The Problem With Astrophotography

I will be in touch!

[mikehardy]

Half the fun for me, is tinkering with my gear. Remote wouldn't be as much fun.

[StarPicturesMiami]

Since I got my Seestar smart telescope in Feb, I have been outside a lot more than when I only had my Celestron 8se. From my back yard the Seestar captures some pretty decent images. I'm in Miami and I can drive one hour west on Tamiami Trail to Big Cypress Preserve or Kirby Stocker parks. Bortle 3 at these places.

[wattswheelhouse]

What a project! Kudos to you for taking this on. I'll add, many local astronomy clubs have observatories or land for members to set up on whenever they want. Not typically a permanent mount, but it's worth looking into for folks who want to observe on the cheap.

[dgasparotto]

I ventured intro the whole remote Astrophotography venture years ago. To my surprise I discovered a limited market after folks tried this exciting new option. It appears that the experience of doing “it” yourself is far more rewarding that dialing a remote station under dark skies. After the novelty wears off people just abandon it. Also you need deep pockets because it is expensive to say the least. If you do this for yourself and not as a shared ventures or business venture then it’s different. This was proven again by a hosting firm which sold time on remote telescopes in dark skies. Might cover costs but after two years it folded. One has the understand why amateurs delve into this hobby and what and how the psychological benefit it. Good luck.

[davidswan]

As a UK astrophotographer it would be impractical for me to sign up to your project but I wish you all the best with it. Although I have tolerably dark skies (SQI 21.66 nominal) I am clouded out for most of the time, and being retired cannot afford the expenses of remote hosting (Spain is popular here). The most I can do (And which I have done) is build an automated back garden RoR obsy so it's ready ro go should an unlikely clear night present itself.

[AmatureAstronomer]

"Problem With Astrophotography?" I live under Bortle 6 sky. I own a house but have no fence. I have trees on all side at about 35 degrees, except the North, which is clear and 1.5 miles from an oil refinery. I do not have an automobile.

So, what I try is to use a fast Bresser 102mm f/3.6 refractor or a very fast 6" S.C.T. with Hyperstar f/2.0 and do E.A.A. with Sharp Cap pro. I have maybe 3 hours of time, depending on target. I do not do post processing. Too lazy. I have had fair results.

The break downs, hardware and software issues, extreme temperatures and loss of sleep is the process for me. The hobby.

Remote photography kinda reminds me of one of those newish telescopes that automatically takes the photos. Most of the fun lost.

I do wish you well in your efforts. Quite noble.

[JoshChristiane]

Brady is the PERFECT location for this project, wise decision. I just moved away from that area last year and the skies were fantastic. No to mention land is dirt cheap out there, so you'll have clear skies and low operational costs. Internet out there was super good, never had an issue... In fact it was the best internet access I ever had.

[paulmurphy]

Great idea - I wonder if you and Dylan O'Donnell could arrange a Northern and Southern Hemisphere version of it. Maybe even have one pier as a trade for your customers who want some shots from Australia and vice-versa.

[capturethephotons]

You are the definition of dedicated when it comes to discovering new astronomical objects and photographing the universe. Enjoy the journey and path you have taken.
Clear skies.

[sstanzel]

I love the spirit here. As an observer of this concept with out any real remote observing experience, what about going a step further to really change the business model and reduce the costs? Conceptually what has to be the biggest multiplier would be the low capacity utilization of astrophotography gear. With gear hosted in a remote observatory system like you are proposing you could change that. You could create a 'market' for unused 'nights' letting customers that have a 'pier' set the prices. Maybe you would find many people would actually give their system time away for free when they are not using it? Or you could be the 'market maker' and take unused nights and set a rental price for a 'borrowed night' to sell to people consider remote observing with you. Maybe you could provide free hosting to anyone that 'opens up' their system for you to 'rent by the night'? Say you get to use it 25-50% of the days in a month and not pay a hosting fee if it's available on the 'rental market'? I expect there are many 'systems' to setup to enable 'guests' onto your system but that can be solved, including automatically returning everything to a preset, software and hardware, before the owner returns. Unused capacity could also be directed in mass to one observation and then made available as a very large total time integration. Maybe that's just a feature for the owners? Maybe it's donated to science? Again, I just encountered this idea from your video thanks to the power of YouTube suggestions based on my recent astrophotography interest so I don't know how much of this is already happening. Thanks for expanding the horizons.

[waynewheaton]

I just saw Nebula Photos video about this. I like the idea of getting the cost down. I'd consider doing this with a group of four to six people.

[deep_space_dave]

Hey Bray, it's great you guys are doing this. I grew up in Chicago and I never even seen that many stars until I moved away as an adult. Yes I own a house now but Chicago is still north of me so I am still affected by the city's skyglow which is insane. I actually decided to sell all my heavy astro equipment as I have a spine disease which is making it more difficult to setup every night and invest in fixing up my van so I can drive an hour south of me to Bortle 4 skies so image with a more portable rig. If you look at my Astrobin, you will see my struggles with light pollution and some of my best pictures could only be taken at a darker location. It's nice capturing your own images but sometimes the expense and effort only to get washed out images is just not worth it. It's a shame that Astrobin only awards people who live in darker skies and more expensive equipment. I agree with you this is a hobby for the rich but I hope your goal makes this hobby more accessible to people like me who was a kid who grew up poor in a light polluted city that never saw the stars. Clear Skies!

[ltpypuu]

I'm UK based and am not that far from Bortle 3 or even 2 skies, my backyard is Bortle 5 so even that is not too bad. The biggest problem is the weather. In a good year, I'm looking at fifty clear nights and of course many of those will be affected by moonlight or fall in the summer when we only have an hour or two of true darkness. My most used scope is my ASIair controlled Red Cat 51 semi permanently set up on a star adventurer GTi mount with an ASI585C cooled OSC camera. I have just bought a Cellestron power tank which is secured to the set up so I don't have run mains electricity cables to power everything. I have this by the patio doors so I can take it outside and be imagining within minutes whenever the skies clear for an hour or two. It will be extremely unlikely that I will ever buy a larger telescope than my 115mm f7 refractor as I would hardly ever use it, I have only used the 115 five times since I bought it five months ago and on two occasions I had to pack it away after a couple of hours. Even imaging from my backyard these days is becoming a grab and go exercise. If I lived in the States I would be very interested in your offer. You should be applauded for your practical and affordable solution to the problems faced by so many in our hobby. I wish you all the very best in this enterprise.

[deltacx]

The problem i find is actually still the budget issue, ok scopes are easy enough to afford but the mounts are absolutely insanely priced because only a couple companies make them and nobody really completes to bring the price down, every time I hear a YouTuber getting excited it's about a mount that costs more than a used car.

[johndaley]

As with all sports or hobbies, what makes you happy that's what you do. How much time and money spent is up to the individual. Some are not happy unless they spend thousands getting the latest trinket or like you feel the need to find the darkest skies possible. First, I'm an old guy. Started my journey last fall getting educated. A few hundred youtube hours later. By xmas, I made my HW list and was ready to buy($11K). I then found the Seestar. Thought, why not. From Jan, I've captured over 150 galaxies and nebula right from my deck(bortle 4). I read and learn about each one I get. Although small, I even got Jupiter and its 4 moons. I'm having so much fun with this scope. The key word, FUN. Bottom line, do what makes you happy.

[astrotechnique]

Keep up the good work. I hope I get to do this in India in the coming 2-5 years. That's the plan.

[grigoryvidishev]

Hi Bray, may I ask another question. Would you allow in your observatory bigger mounts like PlaneWave L-350. Of course, I would be willing more as required.

[austinkaiser]

Love the idea Bray! I literally sent a message to you on your website right before this posted. Can’t wait to hear more!

[nicklaplaca]

Great idea - I really hope this concept is successful and takes off!!

[Astronomy]

I just signed up, amazing idea and not only would like a pier but would be interested in investing in the idea for expansion of a third building or to other sites accessible for other parts of the country / world. Sure I would love to have one of those large plane waves that fill the other remote observatories but honestly being part of a team to make this accessible to more people seems like a better investment.