Dean's Astrophotography Page and Messier Log.

Recent Photos

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Horsehead Nebula

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The Tadpoles

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The Bubble Nebula

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The Soul Nebula

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Eagle Nebula

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The Crescent Nebula

Introduction

Background. This is a log of photos starting from late 2020. But I started really keeping records and acquiring reasonable photographs in 2021. The initial goal was to compile a complete visual record of the 110 Messier objects. The Messier objects are an important benchmark for visual astronomers, but less so for astrophotographers as many of the most important photography objects are not included, and many of the included objects are not highly photogenic. But given that I'm never going to do a (one night) visual Messier marathon, I decided it would be nice to complete my own Messier photographic marathon. I'm a competitive type, so I always liked the urgency of the single-night Messier Marathon. So I propose that a Messier Photographic Marathon (MPM) should also have a time limit, and I set 1 year as the goal (it has to be long enough for each object to be visible in the night sky, and 1 year gives you no second chances -- you have to get it before it disappears til next year). For me, my MPM began 1/17/21 and ended 10/12/21. You will find many more recent photos, though, because I continue to replace them with better pictures when I can.

But I have also imaged other deep sky objects, comets, and a few planets, so they appear after the Messier pictures (and yes, those are some of the best pictures so be sure to scroll to the end).

Deeper Background. Charles Messier was a French comet hunter of the mid to late 1700s, who, tired of being confused by all the things in the sky that looked like comets but were not, compiled a list of 110 bright, fuzzy objects and their exact locations. He then published that list for the benefit of other comet hunters. This list has endured long past the age of comet hunters, as the primary list of the most accessible "not just a star" objects in the sky (at least for Northern Hemisphere observers who see the same part of the sky). It is primarily made up of nebula, galaxies, and star clusters.

Other Things to Know. The equipment for each picture varies, but most commonly, my photos are taken with an unmodified Canon T6i (earlier pictures) or a ZWO ASI-071 MC Pro (later), through a Skywatcher 80ED apochromatic refractor telescope, with .85X focal reducer, on a Celestron AVX Mount (early pictures) or an iOptron GEM45 mount (later). Some of the smaller objects are imaged with a Celestron C8 or EdgeHD 8. The actual equipment used is listed with each picture, and the legend for the equipment notes appears at the bottom of the page.

Photos in this table are all thumbnails. Please click on the thumbnail to see the actual photo! The "Pic Notes" below, when included, always refer to the full picture, and may not be relevant to the thumbnail (which in many cases is cropped differently).

After the pictures, you'll find the aforementioned legend, some thoughts on equipment and especially software, and a bit of a retrospective on the process of completing my Photographic Messier Marathon.

Messier Objects

Messier Object M1: "Crab Nebula"

Photographed: 1/23/22 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 234x2min exposures
Equipment:G45,C8,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M2 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 9/6/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 25x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M3 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 7/9/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 21x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M4 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed 8/3/21 Carlsbad, CA:
Photo Details:41x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: Bright Star Alniyat to the right, with some nebulosity behind it. A bit of Antares Nebula at top.

Messier Object M5 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 7/28/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 22x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M6: "Butterfly Cluster"

Photographed: 9/6/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 39x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: Lots of nearby nebulosity and a background of milky way starfield.

Messier Object M7: "Ptolemy Cluster"

Photographed: 8/28/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 28x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: Neighbor of M6, so see same notes.

Messier Object M8: "Lagoon Nebula"

Photographed: 8/24/24 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 51x4 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,OX

Messier Object M9 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 9/7/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 46x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: To the right and below, a bit of dark nebulosity obscures part of a rich background starfield.

Messier Object M10 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed:8/31/22 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 31x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M11: "Wild Duck Cluster"

Photographed: 7/9/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 11x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: A bit of Scutum Star Cloud lower right.

Messier Object M12: "Gumball Cluster"

Photographed: 8/28/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 33x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M13: "Hercules Globular Cluster"

Photographed: 7/30/22 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 30x2min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: Small galaxy NGC 6207 visible

Messier Object M14 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 9/5/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 26x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M15: "Great Pegasus Cluster"

Photographed: 8/25/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 38x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M16: "Eagle Nebula"

Photographed: 8/28/25 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 124x5 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,R62,T26,THa,TO3
Pic Notes: Look for the "Pillars of Creation" inside the nebula, made famous by Hubble Telescope.

Messier Object M17: "Omega Nebula"

Photographed: 8/2/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 47x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M18 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: see M17
Pic Notes: Small cluster to right of middle.
Parts of M17 (lower left) and M24 (right).

Messier Object M19 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 8/25/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 28x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M20: "Trifid Nebula"

Photographed: 8/30/22 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 62x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: Pictured with M21 and a bit of M8.

Messier Object M21 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 7/13/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: See M20
Pic Notes: Pictured with M20 and a bit of M8.

Messier Object M22: "Sagittarius Cluster"

Photographed: 7/13/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 26x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M23 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 8/26/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 29x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M24: "Sagittarius Star Cloud"

Photographed: 8/1/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 46x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: Maybe a bit more than half of M24. M18 in upper right corner, IC 1284 lower left.

Messier Object M25 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 9/6/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 34x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M26 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 9/10/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 28x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M27: "Dumbbell Nebula"

Photographed: 8/31/22 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 44x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M28 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 8/14/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 16x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M29 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 8/25/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 34x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: Some surrounding nebulosity in Cygnus region.

Messier Object M30 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 9/11/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 36x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M31: "Andromeda Galaxy"

Photographed:10/9 and 11/24/2022 Carlsbad and Joshua Tree, CA
Photo Details: 92x4 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,UIR,Z71
Pic Notes: M31 is the big one, with M110 to the above left and M32 right of center within M31.

Messier Object M32: "Le Gentil Galaxy"

Photographed: see M31
Pic Notes: M32 is the hardest to see, a round galaxy
to the right of center, but within the boundary (visually) of M31.

Messier Object M33: "Triangulum Galaxy"

Photographed: 11/26/2021 Joshua Tree, CA
Photo Details: 53x4 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M34 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 10/12/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 22x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M35 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 2/17/2021 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 25x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i
Pic Notes: NGC 2158 also appears, lower middle.

Messier Object M36: "Pinwheel Cluster"

Photographed: 2/25/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details:24x2min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i

Messier Object M37 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 3/4/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 25x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i,CLS

Messier Object M38 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 3/4/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 25x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i,CLS

Messier Object M39 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 9/21/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 23x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M40 (Double Star)

Photographed: 6/12/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 15x2min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UIR
Pic Notes: yes, M40 is just 2 stars, but there's a galaxy or two hiding in here.

Messier Object M41 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 3/12/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 17x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i,CLS

Messier Object M42: "Orion Nebula"

Photographed: 1/5/24 Agua Caliente, CA
Photo Details: 41x4min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,OX
Pic Notes: M42 top center, M43 low center "comma", Running Man Nebula lower left.

Messier Object M43: "De Mairan's Nebula"

Photographed: see M42
Pic Notes: M42 top center, M43 low center "comma", Running Man Nebula lower left.

Messier Object M44: "Beehive Cluster"

Photographed: 2/18/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 25 x 2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i

Messier Object M45: "Pleiades"

Photographed: 1/6/22 Anza Borrego SP, CA
Photo Details: 53x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,UIR

Messier Object M46 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 3/8/2022 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 61 x 2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: M46 lower right, M47 upper left, Planetary Nebula NGC2437 inside M46.

Messier Object M47 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: see M46
Pic Notes: M47 lower right, M46 upper
left, Planetary Nebula NGC2437 inside M46.

Messier Object M48 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 2/19/2021 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 25 x 2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i

Messier Object M49 (Elliptical Galaxy)

Photographed: 7/7/2021 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 13x2min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: M49 just left of middle. Lots of galaxies here, incl NGC4526 (far right) and NGC4535 (lower right).

Messier Object M50 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 2/23/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 23x2min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i

Messier Object M51: "Whirlpool Galaxy"

Photographed: 5/31/22 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 24x2min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: Technically, M51 is the larger galaxy. The smaller galaxy being swallowed is NGC5195.

Messier Object M52 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 9/10/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 83x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: So much going on here. M52 lower right, Bubble Nebula above it to left, Northern Lagoon nebula to left of that. Several prominent stars, as well. See better pic of Bubble Nebula below.

Messier Object M53 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 8/1/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 27x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M54 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 9/5/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 24x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M55 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 9/7/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 29x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M56 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 8/23/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 21x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M57: "Ring Nebula"

Photographed: 9/19/22 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 38x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M58 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: 7/11/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: see M89
Pic Notes: M89 center, M90 bottom, M58 top right, M87 top left. And smaller galaxies everywhere.

Messier Object M59 (Elliptical Galaxy)

Photographed: 7/28/2021 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 34x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: M60 a bit above center, NGC4647 right next to it. M59 below and to right. Lots of smaller galaxies, too.

Messier Object M60 (Elliptical Galaxy)

Photographed: 7/28/2021 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: see M59
Pic Notes: M60 a bit above center, NGC4647 right next to it. M59 below and to right. Lots of smaller galaxies, too.

Messier Object M61 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: 6/14/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 68x2min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UIR

Messier Object M62 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 8/4/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 40x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M63: "Sunflower Galaxy"

Photographed: 6/27/22 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 64x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M64: "Blackeye Galaxy"

Photographed: 7/31/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 30x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M65: (Leo Triplet)

Photographed: 4/21/23 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: see M66
Pic Notes: M65 at top, M66 to the right,
and NGC3628 (Hamburger Galaxy) left.

Messier Object M66: (Leo Triplet)

Photographed: 4/21/23 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 55x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,Z71,R62,UHC
Pic Notes: M65 at top, M66 to the right, and NGC3628 (Hamburger Galaxy) left.

Messier Object M67 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 2/19/2021 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 25 x 2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i

Messier Object M68 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 7/13/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 10x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M69 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 9/11/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 32x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: M69 far right, M70 far left.

Messier Object M70 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: see M69
Pic Notes: M69 far right, M70 far left.

Messier Object M71 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed:7/8/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 19x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M72 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 9/7/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 32x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: M72 lower right, M73 (4 stars) middle left.

Messier Object M73 (4-star Asterism)

Photographed: see M72
Pic Notes: M72 lower right, M73 (4 stars)
middle left.

Messier Object M74 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: 10/26/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 50x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,C8,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M75 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 8/24/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 38x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M76: "Little Dumbbell Nebula"

Photographed: 10/16/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 30?x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,C8,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M77 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: 10/27/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 38x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,C8,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M78 (Nebula)

Photographed: 1/29/22 Tierra Del Sol, CA
Photo Details: 15x4min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,UIR
Pic Notes: Nebula above, right is NGC 2071

Messier Object M79 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 3/16/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 25x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i,CLS

Messier Object M80 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 8/1/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 32x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M81: "Bode's Galaxy"

Photographed: 4/28/2025 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 97x5 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,R62,T26,ScR,ScG,ScB,THa

Messier Object M82: "Cigar Galaxy"

Photographed: see M81
Pic Notes: M81 right, M82 left.

Messier Object M83: "Southern Pinwheel Galaxy"

Photographed: 7/14/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 26x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M84 (Markarian's Chain) (Elliptical Galaxy)

Photographed: see M86
Pic Notes: M86 center, then clockwise from upper
right: M84, NGC 4388, NGC 4413, NGC 4425,
NGC 4438 and 4435 (The Eyes), and
NGC 4402.

Messier Object M85 (Elliptical Galaxy)

Photographed: 6/12/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 34x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UIR
Pic Notes: NGC4394 just above M85.

Messier Object M86 (Markarian's Chain) (Elliptical Galaxy)

Photographed: 3/6/2021 Twentynine Palms, CA
Photo Details: 25x4min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i,CLS
Pic Notes: M86 center, then clockwise from upper right: M84, NGC 4388, NGC 4413, NGC 4425, NGC 4438 and 4435 (The Eyes), and NGC 4402.

Messier Object M87: "Virgo A Galaxy"

Photographed: see M86
Pic Notes: M87 on right, Markarian's Chain (see M84)
to left.

Messier Object M88 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: 6/26/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 33x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UIR
Pic Notes: M88 left, M91 lower right.

Messier Object M89 (Elliptical Galaxy)

Photographed: 7/11/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 32x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: M89 center, M90 bottom, M58 top right, M87 top left. And smaller galaxies everywhere.

Messier Object M90 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: 7/11/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: see M89
Pic Notes: M89 center, M90 bottom,
M58 top right, M87 top left. And smaller galaxies everywhere.

Messier Object M91 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed:7/8/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details:32x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: M91 low center, M88 left center.

Messier Object M92 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 7/21/23 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 18x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,R62,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M93 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 3/16/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 13x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i,CLS

Messier Object M94 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: 8/2/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 32x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M95 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed:2/23/21 and later, Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 99x2 + 10x4 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i,CLS
Pic Notes: M96 center, M95 upper right, M105/NGC3389/NGC3384 triplet on left.

Messier Object M96 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: see M95
Pic Notes: M96 center, M95 upper right, M105/NGC3389/NGC3384 triplet on left.

Messier Object M97: "Owl Nebula"

Photographed:3/4/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 25x2min + 9x4min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i,CLS
Pic Notes: M97 upper left, M108 lower right.

Messier Object M98 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: 4/29/2021
Photo Details: 40x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i,CLS
Pic Notes: M98 long galaxy lower right, M99 spiral mid left near top. Many small galaxies and one bright star.

Messier Object M99 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: 4/29/2021
Photo Details: 40x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i,CLS
Pic Notes: M98 long galaxy lower right, M99 spiral mid left near top. Many small galaxies and one bright star.

Messier Object M100 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: 2/19,20/2021 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 50 x 2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i

Messier Object M101: "Pinwheel Galaxy"

Photographed: 6/25,26/22 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 142x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M102: "Spindle Galaxy"

Photographed: 7/31/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 37x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M103 (Open Cluster)

Photographed: 10/12/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 28x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M104: "Sombrero Galaxy"

Photographed: 3/14/22 Joshua Tree, CA
Photo Details: 31x4 min exposures
Equipment:G45,C8,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M105 (Elliptical Galaxy)

Photographed: 2/10/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 35x2min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i
Pic Notes: M105 center, NGC3384 above right, NGC3389 above left.

Messier Object M106 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: 7/25/23 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 75x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,R62,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M107 (Globular Cluster)

Photographed: 9/5/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 24x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Messier Object M108 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: see M97
Pic Notes: M97 upper left, M108 lower right.

Messier Object M109 (Spiral Galaxy)

Photographed: 6/9/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 40x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UIR

Messier Object M110 (Elliptical Galaxy)

Photographed: see M31
Pic Notes: Oval galaxy above M31, slightly left of middle.

Other Objects

Horsehead Nebula (Barnard 33) and Flame Nebula (NGC 2024)

Photographed: Feb 2026 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 146x5min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,T26,THa,TO3,TS2

Rosette Nebula (NGC 2237)

Photographed: 10/20/23 Anza Borrego SP, CA
Photo Details: 34x4min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,OX

North American Nebula (NGC 7000)

Photographed: 9/12,13/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 142x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Western Veil Nebula

Photographed: 10/21/23 Anza Borrego SP, CA
Photo Details: 105x4 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,OX

Eastern Veil Nebula

Photographed: 9/24/24 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 63x4 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,OX

Wizard Nebula

Photographed: 10/9/21 Desert Hot Springs, CA
Photo Details: 20x4 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Bubble Nebula

Photographed: Nov 2025 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 82x5 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,R62,T26,THa,TO3

Elephant's Trunk Nebula

Photographed: 11/1/24 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 53x4 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Pelican Nebula

Photographed: 10/12/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 43x2 min exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Crescent Nebula

Photographed: 8/21/25 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 82*5 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,R62,T26,THa,TO3

Helix Nebula

Photographed: Sept-Oct 2025 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 50x5 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,R62,T26,THa,TO3

Cocoon Nebula

Photographed: 10/28/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: (lost)
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Witch Head Nebula

Photographed: 1/6/22 Anza Borrego SP, CA
Photo Details: 35x4 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,UIR

Heart Nebula

Photographed: 1/5/24 Agua Caliente, CA
Photo Details: 68x4 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,OX

Soul Nebula

Photographed: Nov '25-Jan '26 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 164x5 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,T26,THa,TO3,TS2

Horsehead Nebula closeup

Photographed: 1/24/22 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 107x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,C8,Z71,UHC

Silver Sliver Galaxy

Photographed: 1/22/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 104x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Pacman Nebula

Photographed: 1/4/22 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 149x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Seagull Nebula

Photographed: 2/5/22 Tierra del Sol, CA
Photo Details: 58x4 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC

Jellyfish Nebula

Photographed: 2/1/25 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 131x5 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,T26,THa,TS2,TO3

Flaming Star Nebula

Photographed: 1/23/25 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 79x5 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,T26,THa,TS2,TO3

Whale Galaxy

Photographed: 6/28,30/22 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 61x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,Z71,UHC

Pillars of Creation

Photographed: 8/28/25 Carlsbad, CA
Pic Notes: closeup of center of Eagle Nebula (M16), from same pix as above.

(full) Veil Nebula

Photographed: 10/27-11/14/2022 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 225x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,UHC
Pic Notes: My first mosaic! Taken as four quadrants over four nights to capture a huge deep sky object.

Comet C2022E3 (head)

Photographed: 1/27/23 Tierra del Sol, CA
Photo Details: 88x1 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,Z71,UHC

Comet C2022E3 (wide shot)

Photographed: 1/31/23 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 80x2 min exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,UIR

California Nebula

Photographed: 2/20/23 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 40x4 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,Z71,OX

Monkey Head Nebula

Photographed: 2/20/23 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 41x4 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,Z71,OX

Comet C2023 A3

Photographed: 10/19/23 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 56x30 sec exposures
Equipment:G45,SW80,R85,Z71,UIR

The Tadpoles Nebula (IC 410)

Photographed: 4/19/25 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 67x5 min exposures
Equipment:G45,E8,R62,T26,THa,TS2,TO3

Sun

Photographed: Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details:

Moon

Photographed: 2/25/2021 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 100 x .0025 sec exposures
Equipment:AVX,SW80,R85,T6i

Mercury

Photographed:
Photo Details:

Venus
< class="desc">Photographed:
Photo Details:

Mars

Photographed:
Photo Details:

Jupiter

Photographed: 8/11/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 129 frames in 45 secs, ISO 3200
Equipment:AVX,6SE,2XB,Z71

Saturn

Photographed: 8/11/21 Carlsbad, CA
Photo Details: 389 frames in 3 mins, ISO 3200
Equipment:AVX,6SE,2XB,Z71

Uranus

Photographed:
Photo Details:

Neptune

Photographed:
Photo Details:

The Great Conjunction

Photographed: 12/21/2020
Photo Details: several minutes of video, stacked
Equipment:AVX,6SE,RXS

Milky Way

Photographed: 8/12/2021 Palomar Mtn, CA
Photo Details: single 2 min exposure
Equipment:AVX,T6i

Astrophotography hardware. For these pictures, I used some subset of the following. In parentheses is the shorthand I use above in the equipment list for each picture.

  • Skywatcher 80ED apochromatic refractor telescope (SW80)
  • Skywatcher .85X focal reducer (R85)
  • Celestron 6SE Schmidt-Cassegrain OTA (6SE)
  • Celestron C8 Schmidt-Cassegrain OTA (C8)
  • Celestron Edge HD 800 (E8)
  • Celestron AVX mount (AVX)
  • iOptron GEM45 mount (G45)
  • Canon EOS T6i Camera, unmodified (T6i)
  • ZWO ASI071 MC Pro Camera (Z71)
  • Canon Rebel XSi Camera (RXS)
  • Astronomik CLS filter (CLS), clip-in EOS style.
  • Baader UHC-S 2-inch filter (UHC)
  • ZWO UV/IR 2-inch filter (UIR)
  • Optolong L-eXtreme 2-inch filter (OX)
  • Lepus .62X focal reducer (R62)
  • Touptek 2600 monochrome camera (T26)
  • Toutek Halpha, Sii, and Oiii filters (Tha, TS2, TO3)
  • Scorpio LRGB filters (ScL, ScR, ScG, ScB)

Acquisition Software. I am currently using, or have used, the following to help capture images (on a Windows 10 laptop):

  • (current) N.I.N.A. for pointing telescope and capturing images, dark frames, flat frames, etc.
  • (current) PHD2 Autoguiding software
  • Astrophotography tool (APT) for pointing telescope and capturing images, dark frames, flat frames, etc.
  • Stellarium planetarium software -- connected with APT -- to see exact framing of images, or to frame and point the telescope
  • (occasionally) Sharpcap Pro -- for planetary photography

Image Processing software.

  • (current) PixInsight for stacking and then processing the stacked image
  • (occasionally, when Pixinsight struggles) DeepSkyStacker for stacking images, with darks, flats, dark flats, and bias frames
  • ImagesPlus for processing the stacked image.
  • GIMP for processing the stacked image.
  • for planetary imaging, I use a workflow of PIPP -> Autostakkert -> Registax, and maybe some final editing with one of the above.

For the actual image processing, it has been very ad hoc. Sometimes ImagesPlus will do a remarkable job with very little effort. Sometimes I can't get what I want at all. So I initially would use GIMP when I needed to do it more slowly and manually. More recently, I have added PixInsight and do most of my processing there, but the other two are still needed at times. Here are some of the pros and cons of each. PixInsight has extremely good automatic detection and removal of gradients, and some very advanced functionality (convolution, deconvolution, automatic star masks, advanced color calibration, and so much more). ImagesPlus has an amazing one-button stretch (arcsinh), and some color correction built into the stretch that I haven't been able to replicate with other tools. ImagesPlus also an excellent star reduction tool and easy manual elimination of gradients. GIMP can replicate most functionality, but usually with more effort, as it is not an astrophotography tool. I find the biggest thing in GIMP that I can't replicate with the other two is the ability to remove complex gradients with the despeckle tool. IP and GIMP are amazing free programs. PixInsight is not, but is a good investment. More recently, I have been making heavy use of RC Astro's BlurXterminator, StarXterminator, and NoiseXterminator plugins for Pixinsight.

Some thoughts on the process of capturing all of the Messier objects

This was a ton of effort, took most of a year, and I frankly spent a lot of time on objects that are not photogenic. That includes Messier's "mistakes" (M40 and M73), endless globular clusters (the first 10 were nice, but then...), and a bunch of tiny galaxies for which my setup (80mm refractor at the time) was just not the right tool (however, this did allow me to often catch multiple objects in the same frame to save time). I also spent a lot of time chasing objects about to disappear over the horizon right after dark -- especially after our regular June gloom turned into May/June/July gloom. My balcony only has access to the Western sky, so that cuts the season for each object in half. To prioritize those objects I was about to lose (knowing if I missed one, it was going to cost me a year on my quest!), I found it invaluable to have a list of Messier objects sorted by RA (https://www.messier.seds.org/dataRA.html). But that should only be a starting point (unless you live at the equator). I then consulted each object's "Set Time" in Stellarium to reorder the top of the list. This did mean that many of my pictures suffer from being shot too close to the horizon (too much atmosphere).

But there were a lot of positives. I got a ton of practice with the image processing tools (not to mention the telescope, camera, etc.). Far more than if I waited until I had a good enough night worthy of M45 or M16 before imaging again. I several times was able to capture 3 objects in one night. More usefully, those nights when the clouds rolled in 50 minutes after I got all set up (so many of those nights!), I often had perfectly good images of a straightforward object and the night was a success. I can't imagine I would have advanced as far in the hobby as I have without the urgency created by this project.

I'm quite pleased with some of my best images, but there are some dogs in there so I beg your tolerance with those. That includes a bunch of earlier images (I couldn't wait until the Orion Nebula, my first photo, rolled back around so I could replace that image with a new one), which suffered from a combination of my equipment, lack of technique, and poor image processing skills. I have gone back and re-processed a few with the same subframes and reshot quite a few more. Virtually every galaxy is still on my list of potential do-overs.

So, yeah, I'm not really done yet.




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