Quote:
Originally Posted by jjirons69
OMG, Adam! You touched a spark deep inside. I had a rough few years in the mid-90s and the only and best thing I had was the cosmos. I made a barn door contraption and with the help of a small circuit board and a few electronics I had my simple creation tracking the sky. I spent many a night with my star charts, 8" Orion Dobsonion, Canon AE1, tripod, barndoor, filters, and hyper film. Got many nice comet, constellations, Messier object, and eclipse pictures. Nothing NEAR what you have! My experience with it has lasted a lifetime internally and showed me I was but a speck in the big machine of our Universe. It was literally life changing for me. Those three pictures are more beautiful than any I can remember seeing in any books I've collected. You've done a great job and have fascinating work. I know of only a little of what you've gone through and done and you've nailed it, my friend! Impressed is such a small word. Andromeda is now my desktop background. Stunning!
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Yup. Similar to how I started! Of course technology is making it easier. Basically I'm 97% automated for my data acquisition. So I open my roof, flip a few switches and click start. Processing is another story. The biggest issue is waiting for good weather.
Glad to hear you've done some AP yourself. It's an amazing hobby and I'm always surprised that I'll be chatting with a Astro Dr from VA one day and an Astronomer from NASA the next. It's just a very open and sharing community.
Enjoy the desktop!