Yes, Chuck, it seems the way of the future is to let the machine do it all for you. The computer finds the object, guides the photo and "fixes" the exposure when your all through. It almost seems like there is as much work now to find an image on the internet as there is in taking your automatic scope outside and telling it to produce a digital image of your "target". Oh for the days when you did it by hand! But then, I guess there are still those who have not yet succumbed to the automation. What would the Herschel 400 be if all the objects were found without digital aid? It all boils down to the fact that different folks enjoy different methods. Different strokes. I just know that my preference is like the ad of yesteryear said: "Mother, please! I'd rather do it myself!" For those who have the automatic scopes, I respect your choice. It is just not my preference. Brent --- Chuck Hards <chuckhards@yahoo.com> wrote:
You know, I have 2 autoguiders, but never use them. It seems to me that at a certain point, the human being is no longer taking the picture. Guiding by eye and hand is where the skill & practice come in, also the enjoyment. If you don't have to do anything that requires skill, heck, just get your pictures from already-published sources and stay at home. When "everybody" can do it, it's no longer special or even interesting. While I'm wearing my Curmudgeon suit, I'd also state that a level tripod is not a prerequisite for accurate polar alignment. The only requirement is that the mount's polar axis be parallel with the earth's polar axis. I doubt that my tripod is ever level when polar aligned. A level tripod (mount head) is only helpful when following the star-drift method, but it is not actually required for true polar alignment. Rob's suggestion of pads under the legs is a good one. I always had a few small pieces of plywood in the car just for this.
--- Rob Ratkowski <ratkwski@hawaii.rr.com> wrote:
Joe
how bout an autoguider?? Get your alignment pretty good and let the silicon do the tracking corrections?? and then enjoy the evening .............. A few small round paver stones or pieces of 3/4" ply w/ a hole for the tripod to sit in will keep the tripod from sinking into soft-ish soils. We're lucky here, it's mostly lava ;^)
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