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R.I.P. iOptron SkyTracker (November 2013 – November 2016)

Posted on by DarkArts_Astro

Back in the fall of 2013, I had a decision to make. I had been into astrophotography for about a year at this point, and I already knew winter seriously put a kink into my astrophotography plans. My only telescope and mount at the time was my 8″ Meade LX90 on its fork mount. I had owned this telescope for 3 years at that point, and there were 2 things that were quite clear about it already that worked against me in the cold of winter:

  1. Setup took quite a long time, so I was frozen by the time I was ready to start imaging; and
  2. Once temperatures hit 0ºC and colder, the display on the handset controller didn’t work any more, making navigating to anything impossible.

I had to do something!

Continue reading “R.I.P. iOptron SkyTracker (November 2013 – November 2016)” →

Explore Scientific "Essentials" ED80 triplet apochromatic

Review: Explore Scientific “Essential Series” ED80

Posted on by DarkArts_Astro

If you’re into astrophotography, chances are that a short focal length apochromatic refractor is on your “to buy” list if you don’t already own one. There are prized instruments for their elimination of chromatic aberration and high contrast, true colour images and the tool of choice for many astrophotographers. The problem the “common folk” face with apo refractors is they tend to be quite pricey for even small apertures. While there are several small aperture apochromatic telescopes available at comparable prices, they often significantly fall short in one department or another.

The Explore Scientific Essential Series ED80 (model # ES-ED0806-01) delivers the goods with solid construction and great optics. It has a few shortcomings and compromises that keep its price affordable, but overall, this fine instrument will fulfil the needs of the most demanding photographer without breaking the bank in the process.

Continue reading “Review: Explore Scientific “Essential Series” ED80″ →

Site updates! Image and video galleries

Posted on by DarkArts_Astro

Not a lot to say here other than I’ve been very hard at work trying to make this new site as complete as possible. I’ve gotten the hang of WordPress now and got myself the plugins that I need to make it work the way I want to.

As some of you may know, I spent the better part of last week building my Aurora Borealis section. This includes both an informational section on the aurora as well as my Aurora Forecast Tool. The forecasting tool was a beta work in progress for a week or so as it was  being tested and refined. It’s now complete and ready to use. Continue reading “Site updates! Image and video galleries” →

Aurora Borealis

Aurora Borealis Forecasting

Posted on by DarkArts_Astro

Over the last few months, I’ve been trying to come up with tools and resources that I would want to add to a web site that would be useful not only to myself, but to others. Product reviews and tutorials make up a large part of my posts, but I wanted something a bit more substantial – a resource that would have people returning to my site with a reason. And to that end, I’ve added a whole section on the Aurora Borealis. Continue reading “Aurora Borealis Forecasting” →

Enter the LensMuff™ from Digital After Dark.

LensMuff™ – Affordable Dew Control For Your Camera Lenses or Telescope

Posted on by DarkArts_Astro

If you’re into night photography or astrophotography, you’ve likely already encountered the scourge that rapidly puts an end to any photo session – dew. It’s a problem that has plagued night photographers and astronomers since these pursuits have existed. Over the years, many techniques and products have been developed to help combat this problem. Many are quite effective, but have their drawbacks. Continue reading “LensMuff™ – Affordable Dew Control For Your Camera Lenses or Telescope” →