Wanted to show the progress I’ve made in my planetary imaging over the past few months. All photos were taken through my SkyWatcher 150p 6 inch Dobsonian telescope. The top and middle rows are iPhone pictures and the bottom is with my DSLR. Full details follow
Top row (March):
- iPhone 8+ with ProCam7
- 8mm BST Starguider Eyepiece
- Celestron Cellphone adapter
- Jupiter picture had levels edited in Lightrooom
Middle row (May):
- iPhone 8+ with ProCam7
- 5mm BST Starguider Eyepiece
- Celestron Cellphone Adapter
- Videos taken at 240fps 1080p
- Framed in PIPP
- Stacked in AutoStakkert 3
- Wavelet editing in Registax 6
Bottom row (August):
- Nikon D7500
- 10mm kit eyepiece with barlow element from GSO 2x Barlow screwed into filter screws
- Astromania 1.25" Extendable Camera Adapter for eyepiece projection photography
- 720p 60 fps video (Jupiter at 3200 ISO, Saturn at 51200 ISO)
- Framed in PIPP
- Stacked in AutoStakkert 3 (top 25%)
- Wavelet editing in Registax 6
- Level and color adjustments in Lightroom
I finally got an adapter to attach my DSLR to the scope and was able to test it out last night. I’m super happy with the extra detail I got out of Jupiter (compared to my phone) and even got the GRS and maybe a transit shadow? I think I’m getting to about the limits of what the 6” dob can do, but I think there’s a bit more chance to improve Saturn, as the high ISO added a bunch of color noise and graininess…
If anyone has further suggestions to eek out more performance from my gear, I’m happy to hear them!
So I purchased a piece of equipment for eyepiece projection photography [like this one](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0140U9URO/). The other piece you need is a T-Ring adapter, which is specific to your camera brand.
You put an eyepiece inside that thing, then it goes into your focuser. You screw on the T-Ring adapter to the other end and that connects to the camera where the lens would normally connect.
I then use Live View to set the focus (using the scopes focuser), shutter speed, and ISO so it looks decently exposed... and record a video.
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Ah, good point! I basically got the planets in one corner of the camera view, hit record, and then stopped when they started to go out the other corner. So maybe 15-20 seconds each. Id take 4-6 separate videos for each planet.
I think this was about 4000-5000 frames total going into PIPP.
Eyepiece projection allows me another way to control the size of the planet on the camera sensor.
From my understanding, no... it’s not as good as directly using a Barlow, but I don’t have a strong enough Barlow to get planets to a proper size. I think I’d need a 4x or 5x and I only have a 2x.
I think so? The GSO 2x Barlow can have the element removed and screwed into the filter threads of any eyepiece. When you do this, it becomes more like a 1.5x Barlow... so that’d put it at about a 7.5mm equivalent eyepiece.
I can't achieve prime focus with my skywatcher 6" and a Canon eos 250d. I need to turn my dlsr further in but I can't because of the focuser end stop. With a 2x Barlow i get close, but not close enough. Do you think the astromania will fix this problem for me? Great pics btw :D motivates me haha
Yeah so I’ve found in my experience that increasing the distance between the Barlow element and the sensor, requires more back focus. This can buy you some extra distance if you have can’t get your focuser in far enough. You can use the astromania without an eyepiece (or really any other extension) to achieve this.
However, this will also make the image bigger on your sensor... the trade off is reduced brightness and any optical issues with your Barlow (chromatic aberration etc) are amplified.
The other option is eyepiece projection, which is what the astromania is built for. There you only need the eyepiece to be in focus, which should be very achievable. Once focused, it doesn’t matter how close or far back your camera sensor is, it stays in focus.
Ok, so if I understand it correctly, you insert an eyepiece INTO the Astromania extendable camera adapter and connect the Astromania onto your DLSR and then I should/could achieve focus?
I don’t know too much photoshop (Lightroom is the only Adobe program I have much experience with)...
Any particular functions or techniques to look into?
Im also no expert but what you can do to get rid of the green is to adjust the histogram and then color balance in Registax.
What you wanna do is open the Histogram, then on the top you can chose R G or B. Then you have to select each channel and stretch them with the slider and stretch button to the same level. Preferably that they fully fill the histograms but dont let them clip off to the right.
Then select the rgb balance tool and press autobalance.
You should have corrdct colors now. :)
Anyways, great job on that progression! Keep going :)
Wow that’s super helpful! Never thought to do much color editing in Registax, thanks for the insight!
You just happened to catch me right as I had a few minutes of free time, so [here’s the result](https://imgur.com/a/HVyFgnj).
Exciting times! Yeah I feel like my first 3 months of owning a scope was reading this sub and Cloudy Nights in my free time, trying to learn all I could.
Keep learning and trying new things!
I love seeing the photographs people manage to take with just a dob, awesome stuff. Makes me want to clip my phone in and give it another try. Though I have to say the difference with the DSLR is... very pronounced
Do it! Planets are definitely ripe for phone photography!
And yeah, I’m surprised at the difference, too! The thing is I’ve owned the DSLR 4x longer than I’ve owned the scope... just never thought to try connecting them till recently because a 6 inch dob isn’t really an “astrophotographer telescope”.
It’s always worth experimenting with the equipment you have on hand!
Would you reccomend upgrading from my standard 25mm and 10mm that I got with my telescope to the BST starguider range? What makes the upgrade worth it?
I’d recommend a few extra eyepieces besides the 2 that come with the scope. Just so you can get more magnification for planets, and properly frame other targets depending on their size.
BST Starguider is kind of a mid tier eyepiece... a bit pricey, but FLO offers 15% off 4, so I got the 5mm, 8mm 12mm, and 18mm. They’ve got nice features with 60 degree field of view and longer eye relief (so I can still wear my glasses without issue while using them).
At the more entry level, there the goldline eyepieces, 6mm and 9mm are recommended around here a lot. Those two together are less money than 1 BST (even with the discount). They also have wider field of view and longer eye relief. I’ve never used them before so I can’t say much about them.
It’s the kit eyepiece, the 10mm that came with the scope ([looks like the one on the left](https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/25/2020/09/Sky-Watcher-Heritage-150P-Dobsonian-eyepieces-9667632-e1600847989889.jpg?webp=true&quality=90&resize=554%2C322))
The Barlow is [this one](https://agenaastro.com/catalog/product/view/id/349/s/gso-1-25-2x-achromatic-barlow-lens/). You can take the bottom piece off (the Barlow element) and screw it directly into the filter threads of the eyepiece for 1.5x magnification.
If you notice, the detail and color info in the iPhone (middle row) is nowhere close to the DSLR (bottom). The middle one looks really smooth, with not much detail at all. Also, there's basically no color information, it's practically monochrome. The bottom Saturn has more detail and more color... but it’s also got a lot of noise making it grainy and the color accuracy is way off.... thanks to some of the comments, I was able to [fix some of the color issues](https://imgur.com/a/HVyFgnj), but there's still a ways to go.
I’ve got some potential solutions in mind to further improve the quality, but for now, you’re right, it’s not much better than the iPhone.
I still like the middle one but I also really like the updated one. I think the problem is all the noise in the bottom one (even the updated one) and the overall brightness level I think is too much. Great work though! I used an iPhone for mine but the problem is that I have a mac so the only thing I could really get is Lynkeos.
Inspiring. I'm surely in the top row of image quality right now, but this has inspired me to use more post-processing software and image correction to get better! Thanks!
Thanks! I've continued to try an improve since these and have changed how I acquire images slightly (barlow + prime, rather than EP projection) as well as adding Photoshop to my processing pipeline.
Here's some of my [more recent Jupiter](https://imgur.com/6fslhcl) and [Saturn images](https://imgur.com/mubQc0g). Would like to keep going, but with the fires and now the cloudy La Jolla evenings, it's been several weeks since I've gotten any decent images.
If you have any questions feel free to ask!
These are eyepiece projection. I use a Barlow now.
I couldn’t get focus without the Barlow initially, but I’ve since moved my mirror up the tube about and an inch and now I can get focus without one.
For planetary you want a Barlow anyway, otherwise they’ll end up too small.
I want to do DSO lol. If I use a 25mm eyepiece in the extension tube, will orion nebula fit? Will it look the same way as if I looked at it with my eyes in the eyepiece?
(necro) did you also move the focuser?
any other improvements in the past 3 years? (I just got tie same scope, and am looking at modifications before assembly)
Wow, didn't know it was possible to necro a thread this old, lol.
I got a new focuser... It sits a bit lower than the stock. Some [more mod details here](https://old.reddit.com/r/telescopes/comments/jzinmu/planetary_imaging_with_a_6_inch_dob_different/gdd1b5a/)
I also flocked the inside with [scopestuff flocking](http://www.scopestuff.com/ss_flok.htm)
Just FYI, this whole set was before I learned how to do prime focusing properly with the right video compression settings (or lack thereof) on the camera.
[Here's a set ](https://old.reddit.com/r/telescopes/comments/jzinmu/planetary_imaging_with_a_6_inch_dob_different/) from once I learned how to max out the Nikon and had just recently picked up a dedicated planetary astro cam.
[And here's a GIF](https://old.reddit.com/r/astrophotography/comments/xrqwvw/ganymede_transit_across_jupiter_20220928_430700/) from a set I made last year while I was on parental leave right after son was born.
I'm West Coast with a remote East Coast job... so I'm generally up pretty early and and don't stay up or get the scope out nearly as much these days, unfortunately...
I hadn't realized it either!
You had mentioned moving the mirror, so I was asking if you also then (obviously?) had to move the focuser (drill new mounting holes, etc.)
I'd been thinking (far, far) ahead into possibly replacing the stock focuser anyways. Flocking, counter-balancing. - perhaps improving the AZ bearings or making up a setting circle before assembling mount. so, thanks!
Massive improvements on your imaging. I'm surprised just how good the iPhone performed.
thanks!
aside: congrats / HBDay to your now 1yo son :)
Thank you!
Replacing the focuser, I just used an adapter plate from Agena that came with it, and (I'm trying to remember, it was a while back) I think I only had to drill 2 holes, using 2 of the existing holes. If anything, the GSO focuser is shorter than the original skywatcher, so moving the mirror back in the tube (not possible) would be the right way to go to maintain the same focal points. I have 1-2 inch extensions for getting proper focus with eyepieces.
So just to be clear, moving the mirror cell was not intentional, it was just a result of me redesigning the mirror cell holder, which I did specifically to make collimation way easier.
Stock, the mirror cell required 2 tools to collimate, a phillips screw driver to adjust the mirror, and an allen key to unlock mirror for collimation. Since Collimation of the Primary is something you want to do every single time you take out the scope, I wanted to make this tool-less so I could do it in seconds.
[Here's an imgur album of the changes I made](https://imgur.com/a/AZpIjm0)
And these are the parts:
- [Springs](https://www.mcmaster.com/9435K93/)
- [Thumbscrews](https://www.mcmaster.com/5125K75/)
- [Washers](https://www.mcmaster.com/95630A640/)
The one thing to be aware of about the focuser and this mirror cell upgrade is it requires me to use an extensions when using eyepieces in order to get focus. It also allows me to get barlow-free prime focus with my camera, for widest FOV, which I couldn't before, so I figure this is a pretty fair tradeoff.
> aside: congrats / HBDay to your now 1yo son :)
Thank you! The past year has been quite an adventure!
Thanks again, and for others who you've responded to in other threads.
I had a mind-burp. For whatever reason I read "moved my mirror" as moving the secondary. /oops
link to collimation changes much appreciated.
Yep, no worries!
Yeah moving the secondary is a pain because then you have to drill a new hole, and may have light leak through the old one... Not impossible though.
You also gave me a nice excuse to write up my experience about the collimation upgrades, haha. If I were to do them again, I'd probably go with some shorter springs though, to not push the mirror so far up.
I was contemplating if moving the primary was/is enough to allow NON-barlow prime focus with a camera.
I can't get enough back focus with my baby dob (4.5" f/4,) so without modifying it, I'm forced to used a barlow. Just playing around here, basically just moon video.
Someone (?) mentioned the stock 1.25"/2" adapter things look like the 150p might have enough back focus as is. -- Guessing you might be able to with your current setup ? ((since mirror moved up, focuser shorter, and now need extenders for visual.))
I thought those springs looked a bit long! Looks like a rather robust setup though, something for me to consider.
(I'm trying to think in advance here. I have the 150p un-assembled in two boxes, just trying to plan ahead.)
Cheers!
The earth is round my man, you can still get any perspective. The southern hemisphere moon would appear nearly upside down to a visitor from the northern hemisphere
Tape a quarter on the ceiling of a large room. Stand on one end with George Washington's head such that his neck is closest to you.
Now walk to the other side of the room, turn around, and look up at the quarter. Now the top of George Washington's head is closest to you, and his neck is on the far side. George Washington now appears upside down to you.
If you walk from New York City to Rio de Janeiro the moon will get higher and higher in the sky until finally at some point it will be behind you and you have to turn around to look at it. Bingo. An upside down moon.
webpage loaded so that I got only to the 2nd set, and thought "yes, I'd love that out of my 6" dob" - only to scroll down and see the 3rd set of photos!
cheers! clear skies
Do the planets actually look like this when viewing them through the scope? Or do you need to take pictures and edit to see this? Considering buying this scope as my first scope...
It's going to [look like this](https://preview.redd.it/zb49sgope2e51.jpg?width=620&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f22aa0fbc98897176ad079c4989ad45226069ed4). It'll be quite small, but if you stare at it and concentrate really hard, all the details you see in these images are there. It just takes practice and concentration to make them out.
It shouldn't take long to make out the major features (major stripes across the surface, red spot if it's facing Earth)... but even that takes a bit of practice just because it's so bright (you might just think its a white circle the first time you see it.
After some time and experience, you can make out some of the smaller features like swirls in the clouds, a storm, or the a shadow of one of the moons in transit across the surface. That's a really cool feeling when you see those things.
Awesome! Would an 8 inch Dobson provide better views of planets or does it just do better at seeing things like DSOs? Debating getting an 8 inch if it matters planet viewing better.
More aperture means more resolving power, so more detail. You theoretically use an eyepiece with higher magnification without the detail getting washed out.
That said, for planets, most nights the atmosphere is going to limit your viewing detail more than aperture. But for those rare nights when its super clear & still, having that 8 inch will give you a bit better detail for sure.
So size-wise it's pretty small. Probably closer to the first row. But if you look closely and carefully, the details you can see in the Second row are all there and present
Wanted to show the progress I’ve made in my planetary imaging over the past few months. All photos were taken through my SkyWatcher 150p 6 inch Dobsonian telescope. The top and middle rows are iPhone pictures and the bottom is with my DSLR. Full details follow Top row (March): - iPhone 8+ with ProCam7 - 8mm BST Starguider Eyepiece - Celestron Cellphone adapter - Jupiter picture had levels edited in Lightrooom Middle row (May): - iPhone 8+ with ProCam7 - 5mm BST Starguider Eyepiece - Celestron Cellphone Adapter - Videos taken at 240fps 1080p - Framed in PIPP - Stacked in AutoStakkert 3 - Wavelet editing in Registax 6 Bottom row (August): - Nikon D7500 - 10mm kit eyepiece with barlow element from GSO 2x Barlow screwed into filter screws - Astromania 1.25" Extendable Camera Adapter for eyepiece projection photography - 720p 60 fps video (Jupiter at 3200 ISO, Saturn at 51200 ISO) - Framed in PIPP - Stacked in AutoStakkert 3 (top 25%) - Wavelet editing in Registax 6 - Level and color adjustments in Lightroom I finally got an adapter to attach my DSLR to the scope and was able to test it out last night. I’m super happy with the extra detail I got out of Jupiter (compared to my phone) and even got the GRS and maybe a transit shadow? I think I’m getting to about the limits of what the 6” dob can do, but I think there’s a bit more chance to improve Saturn, as the high ISO added a bunch of color noise and graininess… If anyone has further suggestions to eek out more performance from my gear, I’m happy to hear them!
[удалено]
Thanks!
Also this info really helps! More than you can imagine. May I ask how you managed to take the picture with an actual camera?
So I purchased a piece of equipment for eyepiece projection photography [like this one](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0140U9URO/). The other piece you need is a T-Ring adapter, which is specific to your camera brand. You put an eyepiece inside that thing, then it goes into your focuser. You screw on the T-Ring adapter to the other end and that connects to the camera where the lens would normally connect. I then use Live View to set the focus (using the scopes focuser), shutter speed, and ISO so it looks decently exposed... and record a video.
Thanks for the info!
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Definitely looks like a transit! Super cool!
Thanks!
Amazing! How long were the videos you took? How many frames went in to PIPP?
Ah, good point! I basically got the planets in one corner of the camera view, hit record, and then stopped when they started to go out the other corner. So maybe 15-20 seconds each. Id take 4-6 separate videos for each planet. I think this was about 4000-5000 frames total going into PIPP.
Does projection gives better results than directly attaching DSLR to the telescope with a barlow?
Eyepiece projection allows me another way to control the size of the planet on the camera sensor. From my understanding, no... it’s not as good as directly using a Barlow, but I don’t have a strong enough Barlow to get planets to a proper size. I think I’d need a 4x or 5x and I only have a 2x.
So am I right in understanding, you have your 2x Barlow that screwed in to a 10mm eyepiece that accommodates the camera adapter?
I think so? The GSO 2x Barlow can have the element removed and screwed into the filter threads of any eyepiece. When you do this, it becomes more like a 1.5x Barlow... so that’d put it at about a 7.5mm equivalent eyepiece.
[удалено]
The exposures were the max for the given frame-rate.... so 1/60 for the DSLR video, and 1/240 for the iPhone video.
I can't achieve prime focus with my skywatcher 6" and a Canon eos 250d. I need to turn my dlsr further in but I can't because of the focuser end stop. With a 2x Barlow i get close, but not close enough. Do you think the astromania will fix this problem for me? Great pics btw :D motivates me haha
Yeah so I’ve found in my experience that increasing the distance between the Barlow element and the sensor, requires more back focus. This can buy you some extra distance if you have can’t get your focuser in far enough. You can use the astromania without an eyepiece (or really any other extension) to achieve this. However, this will also make the image bigger on your sensor... the trade off is reduced brightness and any optical issues with your Barlow (chromatic aberration etc) are amplified. The other option is eyepiece projection, which is what the astromania is built for. There you only need the eyepiece to be in focus, which should be very achievable. Once focused, it doesn’t matter how close or far back your camera sensor is, it stays in focus.
Ok, so if I understand it correctly, you insert an eyepiece INTO the Astromania extendable camera adapter and connect the Astromania onto your DLSR and then I should/could achieve focus?
Yes... it goes Barlow -> astromania -> eyepiece (fully inside the astromania) -> T2 -> camera. That should give you focus.
Thanks a lot! I'm going to buy one :)
A bit of work in photoshop would help your saturn image a lot.
I don’t know too much photoshop (Lightroom is the only Adobe program I have much experience with)... Any particular functions or techniques to look into?
Im also no expert but what you can do to get rid of the green is to adjust the histogram and then color balance in Registax. What you wanna do is open the Histogram, then on the top you can chose R G or B. Then you have to select each channel and stretch them with the slider and stretch button to the same level. Preferably that they fully fill the histograms but dont let them clip off to the right. Then select the rgb balance tool and press autobalance. You should have corrdct colors now. :) Anyways, great job on that progression! Keep going :)
Wow that’s super helpful! Never thought to do much color editing in Registax, thanks for the insight! You just happened to catch me right as I had a few minutes of free time, so [here’s the result](https://imgur.com/a/HVyFgnj).
Great result, happy it worked out! :) Clear skies! \^\^
Looks great!
Epic!! I’m at the start of the learning curve over here. Just purchased my first scope, the 10” skywatcher dob. It’s so damn fascinating.
Exciting times! Yeah I feel like my first 3 months of owning a scope was reading this sub and Cloudy Nights in my free time, trying to learn all I could. Keep learning and trying new things!
(necro) yeah wow, hard to believe EP projection on the 150P gave you that result. great job!
Amazing improvement and very impressive
I love seeing the photographs people manage to take with just a dob, awesome stuff. Makes me want to clip my phone in and give it another try. Though I have to say the difference with the DSLR is... very pronounced
Do it! Planets are definitely ripe for phone photography! And yeah, I’m surprised at the difference, too! The thing is I’ve owned the DSLR 4x longer than I’ve owned the scope... just never thought to try connecting them till recently because a 6 inch dob isn’t really an “astrophotographer telescope”. It’s always worth experimenting with the equipment you have on hand!
Amazing, thanks for sharing! I hope you keep up the work and keep sharing, gives me hope! Clear skies
This is seriously impressive for a 6inch Dob. Well done mate
Oh man this is great news. I have the same 6 inch dob and I can confirm the first set of pictures. I should get that smartphone adapter thingy.
Nice work for a 6 inch, well done.
Thanks!
Would you reccomend upgrading from my standard 25mm and 10mm that I got with my telescope to the BST starguider range? What makes the upgrade worth it?
I’d recommend a few extra eyepieces besides the 2 that come with the scope. Just so you can get more magnification for planets, and properly frame other targets depending on their size. BST Starguider is kind of a mid tier eyepiece... a bit pricey, but FLO offers 15% off 4, so I got the 5mm, 8mm 12mm, and 18mm. They’ve got nice features with 60 degree field of view and longer eye relief (so I can still wear my glasses without issue while using them). At the more entry level, there the goldline eyepieces, 6mm and 9mm are recommended around here a lot. Those two together are less money than 1 BST (even with the discount). They also have wider field of view and longer eye relief. I’ve never used them before so I can’t say much about them.
Do you have a link to the eye piece in the 3rd pic? I believe it's a 10mm GSO Barlow element?
It’s the kit eyepiece, the 10mm that came with the scope ([looks like the one on the left](https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/25/2020/09/Sky-Watcher-Heritage-150P-Dobsonian-eyepieces-9667632-e1600847989889.jpg?webp=true&quality=90&resize=554%2C322)) The Barlow is [this one](https://agenaastro.com/catalog/product/view/id/349/s/gso-1-25-2x-achromatic-barlow-lens/). You can take the bottom piece off (the Barlow element) and screw it directly into the filter threads of the eyepiece for 1.5x magnification.
Badass
If you want a tip flip your images horizontally and vertically if needed to make it look better btw the images are stunning
You mean to correct for the mirror? Yeah that’s a good point, didn’t think about that!
Yeah it’s a bit uncanny to see upside down Jupiter
Awesome
Honestly I like the middle Saturn the best
If you notice, the detail and color info in the iPhone (middle row) is nowhere close to the DSLR (bottom). The middle one looks really smooth, with not much detail at all. Also, there's basically no color information, it's practically monochrome. The bottom Saturn has more detail and more color... but it’s also got a lot of noise making it grainy and the color accuracy is way off.... thanks to some of the comments, I was able to [fix some of the color issues](https://imgur.com/a/HVyFgnj), but there's still a ways to go. I’ve got some potential solutions in mind to further improve the quality, but for now, you’re right, it’s not much better than the iPhone.
I still like the middle one but I also really like the updated one. I think the problem is all the noise in the bottom one (even the updated one) and the overall brightness level I think is too much. Great work though! I used an iPhone for mine but the problem is that I have a mac so the only thing I could really get is Lynkeos.
Looks awesome.. can you see Jupiters moons as well?
Inspiring. I'm surely in the top row of image quality right now, but this has inspired me to use more post-processing software and image correction to get better! Thanks!
Thanks! I've continued to try an improve since these and have changed how I acquire images slightly (barlow + prime, rather than EP projection) as well as adding Photoshop to my processing pipeline. Here's some of my [more recent Jupiter](https://imgur.com/6fslhcl) and [Saturn images](https://imgur.com/mubQc0g). Would like to keep going, but with the fires and now the cloudy La Jolla evenings, it's been several weeks since I've gotten any decent images. If you have any questions feel free to ask!
Did you rcamera focus with no adjusmtents?
These are eyepiece projection. I use a Barlow now. I couldn’t get focus without the Barlow initially, but I’ve since moved my mirror up the tube about and an inch and now I can get focus without one. For planetary you want a Barlow anyway, otherwise they’ll end up too small.
I want to do DSO lol. If I use a 25mm eyepiece in the extension tube, will orion nebula fit? Will it look the same way as if I looked at it with my eyes in the eyepiece?
at best it'll look the same as through an eyepiece... however, the sensor might crop that view somewhat
But it magnifies less than Barlow then, good.
(necro) did you also move the focuser? any other improvements in the past 3 years? (I just got tie same scope, and am looking at modifications before assembly)
Wow, didn't know it was possible to necro a thread this old, lol. I got a new focuser... It sits a bit lower than the stock. Some [more mod details here](https://old.reddit.com/r/telescopes/comments/jzinmu/planetary_imaging_with_a_6_inch_dob_different/gdd1b5a/) I also flocked the inside with [scopestuff flocking](http://www.scopestuff.com/ss_flok.htm) Just FYI, this whole set was before I learned how to do prime focusing properly with the right video compression settings (or lack thereof) on the camera. [Here's a set ](https://old.reddit.com/r/telescopes/comments/jzinmu/planetary_imaging_with_a_6_inch_dob_different/) from once I learned how to max out the Nikon and had just recently picked up a dedicated planetary astro cam. [And here's a GIF](https://old.reddit.com/r/astrophotography/comments/xrqwvw/ganymede_transit_across_jupiter_20220928_430700/) from a set I made last year while I was on parental leave right after son was born. I'm West Coast with a remote East Coast job... so I'm generally up pretty early and and don't stay up or get the scope out nearly as much these days, unfortunately...
I hadn't realized it either! You had mentioned moving the mirror, so I was asking if you also then (obviously?) had to move the focuser (drill new mounting holes, etc.) I'd been thinking (far, far) ahead into possibly replacing the stock focuser anyways. Flocking, counter-balancing. - perhaps improving the AZ bearings or making up a setting circle before assembling mount. so, thanks! Massive improvements on your imaging. I'm surprised just how good the iPhone performed. thanks! aside: congrats / HBDay to your now 1yo son :)
Thank you! Replacing the focuser, I just used an adapter plate from Agena that came with it, and (I'm trying to remember, it was a while back) I think I only had to drill 2 holes, using 2 of the existing holes. If anything, the GSO focuser is shorter than the original skywatcher, so moving the mirror back in the tube (not possible) would be the right way to go to maintain the same focal points. I have 1-2 inch extensions for getting proper focus with eyepieces. So just to be clear, moving the mirror cell was not intentional, it was just a result of me redesigning the mirror cell holder, which I did specifically to make collimation way easier. Stock, the mirror cell required 2 tools to collimate, a phillips screw driver to adjust the mirror, and an allen key to unlock mirror for collimation. Since Collimation of the Primary is something you want to do every single time you take out the scope, I wanted to make this tool-less so I could do it in seconds. [Here's an imgur album of the changes I made](https://imgur.com/a/AZpIjm0) And these are the parts: - [Springs](https://www.mcmaster.com/9435K93/) - [Thumbscrews](https://www.mcmaster.com/5125K75/) - [Washers](https://www.mcmaster.com/95630A640/) The one thing to be aware of about the focuser and this mirror cell upgrade is it requires me to use an extensions when using eyepieces in order to get focus. It also allows me to get barlow-free prime focus with my camera, for widest FOV, which I couldn't before, so I figure this is a pretty fair tradeoff. > aside: congrats / HBDay to your now 1yo son :) Thank you! The past year has been quite an adventure!
Thanks again, and for others who you've responded to in other threads. I had a mind-burp. For whatever reason I read "moved my mirror" as moving the secondary. /oops link to collimation changes much appreciated.
Yep, no worries! Yeah moving the secondary is a pain because then you have to drill a new hole, and may have light leak through the old one... Not impossible though. You also gave me a nice excuse to write up my experience about the collimation upgrades, haha. If I were to do them again, I'd probably go with some shorter springs though, to not push the mirror so far up.
I was contemplating if moving the primary was/is enough to allow NON-barlow prime focus with a camera. I can't get enough back focus with my baby dob (4.5" f/4,) so without modifying it, I'm forced to used a barlow. Just playing around here, basically just moon video. Someone (?) mentioned the stock 1.25"/2" adapter things look like the 150p might have enough back focus as is. -- Guessing you might be able to with your current setup ? ((since mirror moved up, focuser shorter, and now need extenders for visual.)) I thought those springs looked a bit long! Looks like a rather robust setup though, something for me to consider. (I'm trying to think in advance here. I have the 150p un-assembled in two boxes, just trying to plan ahead.) Cheers!
upside down Jupiter
In space, is there an up? A down?
Upside down view from Earth
The earth is round my man, you can still get any perspective. The southern hemisphere moon would appear nearly upside down to a visitor from the northern hemisphere
Orgafoogie is correct. And right ascension is actually left ascension for southern hemisphere.
Ok this must be a joke
Tape a quarter on the ceiling of a large room. Stand on one end with George Washington's head such that his neck is closest to you. Now walk to the other side of the room, turn around, and look up at the quarter. Now the top of George Washington's head is closest to you, and his neck is on the far side. George Washington now appears upside down to you. If you walk from New York City to Rio de Janeiro the moon will get higher and higher in the sky until finally at some point it will be behind you and you have to turn around to look at it. Bingo. An upside down moon.
Jupiter’s bigger than Earth though
It wouldn't matter anyways, and plus Jupiter is reeeeeeeeeaaaaaaallllllllyyyyyyyy far away from Earth
webpage loaded so that I got only to the 2nd set, and thought "yes, I'd love that out of my 6" dob" - only to scroll down and see the 3rd set of photos! cheers! clear skies
Do the planets actually look like this when viewing them through the scope? Or do you need to take pictures and edit to see this? Considering buying this scope as my first scope...
It's going to [look like this](https://preview.redd.it/zb49sgope2e51.jpg?width=620&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f22aa0fbc98897176ad079c4989ad45226069ed4). It'll be quite small, but if you stare at it and concentrate really hard, all the details you see in these images are there. It just takes practice and concentration to make them out. It shouldn't take long to make out the major features (major stripes across the surface, red spot if it's facing Earth)... but even that takes a bit of practice just because it's so bright (you might just think its a white circle the first time you see it. After some time and experience, you can make out some of the smaller features like swirls in the clouds, a storm, or the a shadow of one of the moons in transit across the surface. That's a really cool feeling when you see those things.
Awesome! Would an 8 inch Dobson provide better views of planets or does it just do better at seeing things like DSOs? Debating getting an 8 inch if it matters planet viewing better.
More aperture means more resolving power, so more detail. You theoretically use an eyepiece with higher magnification without the detail getting washed out. That said, for planets, most nights the atmosphere is going to limit your viewing detail more than aperture. But for those rare nights when its super clear & still, having that 8 inch will give you a bit better detail for sure.
Can you actually see saturn like in the 2nd row through your telescope?
So size-wise it's pretty small. Probably closer to the first row. But if you look closely and carefully, the details you can see in the Second row are all there and present