Sadr Star – Intersection of the Northern Cross
Photographing the Sadr Star in Cygnus If you follow me on twitter, you may have noticed that I was poking around in the middle of the constellation Cygnus last weekend, specifically centered on to the extremely bright Sadr star. I really wanted to post a really snazzy wide field photo of this region on this blog, but I was unhappy with my results. I set my mount and telescope up for imaging in the South, at the far edge of my backyard. This spot was a poor location for shooting straight up overhead at the constellation Cygnus for me, as I ran into trees by 1:30am. The re…
Astrophotography from a Light Polluted Backyard!
Backyard Astrophotography Summer would not be complete without spending a night enjoying the dazzling beauty that is the constellation Sagittarius. The "teapot" asterism just clears my fence to the south of my backyard in central St. Catharines. From my latitude, August is my last chance to image the many star clusters and nebulae that populate this area. Last night, I set out to gather as much light on the Lagoon and Trifid nebulae as possible before they dipped below the trees. With the nights being so short at this time of year, it is important to have your astrophotography equipment set…
Wizard Nebula through 80mm Telescope
The Wizard Nebula through my 80mm Telescope Clear August Nights More consecutive clear summer nights have allowed me to put in some serious time on the Wizard Nebula! In fact, this is the most amount of exposure time I have put into any object! Over 7 Hours! Truth be told, I would have hopped over to a new subject, but this attractive nebula is in the sweet spot of the sky right now. View an updated image of the Wizard Nebula using my current astrophotography equipment. [caption id="attachment_7268" align="aligncenter" width="650"] The Wizard Nebula using an 80mm Refractor Telescop…
Cocoon Nebula with an 80mm Telescope
IC 5164 - The Cocoon Nebula Imaged with an 80mm Refractor We have had a stretch of clear nights this summer, and I have been taking full advantage! This year I decided to spend some time in the sweet spot of the sky, Cygnus the Swan. This area of the night sky rises high overhead throughout the night, free from the earths atmosphere. My first target was IC 5164, The Cocoon Nebula. I have never attempted this object before because I heard it was quite difficult to image, and to be honest, I just didn't like the look of it! [caption id="attachment_2470" align="aligncenter" width="688"] Th…
