First attempt at Jupiter

Just doing more research, could I buy a 2x 2" barlow lens and attach it in front of my t-mounted camera? Would this be an improvement optically from my 1.4x teleconverter? I know 1.4x isn't 2x, so lets say how would it compare optically to a 2x teleconverter?

Also I found an expensive light pollution filter in the storage room, would this be worth while using? The telescope is in a city of ~400,000 people however it's not like its downtown, but there is definitely a ton of light pollution.

You did very good for first attempt ! Bet the view was even greater ?!

Allan.L wrote in post #15801875
Just doing more research, could I buy a 2x 2" barlow lens and attach it in front of my t-mounted camera? Would this be an improvement optically from my 1.4x teleconverter? I know 1.4x isn't 2x, so lets say how would it compare optically to a 2x teleconverter?

Also I found an expensive light pollution filter in the storage room, would this be worth while using? The telescope is in a city of ~400,000 people however it's not like its downtown, but there is definitely a ton of light pollution.

A 2x barlow would manify Jupiter to a larger image but if the clarity is not so good you would be defeating your purpose depending the barlow . The Telvue barlows in the Powermate are the best but very expensive ! So depending your budget or if you already have one yes they do help some .

http://www.telescope.c​om …LrqnZOEurYCFQ8G​nQodEzkAfg

To be honest I didn't even get any viewing in I was so eager to see what i could get on camera! I'll have to report back next time I go.

Do you mean the quality of the barlow affecting clarity? That and viewing conditions I guess. The scopes optics should be pretty good still even though its several decades old Plus its painted orange so doesn't that increase my focal length? (i'll put a pic up later). I assume it would degrade IQ like adding a canon 1.4x and 2x TC to a lens, and that you get what you pay for Thanks for the link.

Have you ever compared a photography teleconverter to a dedicated astro barlow while t-mounted?

he means the clarity and transparency of the atmosphere. If they are bad, your images will be bad too.

Go here and pick a Clear Sky chart near your location. They forecast a day away and are accurate
http://cleardarksky.co​m/csk/

here is a map you can choose from
http://cleardarksky.co​m …recs=100&type=t​ext&unit=0

Great links, I had a tough time even getting rough focus the turbulence was pretty crazy. Even after we opened a door and the dome it was pretty bad. There is the odd night were viewing is pretty good though so i'll have to keep my eye out, I really just wanted to get down and try it. I may ask and see if I can borrow a barlow from someone first.

Toxic Coolaid wrote in post #15802107
he means the clarity and transparency of the atmosphere. If they are bad, your images will be bad too.

Go here and pick a Clear Sky chart near your location. They forecast a day away and are accurate
http://cleardarksky.co​m/csk/

here is a map you can choose from
http://cleardarksky.co​m …recs=100&type=t​ext&unit=0

Thanks for clearing that up Toxic . Yes Allen I was meaning atmospheric conditions . If seeing is bad then the more power you add by adding converters or barlows will just make it that much worse . However Barlow qualities theirselfs has a lot to fo with it also . If a barlow is not parfocal with your lens you will have to refocus quite abit between lens and EP changes . Parfocal lens and EPs' keep the focus almost the same as to where very little if any focus is needed .

Not bad for a first attempt.
Get Backyard EOS software it can shoot video at 30fps and crop your 7d sensor to 5x ( a Barlow or Powermate will be useful too).

Thanks Ron and Viffer, I plan on trying video next, it seems to be good for planets. I'll check out that software, could I also use my t2i in crop mode? I think there is no compression or anything done to it (from what I read)...

Allan.L wrote in post #15803340
Thanks Ron and Viffer, I plan on trying video next, it seems to be good for planets. I'll check out that software, could I also use my t2i in crop mode? I think there is no compression or anything done to it (from what I read)...

If you shoot in RAW which is best you can adjust the WB and for the image size you can usually crop between 50-100% and still have a very nice image depending the out come of images you take . Yes you can use a cam corder or a dedicated CCD camera also for any imaging you choose . Then use Registax to stack the single frames for a final input . Just remember that jupiter has the fastest rotation of all planets so to keep a sharp image keep a set of frames under 2-mins . Video cams can take up to 30+ Frames a second so just a minutes worth of imaging can turn out a couple hundred images and that may take quite a while processing . If you can adjust it which is possible you can take 10-15 per sec which makes the exposure longer and sometimes a better image . Good luck how you do it . if you can you can use a laptop with software to control the cameras and capture the image to your computer so it wont store on your camera .

Thanks for the info Ron!

Here is a photo of the orange beast if anyone is interested (not my photo). Looks like it was taken on a public viewing night.

Allan.L wrote in post #15804547
Thanks for the info Ron!

Hereis a photo of the orange beast if anyone is interested (not my photo). Looks like it was taken on a public viewing night.

WOW , that is certainly a beast ! Has the optics been clean ever or do you have that info ? It should bring you some great planet images especially !

Oh yea, my dad used to use this scope frequently for astro work I think, he said he used to take the elements down to Arizona to get cleaned/coated or what have you. I'm not sure when the last time they were cleaned but it's still used by students/profs. We had another observatory out in the country that had good viewing that he used to use but it got shut down unfortunately.

Come summer time I think i'll have a better chance at planets. I'll keep an eye on the astronomy forecast charts. I'm going to try to get out as much as possible.

Here is a quick shot I snapped. Edit* I should add it was built in 1940 for this observatory, and has obviously been there ever since! Here is some info: http://www.physics.uwo​.ca/outreach/cronyn_hi​story.html

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Very nice ! Good to know the build yr . Those old scopes were just as good back then as they are now ! I would be very curious how big the images would be for Uranus and Neptune if you ever get a chance to image those two . I have imaged Uranus before and I was excited to get that but it was still small and no detail , just good color tho ! Heres what I got .