Journey to Gamma Cassiopeiae: A First Astrophotography Attempt

Greetings, fellow stargazers and aspiring astrophotographers! Today, I'm excited to share my very first foray into capturing the deep sky, focusing on the prominent star Gamma Cassiopeiae, also known as Navi.

As a newcomer to this incredible hobby, I'm documenting my journey, learning curves, and the challenges that come with bringing the universe a little closer. This particular capture was an experiment to test my equipment and workflow, and I'm eager to share the results and the lessons learned.

The Target: Gamma Cassiopeiae

Gamma Cassiopeiae, situated in the distinctive 'W' or 'M' shaped constellation of Cassiopeia, is a fascinating star. It's a variable star, meaning its brightness fluctuates, adding an extra layer of intrigue to its observation.

Equipment and Settings

Here's a breakdown of the gear and settings used for this capture:

• Mount: Orion EQ-2
• Camera: Canon 600D with Canon 55-250mm EF-S 1:4-5.6 IS lens
• Camera Settings: ISO 800, F/5.6, Focal Length 55mm, Manual Focus
• Guiding: Precision DC Motor Drive
• Exposure: A mix of exposures, primarily 1s to 80s. For stacking, images with exposures of 30 seconds or less were used.
• Postprocessing: DeepSkyStacker

The Process and the Hurdles

My initial plan was to use 90-second exposures. After setting up my mount and polar aligning it, I pointed my telescope towards Navi. I engaged the motor drive, hoping for smooth tracking. However, it seems my initial attempts at motor drive calibration weren't quite right, as the resulting long exposures showed noticeable star trails.

Compounding this, I also realized that my remote shutter release hadn't been set up correctly. This led to a significant number of photos being taken with shorter exposures, ranging from 1 second to 80 seconds. While not ideal for capturing faint details, these shorter exposures proved useful for my first stacking attempt. I decided to keep the images with exposures of 30 seconds or less and proceeded with stacking.

First Attempt Results and Future Goals

This was a crucial test to ensure my equipment was functioning. While the star trails from the longer exposures are evident, the stacked images from the shorter exposures provide a recognizable view of Gamma Cassiopeiae and its surrounding star field.

I'm particularly interested in hearing feedback on my sub lengths and integration time. Understanding how to effectively stretch the data in post-processing is also a key area I'm looking to improve.

This first attempt, despite its imperfections, has been incredibly valuable. It's a testament to the learning process in astrophotography. I'm excited to refine my techniques, improve my tracking, and eventually capture more detailed and stunning images of the night sky. Stay tuned for more adventures!

Your Suggestions Welcome!

As I continue on this astrophotography journey, I warmly invite any suggestions or advice you might have. What are your thoughts on the sub lengths and integration time for this image? How would you approach stretching this data for a better result? Your insights are invaluable as I learn and grow.