When I was shooting astrophotos semi-regularly, there was no such thing as CCD's and autoguiders- I didn't have a choice. Everyone guided by eye and hand, and shot emulsion-based photograpy. It only seems monumental when one has the less-strenuous digital option available. BTW, when the very first imaging CCD's were used for astronomy, the hardware consisted of a single-line of sensors, not a grid. The image drifted across the line, which was really a type of scan. And sensitivity was terrible. Only bright objects could be imaged, and the resulting image looked more like a cartoon or painting than a photo. Images contained very little data compared to today's. Amateurs living today are extremely fortunate to have such capabilities available to anyone who is willing to spend the money on the equipment. It was not always so- well within living memory. --- Tyler Allred <tylerallred@earthlink.net> wrote:
A bit taxing!!!! You are a more dedicated soul than me! :) I prefer CCD and autoguiding, thank you.
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