First Light-Williams Optics RedCat 61 Telescope & ZWO ASI 2600 mm Pro Camera & Pixinsight Processing

In this video, I present my first light of the Williams Optics RedCat 61 Refractor Telescope and ZWO ASI 2600 mm Pro Camera. I go over my Pixinsight workflow for LRGB post processing and share the final images from seven targets (Rosette Nebula, Horsehead Nebula, Heart Nebula, California Nebula, Jellyfish Nebula, Seven Sisters, and Soul Nebula). Enjoy!
Here's some equipment I'm using for my setup:
Note: I am an amazon affiliate. If you follow any of the amazon links and make a purchase, it helps support my channel.
William Optics RedCat 61 WIFD f/4.9 Petzval Refractor Telescope
amzn.to/48bDmeI
Sky-Watcher EvoStar 100 APO Doublet Refractor Telescope
amzn.to/3PWW0gN
ZWO ASI183MC 20 Megapixel USB3.0 Color Astronomy Camera for Astrophotography
amzn.to/3CDJVtH
iOptron GEM28 Mount - Head with iPolar in Hard Case
amzn.to/3PR7WAJ
ZWO M48 to M48 Extender / Spacer Ring with 16.5mm Extension # ZWO-M48-EXT16.5 (used to obtain precise back focus with field flattener)
agenaastro.com...
ZWO Filter Drawer with M42 & M48 Threads - For 2" Mounted Filters # FD-M42
agenaastro.com...
2" Baader Neodymium Moon & Skyglow Filter with IR Cut
amzn.to/3sI9BiH
Optolong 2" L-Enhance Dual Narrowband Light Pollution Filter (H-Alpha and H-Beta/O-III)
amzn.to/3fnuCfB
This eyepiece is awesome for visual astronomy with its wide field of view.
Alpine Astronomical Baader 76° Morpheus 17.5mm Eyepiece (1.25"/2")
www.bhphotovid...
This is a very well made barlow lens I've been using for visual astronomy. I found thought that this doesn't seem very compatible for astrophotography for my setup unless using the diagonal (only way to get camera focus).
Celestron 93436 Luminous 2-Inch 2.5x Barlow Lens (Silver)
amzn.to/3KsfloY
This is a must have for astrophotography purposes.
Sky-Watcher S20201 Reducer / Corrector
www.bhphotovid...
Astromania M48X0.75 (2" Filter) Female to M42X0.75 T / T2 Male Thread Telescope Adapter (to achieve back focus with reducer/corrector)
amzn.to/3KueNid
Alstar Astronomical 2"/M48-extension Tube Kit for Cameras and eyepieces - Length 5mm 8mm 10mm 20mm 30mm - M48x0.75 on Both Sides (adapter to use with tubes for achieving back focus with reducer/corrector)
amzn.to/3ReIyps
SVBONY Bahtinov Mask, Aluminum Alloy Bahtinov Focusing Mask, 85-120mm Caliber Fixed Diameter 80-135mm
amzn.to/3RkVp9A
I find this lightweight cart handy for hauling in/out a stack of organizer boxes and the mount case.
Leeyoung Folding Hand Truck and Dolly,309 lb Capacity Aluminum Portable Cart with Telescoping Handle and PP+EVA Wheels
amzn.to/3KwAFcJ
Some gear for cleaning purposes:
UES Air Blower Dust Blaster for Digital, DSLR, SLR Cameras Sensor Lens Cleaning, Rubber Bulb Air Pump Dust Blower Cleaner - Black
amzn.to/3e4qUXc
UES APSC-16 DSLR and Mirrorless Digital Camera Sensor Cleaning Kits for APS-C Type CMOS and CCD Sensors (14pcs APS C Sensor Cleaning Swabs and 15ml Sensor Cleaner)
amzn.to/3cw0NYW
UES Lint Free Microfiber Cleaning Cloth for Lens, Eye Glasses, LED (8 Packs - 15cm x 15cm)
amzn.to/3Av4eHa
These are great for making sure you don't have any dust or dirty spots on your CMOS of your camera.
Beileshi Watch Repair Magnifier Loupe Jeweler Magnifying Glasses Tool Set with LED Light with 8 Interchangeable Lens-2.5X 4X 6X 8X 10x 15x 20x 25x
amzn.to/3Kwx26J
If you have to transfer images/files from your laptop to another computer for further processing, this external drive is very fast compared to something like a thumb drive.
SAMSUNG T7 1TB, Portable SSD, up to 1050MB/s, USB 3.2 Gen2, External Solid State Drive (MU-PC1T0H/AM), Blue
amzn.to/3PZ9o41
To avoid unrolling and rolling up power cables for each imaging session or setup where there's no outlet to connect to,, this is very convenient.
Jackery Portable Power Station Explorer 300, 293Wh Backup Lithium Battery, 110V/300W Pure Sine Wave AC Outlet
amzn.to/3KybHK7
If you want to share your astro images so I can feature them in a future video, send them to my email:
[e-mail]
Dehancer set me up as an affiliate. If you want to buy the desktop application instead of the iPad/iPhone app and use the following discount code, you will save 10% and I will also earn a small commission:
Dehancer Discount Code for a 10% Discount: DEHANCER-MAJ
Dehancer website: Dehancer.com

[@AmatureAstronomer]

Congrats on your new rig! Just bought a Celestron 6" Schmidt Cassegrain, a HyperStar 6 v4 and a ZWO asi183mc for use in EAA with Sharp Cap in my Bortle6 sky with trees all around my house. This rig will capture data 6.5 times faster than the William Optics Redcat 61 and the asi183mc can achieve greater detail than the asi2600 which has large pixels and will under sample both the Redcat 61 and the Celestron 6". Did not buy a large cat because I am elderly and feeble and can not carry larger into the back garden. I did try a cheap SvBony SV 70ed and found it could not gather adequate data. But, opinions vary.

[@marksastrojourney]

That sounds like a great setup you have! Post a comment to me when you publish some videos or photos. I’d love to see your work!
I also have an asi183mc (not the cooled version) and it has bad amp glow. Even calibration frames won’t totally correct it. I regret that I didn’t get the cooled version.

[@bluelemon1394]

Hey Mark! So happy that you could finally get your setup going. Do you have an instagram where you post your photos? I would love to follow it
EDIT: Nevermind I found it (:

[@marksastrojourney]

Glad you found it! The challenge I’ve run into on Instagram is the file type and size limitations end up degrading the image some. There are probably some ways to optimize this, which I need to look into.

[@bluelemon1394]

@@marksastrojourneyyea Instagram does compress a ton, it can help hide some issues thought😂

[@marksastrojourney]

That's so true!