ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY

• Captured and processed a wide range of nebulae including Orion, Lagoon, Crescent, Dumbbell, Swan, Trifid, Bubble, Pacman, and more.

• Imaged galaxies such as Andromeda (M31), Whirlpool (M51), Pinwheel (M101), and Bode’s Galaxy (M81) with attention to dust lanes, spiral structure, and color accuracy.

• Photographed prominent open and globular star clusters, including the Pleiades (M45), the Beehive Cluster, the Double Cluster in Perseus, and the Hercules Cluster (M13) highlighting star field density, shape, and core resolution.

• Utilizes equipment including ZWO Seestar S50, Sky-Watcher Dobsonian 10", and ZWO ASI224MC camera, adjusting exposure based on object brightness and contrast.

• Post-processing pipeline includes Siril, PIPP, GraXpert, and other tools for stacking, calibration, star removal, gradient extraction, noise reduction, and multi-pass enhancement to highlight astrophysical features with both scientific and aesthetic accuracy.

• Implements strategic session planning using Stellarium and SkyPortal, selecting objects based on visibility windows, light pollution levels, season, and location.

• Photograped various lunar phases and events such as the Super Blue Moon, Pink Moon, Harvest Moon, Mineral Moon, and partial and total lunar eclipses. 

• Processes lunar image stacks to enhance crater definition, shadow play, mineral gradients, and terminator edge sharpness. 

• Observed and imaged sunspot activity during solar maximum using safe solar filters and ZWO Seestar S50. 

• Conducted multi-day tracking of sunspot clusters, observing rotational drift and brightness changes. 

• Captured planetary targets including:

  • Jupiter with Galilean moons

  • Saturn with visible ring structures

  • Mars at opposition

• Imaged planetary conjunctions such as:

  • Moon with Spica and Saturn

  • Mars and Jupiter alignments

• Multi-step processing using Siril & PIPP with techniques for sharpening, stacking, and contrast enhancement across surface detail and atmospheric variation.

• Tracked and photographed Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS), a highly anticipated celestial event.

• Captured both nucleus and faint tail structures using short exposures on the ZWO Seestar S50 balancing object motion with exposure duration..

• Applied stacking techniques to enhance nucleus clarity while minimizing motion blur across background stars.

• Employed Adobe Lightroom and other tools to bring out coma structure, tail curvature, anti-tail, and contrast depth, while maintaining noise control.

• Used Samsung S21 Ultra in Astro Mode and Pro Mode to demonstrate that astrophotography is accessible without professional equipment.

• Captured wide-field images of the Milky Way under dark sky conditions, resolving galactic dust lanes, star field gradients, and color banding.

• Successfully photographed Comet C/2023 A3 within the same wide field frame as the Milky Way, a rare composition achieved through careful planning.

• Utilized planning apps like SkyPortal, Stellarium, and SkySafari for orientation, framing, timing, and wide-field object prediction.

• Final compositions processed in Adobe Lightroom, achieving balance between comet detail, sky color grading, and landscape elements.

• Captured a rare verified Starlink satellite central transit across the fully illuminated Pink Moon on April 12, 2025, a unique astrophotographic achievement combining timing and reflexive execution.

• The event was tracked using Heavens Above and confirmed with satellite trajectory databases and prediction tools.

• Capture done using ZWO Seestar S50 in video mode at high frame rate, with Siddharth’s spontaneous live voice reaction recorded during the moment of transit.

• Created the final composite by extracting high-clarity frames from the stacked video using frame selection, alignment, and brightness normalization.

• Verified post-event through tools like Heavens Above and third-party analysis to confirm object ID and path.

• Planning and preparing to capture ISS transits and satellite passes across the Sun & Moon, including timing analysis, path simulations, and alignment challenges.

Before every shoot, I plan meticulously using apps like Stellarium (to simulate night skies), Heavens Above (for satellite/ISS tracking), and SkyPortal (to preview visible objects). These tools help me identify:

• Which targets (planets, DSOs, moon phases) are well-positioned.

• What time and direction to capture from my location.

• Any upcoming celestial events like transits or conjunctions.

Each telescope or camera setup needs a different approach based on what I’m trying to capture:

• For planets (like Jupiter or Saturn), I use my 10” Sky-Watcher Dobsonian with the ASI224MC camera, plugged into my laptop running ASICAP software. This gives me control over exposure, gain, and video capture for later stacking.

• For Milky Way, comets, and wide night sky shots, I use a smartphone on a tripod, either in astro mode or manual settings with higher ISO and longer exposure. These are usually captured from darker spots, away from light pollution.

• For deep-sky objects, I rely on the Seestar S50 for its built-in alignment, AI framing, and stacking. I ensure it’s levelled and stabilized on solid ground to avoid star trailing or drift during longer captures.

• I'm now starting to explore the Celestron NexStar 8SE for higher-magnification planetary shots using tracking and better optics, and will also test the new Seestar S30 this season for its compact and powerful features.
  
  

Before every session, I double-check direction markers (N, E, S, W), visibility zones, and set up based on the object’s expected position and motion.

This is where I'm improving as I go, as there's so much that we can do in processing and post-processing of the image captures.

• Stacking in Siril: I begin with converting sub-exposures (FITS Images), debayering, registering, plotting, stacking, and plate solving to build the base image.

• Processing in Siril: This includes background extraction, photometric color calibration, deconvolution, star removal using StarNet, star mask edits (desaturation, resynthesis, stretch, saturation), starless image enhancements (GHStretch, green noise removal, saturation, noise reduction), and final recomposition.

• Final Touches in Lightroom: I adjust color, contrast, and clarity for an expressive but natural result — always aiming to enhance the story without over-editing.