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,

Berry Head in December

Its the first time I've been to Berry Head in Devon and I thought the light was just amazing. 

Even on this cold and blustery day, the light and scenery changed with every minute. On a day when I thought I would struggle to get any images I was pleasantly surprised. It just goes to prove that you should always take you camera.

The lonely path.

Here is another black and white image from the same day taken with my 10mm -18mm lens.

I took the picture because I just liked the dead straight path and this lens just suited it. In colour, the image is quite boring but in black and white I think it becomes quite thought provoking. The cold December with its menacing clouds day simply adds to the mood.