This indispensable astrophotography tool is constructed from nearly indestructible abs plastic. This process is an essential step of any deepsky astrophotography session. Equipment celestron roweackermann schmidt astrograph 1 june 2016 ade ashford. Bahtinov grabber 12166 cloudy nights thread on this tool. The bahtinov mask makes it easy to focus your dslr camera, ccd camera, or webcam when imaging the night sky.
Farpoint unmounted bahtinov mask for 77mm camera filter. It consists of a disk made of opaque material fitted over the telescope objective with slots cut out in a specific pattern devised by amateur astrophotographer pavel bahtinov. A bahtinov mask creates diffraction spikes visible to the viewer, with each. Do it yourself bahtinov focusing mask for a telescope or dslr camera, with printable pdf templates for the most popular telescope apertures and focal ratios. It consists of a disk made of opaque material fitted over the. Somewhere in my box of bits i actually have a bahtinov mask specifically for camera lenses. Simulate you own mask diffraction pattern niels noordhoeks weblog. I was playing around with thisonline bahtinov mask generator. Farpoint bahtinov telescope focusing mask for celestron 8 sct telescopes dropin focusing mask for 8 scts schmidt cassegrain telescopes. It allows achieving precise focus using a bahtinov mask making subpixel analysis of the spikes. About bahtinov mask the bahtinov mask is a device used to focus small astronomical telescopes accurately. As long as the mask slots are not damaged, the mask should continue to perform well over time. From beginner telescopes to professional observatories, opt has it all. Here, ill show a video of me using both the current version of the fine focus tool and augmenting this with the use of a bahtinov mask.
This takes much of the guesswork out of trying to decide if the central spike is really centred. Flymesh bahtinov mask diy astronomer stargazers lounge. Ive been having difficulty focusing to infinity with my canon 6d and samyang 14mm f2. They are named after paul bahtinov, who developed the first designs. Then i cut one half of the plastic binder, and attached to it my printed mask. The spikea bahtinov mask is made from quality light weight aluminum and machined with precision tools, then anodized black to eliminate light reflection. The bahtinov mask has become the preferred method of focusing a telescope, either visually or when imaging with a ccd camera, dslr or webcam. It is very easy to use and will result in obtaining precise focus with a camera lens. But when i input the parameters for my camera lens say the sony zeiss 24mm f1.
I returned to orion and captured this wellfocused image of orions belt and sword, f5. Unlike a hartmann mask which provides no visual cues on the direction of travel needed for focusing, the spikea mask is a bahtinov mask which clearly shows the direction of travel needed to achieve focus. Also, a hartmann mask doesnt provide the precision of the spikea. The bahtinov aid uses licensed technology developed by neils noordhoek the very same technology built into the famous bahtinov grabber. If you have trouble focusing accurately then you need a bahtinov mask. New innovative bahtinov mask cover patented for wo flt2. Video demonstration of how to use a bahtinov focusing mask for astrophotography. This simple application just grabs an area of your windows screen and finds the focussing accuracy.
The method is simple, very intuitive, and the device has universally been named after the inventor. The bahtinov mask is a very elegant solution to one of the biggest problems that. Farpoint bahtinov focus mask for celestron 8 classic sct. Heres the link to a tribahtinov mask generator that is written by satoru takagi. I had the materials lying around, and after making it i was. So focusing with the hartmann mask is less critical than the actual focus when the mask. With the bahtinov mask on the lens the diffraction pattern was barely visible on the live view screen at iso 25600, but was not visible in the viewfinder.
This farpoint bahtinov mask fits telescopes with outside diameters of between 5. Of course i no longer have any idea where i got it from. Grabber analyses the three lines and calculates the displacement between the central line and the intersection of the other two lines. One mask is a general purpose mask designed to fit refractors and newtonian telescope. Aug 06, 2009 video demonstration of how to use a bahtinov focusing mask for astrophotography. In 2008, pavel bahtinov, a russian amateur telescope maker and astronomer, published an ingenious new way to easily focus your dslr camera, webcam or ccd camera for astrophotography. When i click calculate the picture disappears and thats it. However this latest version does seem to have a problem at times locking onto the lines in the image and gives false readings. How to make an eyepiece carrying case doityourself foam padded hard carrying case for sensitive equipment such. A local sidereal time calculator will tell you when objects are on the meridian. A bahtinov mask can help you achieve a sharp focus for your astrophotography images. The bahtinov mask is a widely used tool that cleverly uses diffraction as a focusing aid. Farpoint fp410 bahtinov focus mask celestron 8in sct. Precise focusing of telescopes and astrographs is critical to.
Jun 23, 2017 the bahtinov mask is a widely used tool that cleverly uses diffraction as a focusing aid. Bahtinov mask the easiest way to achieve sharp focus. A bahtinov mask is a focusing aid for astronomy in general, and astrophotography in particular. Farpoint astro bahtinov focus mask for celestron 9. So i thought i would try a farpoint fp400 bahtinov focus mask to see if it would help me focus better. Niels noordhoek produced the bahtinov grabber, which uses line recognition algorithms to detect the diffraction spikes produced by the bahtinov mask. Also when the problem occurs the mask angle is also shown incorrectly. Its an elaboration on the idea of a hartmann mask something you stick over the front end of your scope to induce a diffraction pattern that makes focusing. Sharpstar is a special kind of mask that mounts in front of your camera lens. The bahtinov mask is a very elegant solution to one of the biggest problems that besets the deep sky astrophotographer focus.
The gerd neumann bahtinov mask is of high quality and should last a long time with care. Improve your astrophotography focus with a bahtinov mask. Anyone who has ever taken a photograph knows the importance of focusing. First step was to print the mask you can use the provided templates, or use the original bahtinov mask generator, and then print it any modern browser can open the generated. Dec 02, 2017 to 3d print the bahtinov mask as shown in the images above, i used opencad a free software and a readymade tweakable template or model called bahtinov mask generator modded which i found on. Precise focusing of telescopes and astrographs is critical to performing astrophotography. Bahtinov grabber goes 64 bit and 32 bit update niels.
Aspikeaexample of the nowclassic bahtinov mask is shown in image1. The telescope is pointed at a bright star, and a mask is placed in. Ive found a couple of links including one here on cn but none of them work. The bahtinov mask is a device used to focus small astronomical telescopes accurately. How to make bahtinov mask, pdf templates deepsky watch. This model generator allowed for the size of the mask to be adjusted according to the measurements of my own telescope.
The other mask is designed to fit schmidt cassegrain telescopes. Bahtivov mask the bahtinov mask is a plate with three sections of parallel slits that fits over the end of the telescope and produces diffraction spikes on the focal plane below left photo. In 2008, pavel bahtinov, a russian amateur telescope maker and astronomer, created a great new way to easily focus a dslr camera, webcam, or ccd camera for astrophotography. Measure your diameter from the end of the tube or dew shield. Apt has a function called bahtinov aid based on bahtinov grabber technology and it provides an excellent visual and digital reference when using a bahtinov mask to come to focus. Articles and tips for amateur astronomers deep sky watch. Bahtinov masks for wide angle dslr lenses nov 14, 2015 i was playing around with this online bahtinov mask generator. This distance depends on the focal length of the objective and the distance between the objective and the subject. Bahtinov grabber for any camera niels noordhoeks weblog. Farpoint bahtinov masks are by far, the easiest, fastest and most consistent manual focusing aid available to the amateur astrophotographer. Accurate focusing of telescopes and astrographs is particularly of concern to those involved in astrophotography. Sharpstar2 precision focusing tool by lonely speck lonely speck. The bahtinov mask was invented by russian amateur astrophotographer pavel bahtinov in 2005. Does anyone know of a link where i can download the bahtinov grabber tool software.
Farpoint bahtinov focus mask demonstration youtube. It requires the capability to acquire 640x480 images. Each section of parallel slits is orientated at a slightly different angle, giving three different. There is no reason why it should not work, just make sure you pick a bright star to concentrate on, use a fairly long exposure and high. Download using upper buton or copy following source text and save as maskname. Farpoint bahtinov focusing mask for celestron 8 sct.
Ive been using bahtinov grabber for a short while and find it a big help in focusing my dslr camera. Lightweight, precision cnc cut, non flexing and with adjustable rubber tabs. Farpoint bahtinov mask for refractors or newtonians with 5. Fine focus and bahtinov masks ask craig stark labs. Gosky bahtinov focusing mask for telescopes dew shield diameter from 75mm 114mm 2. Using and making flyscreen bahtinov mask for focusing. Milky way exposure calculator presets for adobe lightroom sharpstar2 focusing filter purenight light. A buddy told me about it and it looks like a great focusing tool. Bahtinov mask created by 3d printing astronomy notebook. This indispensable astrophotography tool is constructed from nearly indestruct. The bahtinov mask the sky at night in digital images. Blackbody temperature calculator a simple calculator that displays temperature for any given peak wavelength.
A bahtinov mask creates diffraction spikes visible to the viewer, with each direction of slots in the mask corresponding to a spike. It is common practice to focus your camera dslr or astroccd on a bright star as this star and the object you want to image will both be at infinity so getting the star in focus will ensure that the deep. Here are stl files to allow you to 3d print your own bahtinov mask for some popular sizes of lens and telescope. It consists of a disk made of opaque material fitted over the telescope objective with slots cut out in a specific pattern devised by. Instructions for making a bahtinov focusing mask from commonly available materials including pdf templates for the most common telescope apertures. This simple device sits on the aperture of your telescope and produces diffraction spikes. You can also download a copy of our quick start guide included with every order. I never used it for wide angle, only zoomed in 5300mm. These are not generic masks, each mask is tuned to the telescopes focal ratio for the very best performance. The one of the most widely used focusing aids was invented by pavel bahtinov. Farpoint manufactures this lifesaving astrophotography tool out of virtually indestructable abs plastic and comes in two major types and in a range of sizes. An imaging system optimised for virtually any oneshot. It was invented by russian amateur astrophotographer pavel bahtinov in 2008. This customizable design generates custom bahtinov masks, which are used to aid focusing telescopes during astrophotography.
It is common practice to focus your camera dslr or astroccd on a bright star as this star and the object you want to image will both be at infinity so getting the star in focus will ensure that the deep sky object. The device used for recording the image be it traditional photoemulsion or digital sensor should. Edge thickness mm, edge thickness must be a positive number. Bahtinov mask 3d printing video thanks to the benny fab lab at benny library the bahtinov mask is one of the best tools for focusing your cameratelescope setup for imaging.
The spikea attaches securely to your scope using nylon screws to ensure the finish of your telescope is protected. Focusing tool for serious astrophotographers and those who care about their time and quality of astrophotos. Bahtinov grabber tool posted in beginning and intermediate imaging. Bahtinov mask guide a simple resizeable and rotatable overlay for centring the middle spike between the two outer x spikes of a bahtinov mask image. Although not very expensive to buy, it can be made by hand using cardboard or a ridged thin plastic using a template or pattern. Although masks have long been used as focusing aids, the distinctive pattern was invented by russian amateur astrophotographer pavel bahtinov russian. Thanks to satoru takagi, you can use his webapp to generate the mask rather than download and install my program to do this. The image projected by the objective gets sharp at a certain distance behind the objective. Bahtinov grabber tool beginning and intermediate imaging. The bahtinov mask is an interesting variation of the hartmann mask using. There are slits pointing three different directions in the mask in such a way that one of the directions is parallel with the bisector of the other two. I came across a video on youtube of a flymesh bahtinov, not focal length dependant has anyone ever tried this method before. If your camera has a high iso setting available and a live view screen. Ever since, the bahtinov mask has been a necessary part of an imagers arsenal.
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