Thank you! I do have some experience in the KZfaq world, as my day job is filming/editing for a relatively large automotive channel. I've been doing that for almost 6 years now and beyond that, I've been working as a professional photographer/videographer in other industries for over ten years. Glad to hear that all the hard work is paying off though, and I really appreciate the kind words! Lots more coming very soon. :)

Thank you, that means a lot to me! Lots more coming soon!

@@mdnt_astro You welcome, looking forward to it.

Thanks a ton dude! I’m gonna be making a lot more stuff in the near future. Hopefully I’ll be posting regularly every 1-2 weeks depending on the weather. Shooting some dark nebulae tonight once the Milky Way rises!

@@mdnt_astro Looking forward to it! Clear Skies!

Sounds like a nice setup! I’d like to get into an SCT or something with a big focal length next. In the next month or so I’m planning on making a video about DSLR imaging, and I might even attempt deep sky astrophotography with an unmodified cinema camera just for fun!

I appreciate you more than I can say dude, and definitely have more coming soon!

Thanks so much! Can't wait to see what you do with it!

Thanks so much! Excited to continue documenting my night sky adventures!

I don’t have much experience with high end telescopes, but I’ll say that the Askar stuff feels ultra premium. Working on a few more projects right now with it in the 420mm f/4 configuration and holy smokes am I blown away. Hoping that will be the subject of the next video! Thanks so much for the kind words and for subscribing!

Thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed it! You’ll love this scope, it’s truly an awesome setup for the money.

Thanks a lot! It's definitely not always easy to stay positive about this hobby. It can be really overwhelming sometimes to say the least. I'm struggling with mosquitoes and bugs myself as I types this while aligning my rig but hopefully it'll be worth it! And yes, this sort of setup is great for 'remote' shooting, even if you're only a few feet away inside haha. That being said I also commonly run this setup when I have plans for the night via an app called AnyDesk. The ASIair software can be run on my MacBook pro when both devices are connected to my homie wifi. I simply align the rig, open up the AnyDesk app on my MacBook, and head out for whatever I have going on for the evening. Then I can check the progress remotely using the same AnyDesk app on my phone and even change targets or do anything I'd normally be able to being right next to the scope. Not as elaborate as some remote setups, but I'm an Apple user so I don't have access to PC software of equivalent abilities so this works great for me.

@@mdnt_astro Apple user here as well. Will be keeping an eye out for your content. Cheers.

Glad to have helped!

Wow, thank you! That really means a lot. I put a ton of effort into these videos and I’m glad people like yourself have taken notice of those things. I’d like to think I’m a storyteller/filmmaker first and an astrophotographer second, which I was hoping could help separate me from others in this community. There are lots of awesome videos out there in the astro world and I hope I can find a place to fit in among all the talented creators out there. Thank you again, and I definitely will be making more. Already working on a new one! P.S. you’ll love the Askar 103. I’d highly recommend the 1.0 flattener and the 0.6x reducer. I skipped the 0.8x but might pick it up someday. I chose these two first because it seemed like they’d give me the most use. I was worried I wouldn’t use the 0.6x very much but it’s quickly become my favorite.

@@mdnt_astro thanks. That matches my thoughts on it

I’m super impressed with it so far considering the price point. I’m definitely not a professional but it’s everything I wanted it to be. There’s a bit of chromatic aberration with both the 1.0x and 0.6x reducers but it’s easily fixable so I can’t complain. I’ve also had some weird vignetting that I could probably handle with flats but I’m sort of lazy about it so GradientXterminator or a quick ABE does enough for me. I’m most impressed with the 0.6x reducer, which should be the subject of the next video. It reminds me of a budget FSQ106, great image quality and really sucks in light like I can’t believe. Really has me curious about some of the Askar astrograph scopes, but I’m thinking monochrome is my next move before another scope. Thanks for the kind words and for subscribing, I really appreciate it!

Thank you! Should have a new video coming by the end of this week or early next week! All depends on how the weather wants to treat me but I'm squeezing in shot between clouds with the Askar 103 in the f/4 configuration on some dark nebulae!

It’s an awesome choice, especially for the price! I’m currently shooting some stuff with the 0.6x reducer at f/4 right now and it’s mind blowing. Kind of like a budget FSQ106. Can’t recommend it enough!

@@peterdmatthews7427 thanks for the kind words. I knew I remembered seeing something in there that allowed to add the filter name so I’ll have to get that going on my next outing. I usually use autorun mode and keep an eye on things on my second computer monitor because the trees can start creeping into frame when I least expect it. I have to set up in different areas of the yard depending on what direction I’ll be shooting, which sadly leaves me limited options when moving to a new target. I’ve been working on a new video but recently got all my gear soaked by a random downpour last week (one of the reasons I usually stay up and keep an eye on things). Hopefully everything will be okay once it dries out a bit more.

Thank you! It’s a lot of work but I really love getting to share the stories behind my photos!

That’s awesome. I love the 103 but I sure would’ve loved to go bigger. Next move for me will either be RASA 11 or an Edge 11. Before that I’m thinking of a 2600MM Pro next.

Mind blowing to think about how long those photons have traveled without hitting something or being blocked, all so they could hit that camera sensor. So cool!

Thank you! I really haven’t used the case since it arrived other than traveling for the solar eclipse. I took the EAF off and packed it separately since it’s only a few bolts. I’ve been thinking of getting a Pelican style case and doing some custom cut foam inserts so I can travel with the scope, reducer and flattener, and leave some of the accessories (EAF, ASIair Plus, Pegasus dew heater) attached so it’s easy/quick to pack up but I haven’t really needed it yet. When it’s not outside shooting something I keep it inside on a shelf or on a mount with the caps on.

Thank you! Got a lot more coming soon! For this video everything was shot with the Askar 103. With both the flattener and reducer, and other accessories I needed, it was about $2,400 USD.

@@robertotolosajr thanks! No issues at all with the typical 55mm. I use one of the spacers that came with the camera and a ZWO filter drawer to get to 55mm and stars are great across the entire image circle. I haven’t used any sensors bigger than APSC though so I can’t speak for a full frame camera.

Much appreciated! Sure wish I had some astro neighbors!

Thanks! Those were sort of hard to get right. When I edit my astro photos, I use StarXterminator so I can edit the stars and galaxy/nebula independently of each other. I handle that in PixInsight, along with all pre-processing and some stretching before exporting the stars and background separately to Photoshop. That's where I combine the stars as a separate layer for final editing. With that being said, I took those final layers and exported them separately again once I finished the photo to use in After Effects. I set up a 3D project and added a particle system with a 3D camera moving through the scene. Then I placed the star layer and galaxy layer at different points and scales (stars closer to the camera and smaller, galaxy further back and bigger) to add a perspective shift while the camera moves into the photo. When scaling the stars and background, I matched them visually for the beginning of the clip so it would appear more natural. The particle system just adds an extra layer of depth that I think helps sell the full effect of it being 3D. I did this years ago by removing stars and only using a particle system to 'replace' the stars I removed, but it looks obviously fake. Adding the real stars as a new layer to get that parallax effect is key. Maybe I'll make a short tutorial in the future included in one of my videos. Glad you liked it!

@@mdnt_astro thanks man I would love that

@@garbageman9145 no problem! I’m working on my next video now about shooting some dark nebulae and some targets near Sadr with the Askar in the f/4 configuration and I can probably include a short section on how I make those. I definitely plan to use that technique for all my videos so should be fun to teach others how to make it happen too.

100% agreed! All my hobbies are super expensive. Cars, telescopes, guitars. It never ends!