To test the 20D on the most demanding sky work, I aimed at
Casseiopeia while she was high in the sky, almost overhead. I've cheated
a little and emphasized the major stars in Pshop, so those unfamiliar with
star charts can trace the shape of the Queen of Ethiopia, as she was
known in ancient times. The exposure lasted 8 minutes at f2.5 using the 50 1.8,
which is just right for constellations of a certain size. ISO was 100.
Note the Perseus Double Cluster at the far right of the image.
However, I have never understood constellations. It's like they take a few random bright stars and make this elaborate drawing that has no real resemblance to the points. Very odd.
The sky used to be very much darker than it is now; and humans had little
to do but watch it instead of TV. so they invented legends, myths,
structures to explain reality. The Constellations as we know them may
have begun in Mesopotamia (yes, that mess), with the pre-Babylonians.
They may even be earlier than that. So it represents one of the longest
cultural traditions in human kind to be so continuous and so consistent.
Nice shot. What mount?? Been giving increasing consideration to a clock driven equatorial for some time. Just seems so expensive for the limited use though.
I use a Losmandy G11. They are expensive. The use needs to be
considered over a length of time, like I had my previous Ultima 8 mount,
for a decade. It wasn't capable of carrying weight like DSLRs.
The Losmandy system is modular, upgradeable, and I expect to keep
this mount the rest of my life. Take a look at the Vixen Sphinx system.
It's really pretty.
I'd really like to see it as well. Can you find these used easily? I considered the Losmandy many years ago for my Genesis SDF 4". What about a little clock drive just for easy setup wide angle shots, any recs??
