Meade ® Deep Sky Imager: The Basics
Parts Listing When first opening the packing box, note carefully the following parts: • • • • • • • Deep Sky Imager camera Parfocal ring USB cable DB-9 to RJ-11 adapter LX200 serial cable Autostar #497 serial cable CD ROM, including the Operating Instruction in .pdf format Recommended Minimum System: PC running Windows 98SE with 96 MB and 100 MB free disk space. To get the best view and resolution for the images in this manual, zoom in to 200% using the viewing controls in the Acrobat Reader control bar.
Install the Autostar Suite Software The following procedure is also found on the printed Quick Start Guide supplied with this product. Before you can operate the Deep Sky Imager camera, you must install the Autostar Suite software. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. Do not plug the USB cable into your PC at this time. You will be asked to do so later in this installation. Turn on your PC. Allow Windows to load. Place the CD ROM into your PC's CD drive. The Main Menu screen displays.
Connect The Deep Sky Imager Camera to Your PC To connect the Deep Sky Imager Camera to your PC, you need to install the Deep Sky Imager device driver and connect the USB cable: Connect one end of the USB Cable to the Deep Sky Imager camera. Connect the other end of the USB Cable to your PC or to a USB hub. “Found camera” displays at the bottom right of your PC screen. The “Hardware Wizard” window displays. The “Install Software” selection is checked as the default choice. Click “Next.
Start the Suite Software If the Autostar Suite icon doesn’t appear on your desktop, you can start the Autostar Suite program by going to Start/Program/Meade/Autostar Suite. The Planetarium program will display. You can open other programs of the Suite by going to the Image menu and selecting the desired program. You can open the Operating Instruction manuals or the Meade General Catalog by selecting them from the Main Menu screen of the CD ROM.
Connect the Deep Sky Imager Camera to Your Telescope To connect the Deep Sky Imager camera to an ETX Telescope: • While looking at the back of the telescope, orient the Deep Sky Imager camera into the eyepiece holder so that the USB cable points to the left of the telescope’s optical tube (see photo at right). • If you are using the ETX in a “straight-through” configuration, orient the Deep Sky Imager camera in the holder so that the USB cable points downward.
Open the Deep Sky Imager Program To open the Deep Sky Imager Imaging program, go to the Image menu of the Planetarium program and select Deep Sky Imager Imaging. The Deep Sky Imager program will display.
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Key to Deep Sky Imager Controls 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21.
Start Taking Pictures1 Once you have connected your camera to the computer and opened the Deep Sky Imager program, you’ll want to start taking pictures. Follow the steps below to start taking simple pictures with your Deep Sky Imager camera. We recommend that the first time you take pictures, you do so during daylight hours.
Start Taking Pictures2 more... 6. An image should be already displayed on the screen (39). Use the focuser on your telescope to focus the object. Notice that in the Magic Eye Focus field (22), that two triangles are displayed and change their size. The Magic Eye Focus will help you focus your image; see “Magic Eye Focus,” page 25, for more information. If you are having a lot of problems focusing your image, see “The Parfocal Ring,” pages 17-18. 7. Click “Start (14).
What Happens When You Press Start1 • The live image is displayed on the program’s display screen if the Live box is checked and the Live tab is selected (these are the default settings). • When you press Start, the Deep Sky Imager camera begins taking images and continues to take images until you press stop. The Deep Sky Imager program uses the first 10 images it takes as a baseline to compare with the images it takes subsequently. In other words, the program is always comparing images.
What Happens When You Press Start2 • The Deep Sky Imager program is continually resaving the composite image. If the Save Every Composite Image box is checked, in the Save Option dialog the program will save every image that added to the composite image (see page 22 for more information). If your PC crashes or loses power, the images that have been taken up to the time of the crash or power loss will automatically be saved—the user does not need to save them manually.
How to take a picture of a terrestrial object, the Moon or a planet 1. Insert camera into the telescope as previously described. 2. Click on the Live tab (XX). 3. Click Auto Exp (3). The program will find a good exposure automatically. Set the color balance according to your taste using the Contrast (21) and Color Balance (8) controls. 4. Use Shadow enhance if necessary. This control is excellent for the moons of Jupiter, craters of the Moon, some deep sky objects such as nebulae. 5.
An example of taking a picture of a deep sky object 1. Insert camera into the telescope as previously described. 2. Click on the Live tab (17). 3. Set the Live Exp spin button to 1.0 second. 4. Click Mono box. You should see bright stars on the Live screen. 5. Before taking the first shot of the evening, leave the camera sit for 5 to 10 minutes until the temperature of the camera can stabilize. 6. In the Image Process dialog box, select “Take Darks.” Use the default values. 7. Click the Start button. 8.
. Adjust contrast (21) and shadow enhance (21). 17. In the Image Process menu (10), choose “Deep Sky.” Use the default values. 18. Once you have a reasonable color image, type in a name in the Object Name box (11) Tip: If your object’s name contains a number, such as M31, add a dash after the number. The program Automatically saves each image with a number and the dash will allow your image names to be displayed as M31-1, M31-2, M31-3, etc. 19. Click Start (the button is then displayed as “Stop”).
The Parfocal Ring1 It is extremely useful to have the Deep Sky Imager camera and a telescope eyepiece be parfocal—it will save you time when you need to refocus. Parfocal means setting two or more eyepieces to the same focus. (In this case, one eyepiece is a camera.) In other words, if you focus one eyepiece in your telescope, then you remove it and replace it with a parfocal eyepiece, the parfocal eyepiece will require little, if any, refocusing.
The Parfocal Ring2 1. Open the Deep Sky Imager program. 2. Insert the Deep Sky Imager camera into the telescope eyepiece holder. Do not tighten the eyepiece holder thumbscrew. Make sure the Deep Sky Imager camera slides down as far as it will go into the eyepiece holder. 3. Point the telescope at a terrestrial object that has a lot of contrast with the surrounding area and if possible, has a distinctive edge (like a building, for example). 4.
Automatic Adjustment Controls1 Gain and Offset sliders (1): Similar to a TV set’s contrast and brightness controls. These controls are automatically set after you pick an Object (10) type and click on the Auto Exp button (3). Most users will seldom, if ever, need to set these controls manually. Auto Exp. button (3): Automatically sets the Gain and Offset controls(1) for the camera. Before taking pictures, choose an Object (10) type and click on the Auto Exp button.
Automatic Adjustment Controls2 Color sliders. Experiment with these sliders to change to change the image color. Sharp provides a sharper image, but the colors are less Saturated. Soft provides more saturated colors. Daylight provides a brighter image. Note that this may also be used for deep sky images. Experiment with this setting using the Preview Control (7). Reset sets of the color sliders to midrange.
Image Processing Controls1 Setting Menu (25): Click on the Setting Tab to display the Setting fields. These are field that may be filled in by the user, if so desired. It also contains the directory paths for the Images and Dark frames directories. Combine (9): Selects a minimum quality level that is acceptable when images are added together to produce the composite image. Typically 50% is selected. You may wish to set it lower (e.g.
Image Processing Controls2 Object Name (11): Type in a name for the object. Each time the Deep Sky Imager program begins to accumulate a new composite image, it renumbers the image in a new tab, using your original name. For example, if you named the first image “Building,” the next images will be named “Building 2,” then “Building 3” and so forth, so that it doesn’t overwrite the previously saved images.
Image Processing Controls3 Image Acquire Status bars (15): Display while the Deep Sky Imager camera is taking pictures. Also a box displays the images format (e.g., jpeg), type of operation, time-lapse sequence or other pertinent information.. Image Directory field and Browse button: Click on the Settings menu (25) to display a dialog box. In this box, click on the Browse button to locate a directory or type in a directory path in the field. Or you may just type in the directory name in the field.
File Settings Tab File Open menu (25): Allows you to open a file you have previously created. Click on this button and your directory list displays. Choose the desired file and it opens as a tab above the Image Display window. See diagram below. Close button Scroll Arrows Notice that there are scroll arrows (37, see diagram above) at the end of the tab row. Click on these arrows to display more composite image file tabs. You can also close a Close (38): Allows you to close a composite image file tab.
Magic Eye Focus The Magic Eye Focus (22) displays a graphic representation of the focus as you adjust your telescope’s focuser. The orange triangles “grow” together to indicate better focus. The red lines indicate maximum focus levels. Avg (Average) check box: Check to average the last 5 focus values to smooth out noisy images. Note, however, that this makes the focus response more sluggish. Reset button: Resets the red maximum indicators.
Connecting your Telescope and Telescope Controls To connect to your telescope, see the printed instruction sheet that was including with Autostar Suite. Once the telescope is connected, you may use the following controls (28): Use the Arrow keys to move the telescope. Click on an Arrow to move in that direction at Guide Speed. Hold and drag on an Arrow in the direction you wish to move to increase the speed. Hold and drag an arrow in the opposite direction to decrease speed. Release to stop.
Time-Lapse Settings Envisage software allows you to take time-lapse images of an object of an object. This means you can set the software to take an image, wait and then take another image after a period of time goes by, and continue the process for however long you desire. This is ideal for taking images of clouds moving through the sky or creating an animation that shows the rotation of Jupiter (see “Making a Movie of the Rotation of Jupiter,” page 36, for more a procedure on that topic.
Deep Sky Imager Camera Program Advanced Concepts 28
Tracking Boxes and Centroids Drawing a tracking box allows you to track (that is, to follow) a bright spot that is surrounded by a dark area. This is very much like your telescope’s tracking feature. A centroid is the spot where the crosshairs meet. You can use the centroids to help you center an object in a box. The centroid is used for shifting an image before it is combined in a composite image, and also is used for autoguiding.
Histogram Display and Controls The Histogram controls allow you more control of the brightness, contrast and mid-range tones of your Deep Sky Imager camera. Experiment with these controls. Select an easily focused terrestrial image and adjust the Histogram sliders. You will notice the Live image growing brighter or darker, and even notice mid-tones becoming more visible.
Autoguider and Telescope Controls 1 For users familiar with the product, the Deep Sky Imager camera functions in a manner similar to the Meade Pictor 201XT CCD Autoguider. An autoguider helps keep an object centered so that a 35mm camera can take long exposures of an image. Note that you do not have to set the Deep Sky Imager camera for a long exposure using Exposure controls (2).
Autoguider and Telescope Controls2 6. In the “FL IN MM” field (focal length in millimeters), type in the focal length, in millimeters, of your telescope. 7. Locate a star using your telescope’s alignment and Go To procedures. Focus and prepare the imager as described earlier in this manual. You may now using the Arrow keys (28) to center the object you have chosen. Click on an Arrow to move in that direction at Guide Speed. Hold and drag on an Arrow in the direction you wish to move to increase the speed.
Autoguider and Telescope Controls3 Other Features Center Target: Click Center Target to move the yellow circle to the center of the screen. The telescope models will follow (some telescopes will move more slowly than others). Set Target: Click Set Target and click on a position on the screen. The target will move to the this position. Corr (Correction) Gain: Sets how aggressive the correction operates. Default setting is 0.5. .01 is the lowest and 1.0 is the highest setting.
Dark Frames1 Dark Frames is a useful feature for if you’re taking exposures longer than 1 second. Longer exposures and temperature can create noise in your Deep Sky Imager camera called dark current artifacts. The Dark Frames feature allows you to subtract out some of this noise from your pictures. Delete Existing Dark Frames. Deletes and overwrites previously imaged dark frames. This is box is left unchecked as a default. Total Time.
Dark Frames2 3. Select a value for the Avg Exp box. This is the number of exposures that are averaged together to create each composite Dark Frame exposure. Typically, set this value to 10. 4. Click on the Setting menu (25). The Dark Frames directory field displays. The Dark Frames will be saved to this directory. You may change the directory if you wish. 5. Click the Start button (14). A message displays that tells you to cover up your telescope or Deep Sky Imager camera.
Make a Movie of the Rotation of Jupiter You should become familiar with autoguiding/auto tracking and calibration procedures as described in “Autoguider and Telescope Controls,” page 31. 1. Click on the Save Process button to open the dialog box. 2. Set the file type. Choose “jpeg” if just wish to create a movie, or select “tif” if you wish to process the frames in another image editing software program, such as Photoshop. 3. In the Save Option, select “Save as a Time-Lapse Sequence.” 4.
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