Deep-Sky Video Astronomy is a concise guide to using modern integrating video cameras for deep-sky viewing and imaging with the kinds of modest telescopes available commercially to amateur astronomers. It includes an introduction and a brief history of the technology, camera types, etc. The authors then examine the pros and cons of this unrefrigerated yet highly efficient technology, which is already beginning to compete with expensive astronomical cooled-chip CCD cameras in quality and ease of use.
There is a thorough examination of accessories used to achieve particular results. Examples are focal reducers, Barlow lenses, and optical filters. However, the focus is mostly on the practical side of creating beautiful and detailed astronomical portraits using image-stacking software, enhancement tools like PhotoShop, and creating color images with a black-and-white camera.
Practical step-by-step examples supported by tried and trusted tips show how to achieve the best possible deep-sky video portrait!
Need a concise guide to using modern video cameras for deep-sky viewing and imaging with the kinds of modest telescopes available commercially to amateur astronomers? Here it is. In this book you are given the basics of this highly efficient technology, which is already beginning to compete with astronomical cooled-chip CCD cameras in quality and ease of use.
Much of the book focuses on the practical side of creating beautiful and detailed astronomical portraits using image-stacking software and picture enhancement tools. There are sections on how to create color images using a black-and-white camera. There are also reviews of accessories, including focal reducers, Barlow lenses, and optical filters, that can be used to achieve a particular result. Finally, step-by-step examples will show you how to achieve your own kind of magic - amazing deep-sky video portraits!
So turn your passion for the beauty of the night sky into a hobby that can show off your skills to their greatest advantage. You'll never look at the stars the same way again!
From the reviews:
"This is a very practical book from which even the most experienced video astronomers will be able to learn and gain new ideas for their deep-sky videography. ? An extensive gallery of beautiful images obtained with the basic Mintron-derived camera will give the reader inspiration and confidence to try it for themselves. This is a book that should have its place in the library of every amateur astronomer who has an interest in real-time viewing and imaging with video." (Steve Wainwright, Astronomy Now, November, 2009)
"The enthusiasm and competence of the authors is obvious on every page and as an 'how to do it' book it is exemplary. ? the authors deal exclusively with the use of CCTV and video cameras to obtain images of deep-sky objects. ? Their selection of both monochrome and colour examples of images ? shows with aplomb just what can be obtained, and the images compare favourably with those obtained with conventional CCD cameras with cooling and long integration times. ? thoroughly recommend this book." (E. Norman Walker, The Observatory, Vol. 129 (1213), December, 2009)
"The main tenet of this book is that it is possible to produce outstanding images of deep sky objects using CCD video cameras. ? The authors cram in a huge amount of technical detail covering every aspect of imaging with these cameras. The book is profusely illustrated, with diagrams and images on most pages. The book is written in a free-flowing narrative style ? . recommended for those interested in starting video imaging, and experienced imagers should find much of interest in the detail." (Andrew Elliott, Journal of the British Astronomical Association, Vol. 120 (1), 2010)
