10/04/2011
Monroe, GA
#9798 Orion StarBlast 4.5 EQ Equatorial Newtonian Reflector Diameter 114, F.L. 450mm, f/4.0
Orion EQ-1 Equatorial (Included with telescope package)
Polaroid i1036 digital camera
Resized (reduced) from 3468x2736 to 800x600, sharpened (level 1) and removed date/time stamp using Ulead Photo Express 3.0SE.
1 second
Orion 15mm Expanse Wide Field 66 degree eyepiece (Included with telescpoe package) 30X, #5338 Orion SteadyPix Deluxe Camera Mount
This photo was taken near the end of my first session attempting afocal astophotography beginning around 10:30PM on the 3rd and ending around 3:00AM on the 4th. I did extensive testing with settings on the polaroid i1036 before I found the magic combination that gave me this photo. I was amazed that a 1 sec exposure actually picked up not only some of M42s nebulosity but actually color as well. I did literally no processing with the exception of reducing and sharpening image.