in Serpens

24,500 light years away, M5 contains up to 500,000 stars and is not really visible to the naked eye.

Discovered in 1702 by Gottfried Kirch, this is one of the largest clusters known at 165 light years in diameter. Its 13 billion years old. The large star in the image is called 5 Serpentis (a white giant) and is only 82.8 light years away.
This is the first guided image I have taken using my ST80 guide scope and ZWO ASI120MC guide camera using PHD2. The image contains only 6 x 3 minute subs and 9 x 30 second subs for the core of the cluster.
Darks, Flats, and Bias frames where also used in Deep Sky Stacker.
So I'm really pleased to have been guiding on my first attempt.

Waxing Moon 29th May 2015

Shot through light cloud, I took 35 images with my Canon 40d @ 1/160 sec ISO 100 with Mirror lockup. The scope was my ED80 with no filter. The 35 images were stacked in AutoStakkert and finished in Photoshop CC.

The image below is a single unstacked image processed only in Photoshop. It gives a less detailed image probably due to the extra noise reduction.

M51 Whirlpool Galaxy. My favourite Galaxy!!

M51a (or NGC 5194) was discovered in 1773 by Charles Messier.

It is about 25 million light years away.

M51a is only 35% the size of our galaxy (the Milky Way) and is about 38,000 light years in diameter.

Made up of two Galaxies, the small galaxy called M51b (or NGC 5195) passed though M51a disturbing it around 550 million years ago and is still seen interacting with it today.

The image was captured with just 11 minutes of data using my ED80 DS PRO refractor attached to a prime focused Canon 40d.

21 x 30 second exposures unguided at ISO 1600.
Stacked in Deep Sky Stacker with dark, flat and bias frames.
Finished in Photoshop CC.

Here is a wider field of view

My plan in the future is to introduce guiding using a guide scope to increase the exposure time to get more data.

Messier 13 (M13) The Great Globular Cluster in Hercules

This is my first attempt at a deep sky object using my new Skywatcher 80ED DS Pro refractor attached to a Canon 40D. 15 x 30 second images @ iso 1600 were stacked in DSS.
M13 contains an amazing 300,000 stars and is 22.2 million light years away.
Discovered by Edmond Halley in 1714 it is an enormous 145 light years in diameter.
By the way, 1 light year is about 6 trillion miles.
A faint side on spiral galaxy, named NGC 6207 is far left of the image and is between 30 and 45 million light years away.

My DIY Triggertrap Dongle

The Triggertrap mobile app has some neat features for controlling the camera shutter.

The app is free and all you need to buy is a dongle with a lead specific to your camera.

If you’re not into soldering then just visit the Triggertrap website and buy one.

  The app features:-

   ·         Simple Cable Release. (Tap the button to take a picture).

   ·         Quick Release (Release the button to take a picture).

   ·         Press and Hold (Touch to start, release to stop).

   ·         Press and Lock (Touch to start, touch to stop).

   ·            Self Timer (Photo in 3..2..1..).

   ·         Timelapse (Travel through time).

   ·         TimeWarp (Timelapse with acceleration).

   ·         DistanceLapse (Perfect for road trips).

   ·         Star Trail (Extreme exposure control).

   ·         Bramping (Bulb Ramping timelapse).

   ·         Sound Sensor (Clap, whistle or tap).

   ·         Vibration Sensor (Vibrations and earthquakes).

   ·         Motion Sensor (Detect Movement).

   ·         Peekaboo (Facial recognition).

   ·         LE HDR (Long exposure HDR sets).

   ·         LE HDR timelapse (|Long exposure HDR timelapse).

   ·         Wi-Fi (Trigger remotely).

   ·         ND Calculator (Natural Density Filter Calculator).

   ·         Solar Calculator (Sunrise and Sunset times).

The cable and dongle currently costs £22.99 plus £3.99 postage and £5.39 tax in total is £32.33 for my canon 40D which I think is amazing value.

However I like DIY and saw this post on the internet by Udi Tirosh http://www.diyphotography.net/building-diy-trigger-trap/ showing how to make a dongle and cable with a few parts and some soldering so I thought I would at least work out the cost.

It turns out to be quite a bit cheaper, so I thought I would follow Udi’s post and it works really well with app.

Soldering and assembly took about an hour as there are only 4 components on the board.

My Bill of Materials all from Ebay, including postage :

   ·         2 off 1.5k resistors cost 99p (for 10).

   ·         2 off BC547b Transistors cost £1.30 (for 10).

   ·         1 off 2.5mm stereo Panel mount socket cost £1.97.

   ·         1 off Small project box ABS 46mm x 32mm x 20mm with 4screws cost £2.65.

   ·         1off Old iphone headphones to chop up cost £FREE.

   ·         The cable from dongle to camera comes from an old (and cheap) Ebay cable release            with a 2 metre extension.

            TOTAL COST = £6.91 Saving £25.42

As I already have the soldering equipment and a small piece of Perfboard it was a no brainer.

I think if I can make it myself then I always appreciate it more, and if I can save money at the same time that a great bonus.

So here is my circuit diagram-

I have basically copied Udi Tirosh’s circuit diagram and it worked perfectly 1^st time.

Note:- the centre pin of each transistor(pin2) is soldered to its resistor.

Pin 3 of each transistor are connected together with camera and phone ground.

I used old iphone headpones found the Green wire was the shutter wire and the red wire was the focus wire. I then bundled the other wires together and connected to ground. As far as I know, any similar stereo 3.5mm headphones would work.

You will need to check your own setup with a meter to ensure you know which wire is which as there are so many headphones on the market today.

And this is what it looks like inside the dongle when completed.

And this is how I wired the phone to the dongle.

 Please note that I have recorded this project for my own benefit so I can make another if needed. If you wish to copy it, be my guest.  However please be careful when attaching anything to your camera or phone.

Poole Harbour Sunrise

The Barfleur car ferry slips quietly away to France with its cargo of lorries and cars.
This is a blend of three images enabling me to keep the shadows and sunlight visible

Comet Lovejoy C/2014 Q2 18th Jan 2015

This comet is turning into a gem.
Each night it climbs higher in the sky, first passing Orion then the Pleiades. I snatched this image just before the January clouds rolled in.

Taken using my barndoor tracker with and 70mm skywatcher refractor with a focal length of 500mm gives a reasonable wide field at f7.1 My trusty canon 40D was attached in prime focus.
Deep Sky Stacker was used to stack 11 X 30 second images but it was not easy. I had 31 images but DSS seemed to work better with less. I am really pleased with this image and  am sure I could do better as its the first time I have used the comet stacking feature in DSS and I used a very cheap second hand refractor (£28 from ebay).

Sunrise 7th Jan 2015 using a 10 stop ND filter

My first time using a 10 stop ND filter. I just missed the sunrise but I still like this shot. The water is silky smooth. I think the filter actually is more like an 11 stopper as I had to increase the exposure time to 3 minutes for this shot. The camera was set at ISO 100 @ f14.

C/2014 Q2 Comet Lovejoy- timelapse

Discovered by Terry Lovejoy in Australia on 17th August 2014, comet Lovejoy Q2 will be the brightest comet for some years. It can be seen easily through binoculars or a keen eye.

It wont be back for abot 8000 years, so take a look at it now. 

It will be closest to Earth on 7th Jan 2015 at a distance of 43 million miles. 

I'm really quite surprised at how fast this comet is travelling against the stars in the background. Currently its quite low in the sky below Rigel in the constellation of Orion but in just 8 days it will be as high as Orion's belt. 

Taken on 30/12/2014,  this gif is made from 15 x 90 second exposures at ISO 1600. I used a canon 40D and a Meade 105etx tracked using my home made arduino driven barndoor mount. 

In all its about 25 minutes in real time.

Here is a screen dump from Stellarium (free amazing software) showing the current position of the comet,