STARS

INTRODUCTION
Each image on this page is reduced in quality and size to make them quick for download, and to save webspace :-)
Stars and deep sky objects are one of my favourite subjects. That's because there are so many of them, and it's all so varied. ANYONE can take pictures of the stars. You don't need expensive equipment.

STAR TRAILS
For anyone with a will, you can take some great photographs of star trails. To do this, if you have a standard 35mm camera that can take time exposures (bulb setting), then all you need to do is put the camera on a firm base, cover the lens (with a piece of cardboard for instance), open the shutter, and remove the cover. After some period, such as 10 or 20 minutes, cover the lens again, and close the shutter. You do this to prevent "camera shake". If you have done everything correctly, you will see streaks. These happen because you camera is standing still, and the Earth is rotating, so the stars appear to move. The closer you are pointing to the celestial pole, the more "curved" will be the star trails.

Digital Cameras also can do this. For most purposes, a 15 second exposure will not show any star trails, but WILL show you the constellations. With a digital camera, however, you can manipulate the image on a PC to bring out the details that you ordinarily would not see. My Kodak DX4330 only takes a maximum of 4 second exposures, enough to bring out the brightest stars and planets only, but because it's still very sensitive, I use Photoshop or sometimes just the Kodak standard software (Easyshare) to enhance the image, by increasing the exposure on the PC.

If you are lucky, you can capture an image of a satellite or a meteor. Even passing aircraft can add an interesting element to such a photograph.

TRACKING: If you want to capture a photograph which shows nebulae, or the stars without star trails, then you need to counteract the rotation of the Earth. For that, you need an equatorial mount, such as you see on many telescopes, or you can build what is called a "barn door" mount (example here)

NEW IMAGES
Star-Trail_35mmMinolta.jpg - 33736 Bytes Star Trails.
METHOD: Minolta 35MM, tripod mounted Wide angle lens, focused on infinity. Kodak 400 film, 40 minute exposure. Note the "fogging" in the film. This is due more to the light pollution in the sky than anything else. It's also sometimes a good idea to use a slower film. However, the colours of the different stars come out quite nice in this one.

NGC 3532, an open cluster in Carina.
METHOD: Meade ETX 105, Televue adapter, 30MM eyepiece, Kodak DX4330, 4 second exposure. The cluster is in the top right corner. Photoshop was used to increase brightness and contrast to enhance the picture. click on the picture to see a larger version.

NGC4755.jpg - 1522 Bytes NGC 4755, the "Jewel Box" in Crux.
The red star stands out. It is really quite red, and the relative colour compared to the other stars is accurate. This is a very striking cluster, and the redness of the main star is very obvious. There are many more stars in this cluster than appears in this image.
METHOD:Meade ETX 105, LPI, LPI Austostar suite (software), Photoshop.The LPI was configured to take 2 second images, and save each image, instead of stacking them. This image was then enhanced in Photoshop, by increasing the contrast. There are many more stars in this constellation, but a longer exposure time would be needed to make them visible in a photograph.
The Trapezium in Orion
The Trapezium is the 4 central stars of the Great Nebula in Orion You can see them as the 4 stars in the lower part of the image.
METHOD: Meade ETX 105, LPI, LPI Austostar suite (software). LPI imaging software was set to take images of 4 seconds duration. I should have set it a lot longer. Only 2 images were stacked to get this. No other processing. Click on the picture for a larger view.

Southern Cross, Alpha and Beta Centauri
METHOD: Kodak DX4330 mounted on a tripod, 4 second exposure. This was enhanced solely using the standard Kodak Easyshare software to "increase" the exposure. Click on the image for a larger view. You can see how the detail is brought out by simple manipulation.

Orion.
The constellation of Orion.
METHOD:Kodak DX4330 mounted on a tripod, 4 second exposure. This was enhanced solely using the standard Kodak Easyshare software to "increase" the exposure. Click on the image for a larger view. You can see how the detail is brought out by simple manipulation, especially the belt stars.

Omega Centauri, a globular cluster in Centaurus
METHOD: Meade ETX105, Kodak DX4330, Televue adapter, 30mm Eyepiece, 4 second exposure. This image was enhanced by brightening in Photoshop, then converted to grayscale. Click on the image for a larger view, and you can see the structure of the globular cluster starting to appear. M41, Cluster in Canis Major
METHOD:Meade ETX105, Kodak DX4330, Televue adapter, 30mm Eyepiece, 4 second exposure. This image was enhanced by brightening in Photoshop.Click on the image for a larger view. Mu Scorpii
Mu Scorpii is a double star in Scorpio
METHOD: Meade ETX 105, LPI, LPI Austostar suite (software). LPI imaging software was set to take images of 6 seconds duration. The resulting image was then enhanced in Photoshop to bring out the two very dim stars (which are not part of the double star system) Click on the picture for a larger view.

M42, The Great Nebula in Orion.  This was an astonishing shot for me. I used a Meade LX200 telescope at an aboservatory, and this is a FOUR SECOND EXPOSURE!!!!.  I enhanced the shot in Photoshop by adjusting the levels to bring out the detail, but look at the nebulosity! Imagine what can be done with a longer exposure.

METHOD: Meade LX200, Kodak DX4330, Televue adapter, 30mm Eyepiece, 4 second exposure, Photoshop.

This image needs a bit of explanation.  3 days after getting my new DX7630,  I mounted the camera to the top of the telescope (not through the eyepiece). I was so excited about this, I couldn't wait to try it out. So I took it into my front yard, pointed the scope at Sagittarius, and took a 64 second exposure, With the scope in roughly Polar alignment.

So this is what came out.  The noise in the image is from all the ambient light, but I'm so happy with this image, I just had to put it up.

All of the dark bands of the dust clouds of the galaxy are real, and the bright nebula can be seen. Click on the image for a larger (but still not full sized image).  I used Photoshop to brighten the image

METHOD:  Kodak DX7630, mounted to Meade ETX105 in polar mode, 64 second exposure at f/2.8, ISO 200, Photoshop.

 

NEW IMAGES

This image is of 47 Tucana, a globular cluster containing thousands of stars, in Tucana, a constellation in the Southern Hemisphere.

METHOD:  Kodak DX7630, Meade LX200 Televue adapter, 30mm Eyepiece, 64 second exposure at f/2.8, ISO 100, Photoshop.

 

 

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