ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY WITH THE WEBCAMS Last updated: 27 June 2004

This page documents Quickcam (and similar video/web cameras) comments, tips, and photos. Also, see the Quickcam references on the Astrophotography - Basics page. Search the site for other items about webcams. Contributions welcome.

Subject:	Moon Pic
Sent:	Saturday, June 26, 2004 14:57:33
From:	leutloffa@juno.com (leutloffa@juno.com)
had a full night of observation with my ETX 125 the other
night...tracked the moon well for about 5 hrs.  Here is one of my better
pics, this one shot with a Phillips Toucam, 1/50 sec exp, 0% gain, 40%
brightness and 10% gamma.  Stacked 60 frames in Registax...and processed
with Photoshop Elements.  Alan

And:

here is a great shot taken last night of Copernicus and Eratosthenes
taken with ETX 125, toucam pro 50 frames stacked in registak and using
auto exposure.  Nice clear evening.  Alan

Subject:	ToUcam
Sent:	Friday, June 25, 2004 23:03:46
From:	Luis Villa (ETX_125EC_from_arizona@msn.com)
Just bought a ToUcam and was wondering if you knew of a site that is
dedicated to the ToUcam used for Astrophotography? I have searched the
web and have not had much luck.

I took some quick videos of Jupiter and the Moon as my first attempts...
not too awful bad, but I would like to learn as much as I can before I
really try it again.  Jupiter was a real wash out, too many heat waves
coming off my roof.... I would have to wait until much later for the
heat waves to subside, but by then Jupiter is gone.  I guess I will have
to wait for winter and very early spring for Jupiter....
 
Luis

Subject:	Jupiter
Sent:	Saturday, June 19, 2004 04:03:59
From:	caffarena (caffarena@fastwebnet.it)
ETX 90ECwith Barlow 2x, Toucam pro, 02/04/2004 19.30TU from Genoa
(Italy).
Zino Caffarena

Subject:	Astrophotography question 
Sent:	Thursday, June 17, 2004 05:25:51
From:	Gary Culpan (gary_culpan@yahoo.co.uk)
Is it possible to connect a USB webcam to a PDA Pocket PC device.
Obviously there is a software, cabling and driver issue to contend with
but I was wondering if anyone has ever managed to do this.

Is there any webcam software out there or any webcam devices for the PDA?

I have an iPAQ H1930 which is a superb bit of kit and very useful with
the Pocket Sky software installed.

Many thanks,
Gary Culpan
Manchester, UK

Subject:	Planetary pics 
Sent:	Tuesday, May 4, 2004 13:50:22
From:	"Catherine Lehoux" (cathy.lehoux@free.fr)
Thank you for the great job you're doing with this website, I think I've
made very important progress since I discoverd it.

I just want to send you some pictures taken with a webcam by a beginer
in astrophtotography (myself - saturn is my third picture and Jupiter my
fith) just to show that a webcam can be,too, a very simple and easy to
use tool, quite as easy as LPI. I am amazed whenI see pictures taken ten
years ago with a one meter refractor and and the one we're are making
now with these tiny cameras.

Both pictures have been taken near Besanon in France, with a TouCam
Proand an ETX125 (Meade x2 short barlow) - bad sky conditions.

Saturn : march 11th 20h TU - 120 best pictures /480 taken with Astrosnap
and process with Iris (unsharp masking 1.7 - 2.3 1 on each layer RGB +
unsharp masking 1.3 - 2.0 on the trichro pic). 





Jupiter : April 21st 21h55 TU - 350 best pictures/609 taken with
Astrosnap and process with Iris (unsharp masking 1.3 - 4 - 1 on each
layer RGB).





Feel free to show them in your guest gallery if you thing thy're worth
while.

Thanks again,

Didier Lehoux in Besanon - France.

Subject:	The Moon
Sent:	Sunday, May 2, 2004 18:49:36
From:	leutloffa@juno.com
Hi Mike...here is my latest lunar pic taken with my ETX 125 and Phillips
Toucam Pro at 1/250 sec exp, 10f/sec for 15 sec...frames stacked in
Registax.  Nice shot of Plato.  Alan

Subject:	More pictures using my new ETX105
Sent:	Saturday, April 10, 2004 02:59:18
From:	BurrDMB@aol.com
What an investment - if anyone thinks that the ETX range is not value
for money - then they should think again. Took these pictures Good
Friday with viewing conditions being fair to good. Took over 1700 frames
of both planets using the Philips Toucam Pro and used good old
'Registax' to tidy up the final result. This being only my second
attempt - I have to say that I'm delighted with the telescopes &
Webcam's performance.

Kind regards from Wimborne in the UK

 David Burr

Subject: First astro photo!
Date: 4/9/04, 08:06
From: "dean.mansell" (dean.mansell@ntlworld.com)
Attached is my first attempt at astrophotography with my new ETX 125EC.
Your site inspired me to give it a go and after some research on the
web, I discovered how to convert my Quickcam express to let me
experiment. It was the first proper clear night here in the UK since I
got my new toy and already can see why lots of people rave about these
scopes. I homed in on Jupiter and took a 10 second avi at 1/25, then
used registax to produce the image. I was over the moon (parden the pun)
with the picture and although this camera is not recommended for
astrophotography, its got me thinking what I could do with a decent
barlow lense and maybe a Phillips Toucam Pro.
 
Keep up the good work, great site.
 
Dean Mansell.
 
Derbyshire
England

Subject: A Venus image for you planet astrophotography gallery
Date: 4/6/04, 04:57
From: Kacper Wierzchos (k2_71828@yahoo.es)
Find atached image of Venus.
Etx-90, 214 frames, Philips webcam TouCam pro.
Kacper

Subject: A lot of planetary pictures :)
Date: 4/5/04, 05:00
From: nicolas.champaud@bnf.fr
All the following pictures were acquired with MEADE ETX-125EC with 2x
Apo Barlow Lense and PHILIPS ToUCam pro and stacked with Registrax.

Jupiter's pic were acquired during the 24th and 25th of march (1/33s,
10fps) (a carefull look at the 2 first pictures shoukd allow you to see
the motion of some minor storms since the difference is more than half
an hour).

During the 29 march's night i turned my scope toward the Moon (i don't
the location's name, 1/33s, 10fps, blck&w) and Venus (1/50s, 10fps).

Subject: toucam pro 2
Date: 4/4/04, 16:12
From: Stuart Kendall & Melanie Duggan (spu_mel@hotmail.com)
Thanks for your website.

The specifications for the toucam pro 2 state that it has a CMOS optical
sensor. Is this a problem for astrophotography? and do the earlier
phillips webcams have CCD sensors?

Many thanks,

S. Kendall

Return to the top of this page.

Go to the January-March 2004 Webcam Astrophotography Page.

Go back to the Astrophotography Page.

Go back to my ETX Home Page.