ZWO ASI2600MM First Impressions
The ZWO ASI2600MM Pro mono is the much anticipated monochrome version of ZWO's popular ZWO ASI2600MC Pro dedicated astronomy camera. It houses a 26 Megapixel Sony IMX571 back-illuminated sensor, and some seriously impressive specs. This camera uses a highly sensitive, cooled, monochrome CMOS sensor in the APS-C format. The size and resolution of this sensor is its biggest selling feature. The ZWO ASI2600MM Pro not only improves on nearly every aspect of its predecessor (the ASI1600MM), the sensor is now APS-C, capturing a larger field of view. In the land of deep space astronomy cameras, t…
8 Nightscape Photography Tips for Amazing Astrophotography
Nightscape photography involves capturing a landscape style image, at night. It can include the beautiful Milky Way, a starry sky, or your favorite constellation. This is a type of astrophotography, where long exposure images are taken to reveal the beautiful light of a seemingly 'dark' sky. Star photography requires quality optics, and some camera lenses are better suited for it than others. To really make your nightscape image amazing, you'll want to capture an interesting foreground, too. This can be snowy mountains, a waterfall, or in my case, just a dark, wooded forest. In the vi…
My Best Images & The Gear Used
On this website, I do my best to share information and astrophotography tips that provide value. I could pat myself on the back about all of the great astrophotography images I took this year, but it is of little interest to anyone if I don't explain how I took the shot. In this article, I'll share my best astrophotography images of 2020, and the equipment setups used for each image. This way, you'll have a better idea of what's behind each image, and how you can accomplish a similar result yourself. Capturing the images with the right set of gear is only half of the equation, of c…
Optolong L-eXtreme Filter Review
The Optolong L-eXtreme filter is now being used in backyards across the globe, which is great news for those that take astrophotography images in heavy light pollution. This astrophotography filter features even narrower bandpasses than last year's L-eNhance, making it perfect for nebula photography from the city. The Optolong L-eXtreme filter isolates the H-alpha (Ha), and Oxygen III (OIII) at 7nm exclusively. Unlike the previous L-eNhance, the eXtreme does not include a bandpass for H-Beta (Hb). The more selective bandpass transmissions are more suitable for fast optical systems…
Why I Bought the Canon EOS Ra
In early May 2020, I decided to purchase a Canon EOS Ra camera from B&H photo. This is Canon's latest astrophotography camera, and it has some seriously impressive specs (like a full-frame 30.3 MP astro-modified sensor). For a complete rundown of the Canon EOS Ra, you can read my full review from January of this year. Essentially, it is a clone of the popular Canon EOS R mirrorless camera, with a specialized IR cut filter optimized for astrophotography. In this article, I want to discuss why I purchased the EOS Ra, and share my results from the backyard. Is the Canon E…
