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Thanks
by Barney B. 22 Aug '03

22 Aug '03

Thanks to Joe, UtahDeb, Debbie and ??? who helped me grasp the idea of using a digital camera as an astro camera. It actually works..well sorta of. I still don't understand the RegiStax program but I'm working on it. Leaving this AM for Flagstaff. (Going to "mess around" on the way down) My turn at the scope on Sunday (Hi Deb) and a lookieloo on Tuesday. Barney

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More astro binoculars
by Chuck Hards 21 Aug '03

21 Aug '03

Celestron is now offering their name on the Bear/Oberwerk/Galileo clone. In the "SkyMaster" series, model 71009, 15x70mm, with a suggested mail-order price of $89. The 25x100mm binocular (still) sold by Apogee is also now a Celestron product. Model 71017 @$349. www.celestron.com Apogee still has their "house" 25x100mm on-sale for $249. Save a hundred bucks over Celestron's price if you hurry. I've only had mine out a few times on a tripod so-far, and in less than ideal conditions, but the views have been rewarding. First time I've noticed M-57 as a distinct ring in a binocular. www.apogeeinc.com C. __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! SiteBuilder - Free, easy-to-use web site design software http://sitebuilder.yahoo.com

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RegiStax
by Barney B. 16 Aug '03

16 Aug '03

I need some help. The other night I took some shots of Mars using my Sony 707 through a ScopeTronix 40mm and a Teleview 3X barlow. On the camera's LCD screen, the shots looked *VERY* nice, almost to the point of being photographic quality. But when I printed a couple of them out, they were fuzzy and the detail that I could see on the LCD was washed out. I downloaded a beta version of RegiStax (V 1.1) and have tried to stack some shots to see if that improves anything, but I'm not having any luck getting the program to work. Every time I load in a jpg photo, the program reproduces it as an over exposed blob with multi-colored rings around the perimeter. Needless to say, when I stack two or three of these together all I get is a large multi-colored blob with no detail. Any suggestions??? Barney B PS: Thanks to Joe and Debbie for getting me started on digital photography...Now help me to get it work.

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] RegiStax
by UTAHDEB＠aol.com 16 Aug '03

16 Aug '03

I'm receiving two copies of Joe's emails. Like Joe said, I think your problem is with the camera, not the software. If you check the messages in the Digital Astro group, I asked a question about what LCD monitors to use to achieve a good focus. One guy Barry, uses a professional monitor for his digital setup. He uses a Marshall VCL-pro LCD monitor to focus. He says there is no guess-work about focus. He is always right on focus. But this was a little more expensive at $229 for the monitor. Do you have a remote shutter control? It seems everybody uses a remote shutter control to take multiple frames in a one or two minute time period. That way there are no vibrations induced by pressing the shutter. I'm still learning about all this stuff but the folks on the digital-astro group have been really helpful. That Sony 707 you have is a really nice camera. You ought to get some good pictures once you learn the ropes. Debbie

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Fwd: Aug 14th Mars
by Debbie 15 Aug '03

15 Aug '03

Something to shoot for. That south polar cap is really shrinking. Debbie --- In digital_astro(a)yahoogroups.com, "Johnny" <perkqlater03@y...> wrote: Hey, I was lucky to get a few hours of clear skies and took advantage to get about 1000 pics of Mars. It was hot hazy and humid so seeing wasn't great. Here is the picture: http://tinyurl.com/k6n4 Johnny --- End forwarded message ---

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] RegiStax
by UTAHDEB＠aol.com 15 Aug '03

15 Aug '03

Barney, I learned from the Nikon 4500 yahoo group that you need a bigger LCD screen to get a good focus. The LCD screen on the camera just isn't big enough to get a good focus. I asked what kind of 5" LCD screen to buy on the Nikon 4500 group. I wanted something under a $100 dollars that I could get a decent focus. They told me to get the Interact PS One 5" LCD screen. This has better resolution than the Sony monitors. I checked on Ebay and Amazon but couldn't find it. I was finally led to a surplus store called AllElectronics.com. I picked one up for $80 new as I was in a hurry. You connect your camera to the LCD monitor via the video jack supplied with the camera. What you do to get a good focus is zoom in on a bright star to get a good focus. You want to turn off your camera's LCD screen as this is a source of noise. If you are shooting Mars then you probably want to stay in zoom mode. For wide-field shots you zoom out once you get a good focus. You also want to use your self-timer so you don't blur your shots. My camera has a 10 second delay and a 3 second delay. Some people also use a remote control shutter that can be programmed. I don't know how long your exposures are but some people are using 1/30, 1/15, or 1/8 second exposures. This locks in moments of good seeing. I think people are taking anywhere from 50-75 exposures. What telescope are you using? I don't know if the 3X barlow is too much magnification or not. I heard that you want to shoot Mars in the f/40 to f/50 range. I also found some good files on the digital astro group at www.groups.yahoo.com/group/digital_astro . I also found some stuff on the correct camera settings for digital astro-p hotography. I haven't actually gone out with my camera yet because it has been too hot and humid and cloudy to do anything yet. I'm going to order the Scopetronix 14mm eyepiece and try some shots when I get back from Lowell. The people on digital-astro group have been very helpful in answering my questions. There is also help on the Scopetronix website. I also downloaded Registax but haven't used it yet. You may want to talk to Ken Simons about that program. He uses it with his webcam. Hope this helps. Debbie

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RE: [Utah-astronomy] Lasers and collimation questions
by Josephine Grahn 15 Aug '03

15 Aug '03

Don et al., I highly suggest that people read and spend some serious time at the Mel Bartels website. It will clear up a lot of misconceptions, and get you well on your way to a properly collimated scope. http://zebu.uoregon.edu/~mbartels/kolli/kolli.html It's best to use a sight tube to get you very close on the diagonal orientation. Then a simple (non-holographic) laser can be used to fine tune diagonal orientation and for adjusting the tilt of the primary. Perhaps once or twice in six years that we've tried, has the seeing been good enough to tweak the collimation of our 16" scope at adequately high power; and never good enough for the 24". Lasers are great for collimation because they can be used at night; but the assumption is made that the mechanical center of the mirror is the optical center. A Cheshire is a great tool, but not convenient if you want to tweak collimation after dark. A laser is a worthwhile addition to your toolkit. I hate to see people leaving with the idea that lasers can't do the job, they can do an excellent job. Jo Grahn

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RE: [Utah-astronomy] Magazine preference
by Kim Hyatt 13 Aug '03

13 Aug '03

I've never seen a real story on RTMC that I can recall, although S&T usually mentions it in their calendar. The best reports probably come from club members. You may also want to look at RTMC's website, although I'm not sure what you'll find. -----Original Message----- From: Jim Stitley [mailto:sitf2000@yahoo.com] Sent: Wednesday, August 13, 2003 12:55 PM To: Visit http://www.utahastronomy.com for the photo gallery. Subject: RE: [Utah-astronomy] Magazine preference I still subscribe to both, but that is expensive at today's subscription outrageous rates. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses, but between the 2, most things are covered well. BTW, did EITHER magazine to a photo story on the Riverside Telescope Makers Conference??? If either did, I must have missed it. I would really appreciate knowing which magazine and the date where the RTMC was reported and had photos. I cna then track them down. THANKS! Jim Stitley Kim Hyatt <khyatt(a)smithlayton.com> wrote: I used to subscribe to both but I gave up Astronomy. More info in S&T, more timely, and Astronomy seemed to be mostly the same information (just less of it), anyway. My opinion. -----Original Message----- From: Chuck Hards [mailto:chuckhards@yahoo.com] Sent: Wednesday, August 13, 2003 11:35 AM To: Utah-Astro Subject: [Utah-astronomy] Magazine preference I've noticed that many people in this area don't subscribe to Sky & Telescope, and prefer Astronomy. Anyone in this position care to elaborate on why? C. __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! SiteBuilder - Free, easy-to-use web site design software http://sitebuilder.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy _____ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! <http://us.rd.yahoo.com/evt=10469/*http://sitebuilder.yahoo.com> SiteBuilder - Free, easy-to-use web site design software

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RE: [Utah-astronomy] Magazine preference
by Kim Hyatt 13 Aug '03

13 Aug '03

I used to subscribe to both but I gave up Astronomy. More info in S&T, more timely, and Astronomy seemed to be mostly the same information (just less of it), anyway. My opinion. -----Original Message----- From: Chuck Hards [mailto:chuckhards@yahoo.com] Sent: Wednesday, August 13, 2003 11:35 AM To: Utah-Astro Subject: [Utah-astronomy] Magazine preference I've noticed that many people in this area don't subscribe to Sky & Telescope, and prefer Astronomy. Anyone in this position care to elaborate on why? C. __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! SiteBuilder - Free, easy-to-use web site design software http://sitebuilder.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy

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RE: [Utah-astronomy] Magazine preference
by Lambert, Aaron 13 Aug '03

13 Aug '03

I think that is why some people prefer Astronomy. I have both and reading S&T sometimes makes my brain hurt whereas the Astronomy articles are more on my level (being a newbie to astronomy). Aaron > -----Original Message----- > From: Ken Warner [mailto:KillerKen@killerken.com] > Sent: Wednesday, August 13, 2003 12:28 PM > To: 'Visit http://www.utahastronomy.com for the photo gallery.' > Subject: RE: [Utah-astronomy] Magazine preference > > > I thought it was the other way around. Sky and Telescope > seems to me to > have more in depth articles and is more > technical than Astronomy. I look at Astronomy for the pretty pictures > in the gallery. > > Ken > > -----Original Message----- > From: utah-astronomy-bounces(a)mailman.xmission.com > [mailto:utah-astronomy-bounces@mailman.xmission.com] On > Behalf Of Chuck > Hards > Sent: Wednesday, August 13, 2003 11:35 AM > To: Utah-Astro > Subject: [Utah-astronomy] Magazine preference > > > I've noticed that many people in this area don't > subscribe to Sky & Telescope, and prefer Astronomy. > Anyone in this position care to elaborate on why? > > C. >

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