Videos

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Astrophotography tips 🔝

Comets don't have the same predictable orbits as planets and travel at different rates, so how are long imaging sessions even possible? Just in time for the close approach of the green comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF), learn how to use the Orbitals plugin to track comets using N.I.N.A. software. How to track a comet using N.I.N.A. software
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02 Feb 2023
Your guide scope doesn't have to be perfectly aligned with your primary scope. However, if the alignment is close enough, guide scopes usually have a wider field of view making it easier to find targets and reuse that scope as a finder scope. See how I prepare my rig during the day for a successful nighttime run. Align your guidescope by day and use as finder scope at night
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07 Jan 2023
Do you have the perfect setup for your image train, but adding a filter throws everything off? You might be surprised how a simple little adapter enables you to insert a filter without changing the length of your backfocus! Add a filter without changing backfocus
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06 Jan 2023
Have your adapters or extensions bound together so you can't get them loose? Use this simple tool many people have never heard of to fix it. Unbind a stuck adapter or extension
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05 Jan 2023

Equipment 🔝

The Star Adventurer Mini, or SAM, is a portable system that attaches to your tripod and camera to allow you to take extremely long (such as 60 seconds to 5 minutes) exposures without star trails. In this video I explain how it works, show you how to set it up, provide examples and share tips like using your own software and polar alignment. Complete guide to Star Adventurer Mini (S.A.M.)
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12 Dec 2021
It was a rare night in the Pacific Northwest. The forecast predicted a few hours of clear skies. With no optical tube assembly (OTA), I decided to test drive my new Celestron CGEM-II mount with my Sony Alpha 6300. I also filmed some time lapse with my ZWO ASI120MM-S. This is the true story of what happened. First Light with my CGEM-II Celestron Mount
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07 Dec 2021

Image Processing 🔝

The basics of astrophotography from image acquisition, polar alignment, guiding, and calibration through image processing. How can I take pictures of beautiful deep sky pictures like the Elephant Trunk Nebula?
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31 May 2023
Do you have the same issue that I did? Despite doing things like splitting out stars to align separately, you always end up with star streaks. I finally figured out the simple, single step to do between star alignment and comet alignment that makes all the difference and produces streak-free comets for me every time (without having to split the lights). This video walks through the full end-to-end of processing comets in PixInsight. How to Process a Comet in PixInsight
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02 Feb 2023
Learn exactly what bias, dark, flat, and dark flats frames are, why they are important, and how to take them in this short video with visual demonstrations of the results. Calibration explained in less than 4 minutes
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01 Nov 2022

Imaging Session 🔝

I set out to test my equipment in a remote setup and chose the Bortle 3 banks of the Skyokomish River northeast of Index, WA. Time lapses of the big dipper and Milky Way, river photos and my experimental targets. Down by the River - Astrophotography on the Skykomish in Index, WA
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26 Jun 2023
A group of photographers summited Heybrook Lookout seeking dark skies. After dealing with cold winds, thunderstorms, and an encounter with a black bear, they almost lost hope. Then the skies cleared, and the Milky Way unfurled. Hey, Milky Way
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23 Jun 2023
On May 19th, 2023, a new supernova was discovered at the edge of Messier 101, the Pinwheel Galaxy. This is a large, frequently photographed galaxy located near 'the Big Dipper.' I spent two evenings photographing the galaxy so I could capture the supernova to share. Supernova SN 2023ixf in the Pinwheel Galaxy (M101)
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19 May 2023
Gear: Svbony sv503 70ED 70mm (420mm f/7 or 336mm f/5 with reducer) doublet refractor, Sony Alpha 6300 mirrorless camera, assorted Samyang manual focus lenses, Sky Watcher Star Adventurer GTi 'go to' mount, Manfrotto tripod. Targets: Milky Way, Moon, SpaceX Crew-5 Dragon trunk, M13, Orion constellation, Venus, and Antares region with part of Rho Ophiuchi. Colorado Springs 2023: Astrophotography on the road
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05 May 2023
Stellina, an automated observation station that makes astrophotography easy for everyone, added a new mode for mosaics. I tested it on a wide Andromeda Galaxy and large Pleiades shot. Here's how it turned out! Testing Stellina's new 'Covalens' automated mosaic mode
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17 Dec 2022
On December 14th I pointed my telescope to the sky. I captured Mars, Jupiter, and the moon with my planetary QHY5III462C before I switched to the deep sky ASI294MC Pro. After setting up an advanced script in N.I.N.A., I let it run all night and used the results to create my best picture of the Crab Nebula to date. It's all documented including setting up and balancing my rig. Imaging M1 (and Mars, Jupiter, and the Moon)
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17 Dec 2022
Join me for a night of viewing. I observed several nebulae (the Iris Nebula, the Dumbbell Nebula, and the Eagle Nebula) and the moon all night until 3am when the planets Saturn, Mars, and Jupiter appeared in that order. May 21, 2022 - planets, nebulae, and more
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22 May 2022

Lucky Imaging 🔝

This is a flow for planetary processing for those of you who don't want to use RegiStax. I show how to use deconvolution and multiscale linear transformations to sharpen solar system-based images. Planetary processing with PixInsight (and NO Registax)
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29 Sep 2022
Learn how to use ImageContainer, ProcessContainer, and FFTRegistration to stack planetary images produced by Stellina. With a guest appearance from Pierre, my parrot. How to Process Planets from Stellina in PixInsight with Bulk Operations
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26 Aug 2021

Stacking 🔝

Using the same set of data and the default, auto-recommended settings for each program, I stacked a series of images (including lights, darks, flats, and dark flats) using several major free and commercial applications including Astrometric Stacking Program (ASTAP), ASI DeepStack, AstroPixel Processor (APP), Deep Sky Stacker (DSS) and PixInsight. I was surprised by the results and may have a new favorite! Best astrophotography stacking software
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20 Jun 2022
Simple tutorial showing how to take nonlinear images and register/stack them to improve the detail. Workflow uses the moon captured by my Stellina with seven shots. Blink, FFTRegistration script, dynamic crop, multiscale linear transform and curves transformation. Stacking Nonlinear Images (the Moon) with PixInsight
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17 Apr 2021

Timelapse 🔝

Collage of planets, galaxies, nebulae, and more that I captured in 2022. From Saturn and Andromeda to Thor's Helmet and the Milky Way. Dusk Until Dawn: a 12mm Time Lapse
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29 Jun 2023
Some footage of a lightning storm I captured in Monroe, WA on May 16, 2023. A striking view: lightning in the Pacific Northwest
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16 May 2023
I captured this video at 2:53am on April 27, 2023 in Colorado Springs. On March 12, 2023 the joint NASA and SpaceX Crew-5 Dragon mission jettisoned a cylinder for storage called the 'trunk' before return to Earth. This video shows the trunk breaking up on an uncontrolled re-entry a month later. NASA SpaceX Crew-5 Dragon trunk module reentry
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27 Apr 2023
Timelapse of night sky including footage of 50,000-year green comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF). Night of the Comet
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30 Jan 2023
Footage from my imaging sessions with comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) using a 336mm and a 1645mm scope. Live observations of a green comet that was last seen 50,000 years ago: Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF). Live observations of green comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF)
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22 Jan 2023
The bright moon can't quite overpower the Pleiades, but it's the clouds that end up with the last word in this timelapse. Seven Sisters and Luna on a Cloudy Night
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20 Nov 2022
A timelapse look at the Pleiades, the double cluster in Perseus, Mars, and other winter sky objects. Taken with a Sony Alpha 6300 and a Samyang 12mm MF f/2 lens on a Sky Watcher Star Adventurer GTi. Celestial Spinner
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20 Nov 2022
The footage of Orion I used to create the full Orion image from Grand Cayman. Orion Rising
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28 Oct 2022

Tour 🔝

It is the tallest peak in the Cascades and the entire state of Washington. It is considered to be one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world. It has over 20 glaciers, its own alpine lake system and creates is own weather. In the Puget Sound, it signals the days to be outside. 'The Mountain is Out!' The mountain is out! A tribute to Mt. Rainier
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15 Jun 2023
Collage of planets, galaxies, nebulae, and more that I captured in 2022. From Saturn and Andromeda to Thor's Helmet and the Milky Way. My best space pictures taken in 2022
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20 Dec 2022
My adventures in Grand Cayman photographing Mars, the Pleiades, Cassiopeia, Cygnus, Orion, M31: the Andromeda Galaxy and M33: the Triangulum Galaxy using my Sony Alpha 6300 mirrorless camera with 12mm and 50mm Samyang lenses, the Svbony sv503 70ED 420mm doublet refractor, and using the Sky Watcher Star Adventurer GTi mount. The Cayman Collection (behind the scenes)
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25 Oct 2022
A visual tour of Orion and nearby deep sky objects Aldebaran, Mars, and the Pleiades. From 12mm wide field shots of the night sky to 1645mm ultra close-ups of nebulae, this journey ties some of my favorite images together and shows just how interconnected objects in space can be. Includes shots of M42: the Great Orion Nebula, M43: de Mairan's Nebula, NGC1977 The Running Man Nebula, NGC2024 The Flame Nebula, NGC2023, IC434 The Horsehead Nebula, M45: The Pleiades, Mars, Aldebaran, Betelgeuse and Rigel. A visit with Orion
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12 Jan 2022