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This is my photographer’s blog, for your consideration. I post some of my favorite shots here, usually along with some comments about how the photo was taken or post-processed. (Occasionally I have the vain thought that someone might like to read about that.)

If you like what you see here, feel free to check out my Flickr site and YouTube channel.

Monday, February 22, 2010

Astrophotography With a Camera and Telescope

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In a pair of postings awhile back (Jupiter and His Minions and Astrophotography With a Camera and Tripod, I said, One of these days, I'll mate my camera to a telescope, and then I'll be a "real" amateur astrophotographer.

Well, I guess that day has finally arrived. The photo above is a full-frame view of the Moon, shot through my telescope.

In contrast, here is the equivalent full-frame shot taken at maximum zoom with my longest telephoto lens:

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But the difference is most noticeable when we zoom in on some detail:

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The telephoto "detail" is not very usable, as you can see. In contrast, the telescopic shot's detail looks like this:

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Of course, a "true" amateur astrophotographer will get results that are much sharper. And indeed, my later shots will improve, once I get an official camera mount and can then do image stacking. (This "Proof of Concept" was taken by pointing my camera into the telescope's viewfinder, hand-held.)

In any case, I'm happy with the results of this casual Proof of Concept! I see much potential for future astrophotos. :-)

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