Rob Burgess writes of his images taken with the Deep Sky Imager and his 8" Meade LX200 Classic:
I have enjoyed observing galaxies through my Meade telescopes for many years. On various occasions I attempted to photograph many of the brightest the sky had to offer with less than satisfactory results. Much of this was related to my lack of experience and the suburban skies where I observe. The only way I could match the bright, aesthetically pleasing images that I saw in books and magazines was to invest significant time to develop my skills as an astrophotographer, move to a dark-sky site or purchase an expensive CCD imager.
However, the Meade Deep Sky Imager has offered me an attractive alternative. This low cost imager is easy to use and it produces results. In fact, I can obtain an image and produce a finished product all in the same night using the Autostar Suite software. Further, Meade DSI images respond very well in popular post-processing software packages.
Now, I can seek and image a broad array of galaxies and other deep sky objects. It is exciting to see dim objects like the Horsehead Nebula pop to life on my computer monitor as well as bright, well known objects like M82 or M101. Most impressive is that I can monitor the progress of my DSI imaging sessions in real-time while sharing the results with friends & family. This is a great way to introduce people to our hobby.
The Meade DSI has opened up a whole new world of possibilities for me to enjoy.
http://www.terraceobservatory.com/ |
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| M42 and M43 by Rob Burgess. Meade LX200 Classic; PEC with DSI f3.3 focal reducer, 40 stacked images at 60 seconds each minimum quality 30, Gain 90, Offset 50 Postprocessing through photoshop. [Click to Enlarge] |
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M51 by Rob Burgess. “This image shows that Meade equipment is tops...even the "old stuff". I used a Meade LX200 ‘Classic' with the original DSI. I used the DSI to achieve excellent Periodic Error Correction (PEC) on the RA & DEC axis, and was able to self-guide for over a minute. Post processing with AutoStar Suite & Photoshop. I'm proud to show that Meade products have staying power!” |
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M82 image by Rob Burgess - 8"LX200 Classic with f/3.3 Meade focal reducer. "I stacked and inverted 10 images to review the region where SN2004am was discovered this past March 2004. The SN has been rapidly fading and is now beyond mag 18 although I can't find a current mag estimate. My image is compared to the SN discovery image from http://www.seds.org/messier/more/m082_sn2004am.html credited to Lick Observatory Supernova Search (LOSS)."
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Galaxy triplet in Leo - image by Rob Burgess - 8"LX200 Classic with f/3.3 Meade focal reducer. NGC 3379 is particularly elusive. DSI detail is very impressive when compared to other images. 60 images RGB uncombined FITS, combined in Autostar IP, Gain 90, Offset 50. .[Click to Enlarge] |
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| M101 image by Rob Burgess - 8"LX200 Classic with f/3.3 Meade focal reducer. Messier 101. 50 images RGB uncombined FITS, combined in Autostar IP, Gain 90, Offset 50. [Click to Enlarge] |
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Rob Burgess and the Deep Sky Imager
