Al Kelly's CCD Astrophotography Page

(Last updated on May 16 , 2013)

On the left is Thor's Helmet as seen by a Starlight Xpress MX916 CCD camera. On the right is the Celestron CGE 1400 telescope which allowed the camera to have the view. I made many images with this equipment. Currently, I use an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot color CCD camera.

The goal of this web site is to promote CCD astrophotography by amateur astronomers. I am a member of the Johnson Space Center Astronomical Society (JSCAS) and lead the CCD special interest group (SIG). The JSCAS CCD SIG invites anyone interested to participate with us in using CCD cameras for astrophotography. For more information, e-mail

On the left is the Ring Nebula as seen by my old CB245 CCD camera. On the right is the 32" Newtonian telescope which used to reside in my Danciger, Texas observatory and allowed this camera to have such a view. This telescope now belongs to the Alliance for Astronomy. Many of the older images on this site were made by this instrument. Some of the other images here were made with my 17.5" Newtonian in a previous version of my Backyard Observatory.

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INSTRUCTIONS ON TAKING AND PROCESSING CCD IMAGES.....

Click here to read a BASIC INSTRUCTION MANUAL on acquiring and processing astronomical CCD images. This is a living electronic document constantly undergoing improvement.

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G2V-CALIBRATED COLOR IMAGING

See WHITE BALANCING RGB FILTERS for my 2010 AIC presentation on why and how to use G2V stars for calibrating RGB filters.

In 1998, four of us were pleased to present our development of color CCD astro-image calibration and processing techniques, including white-balancing with Solar-analog (G2V) star data, atmospheric extinction correction, and foreground sky color neutralization. The article also discussed the use of CYAN, MAGENTA, and YELLOW filters rather than the traditional Red, Green, and Blue filters. If you wish to learn more, click here to see the FINAL DRAFT of the article which appeared in the December, 1998 issue of Sky and Telescope. (I updated this draft on May 21, 2000 to reflect an improved method for CMY data conversion)

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Most of the color composite images on this web site have been produced using AIP for Windows and Photoshop. AIP is a superb image processing program written by RICHARD BERRY and JIM BURNELL and available from Willmann-Bell. Here is a Powerpoint presentation on the basic steps in making such composites, emphasizing the use of downloaded DSS images: DSS COLOR PROCESSING .'

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Here is a selection of RECENT images. Just click on one to see the enlarged version and use your browser's "BACK" icon to return here (dozens of other images are accessible by object type in the table below these images or via the header table at the top of this page):

LRGB image of planetary Nebula NGC 6543 in Draco, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 5/7/13 from the Texas Star Party near Fort Davis, Texas. Thirty-six 180-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop. Signal-to-noise of the sky background and faint nebular areas was improved by adding data from red and blue DSS plates.

LRGB image of irregular galaxy NGC 3718 in Ursa Major, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 5/7/13 from the Texas Star Party near Fort Davis, Texas. Fourteen 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of spiral galaxy NGC 5364 in Virgo, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 5/6/13 from the Texas Star Party near Fort Davis, Texas. Twenty-four 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of spiral galaxy M51 in Ursa Major, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 4/12/13 from Johnson City, Texas. Twenty-five 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of spiral galaxy M61 in Virgo, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 4/12/13 from Johnson City, Texas. Nineteen 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of spiral galaxy NGC 2403 in Camelopardalis, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 3/5/13 from Johnson City, Texas. Twenty-seven 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of dust and reflection nebula Cederblad 201 in Cepheus, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 10/19/12 from Johnson City, Texas. Thirty 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of open star cluster NGC 7789 in Cassioipeia, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 10/19/12 from Johnson City, Texas. Six 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of spiral galaxy M74 in Pisces, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 10/19/12 from Johnson City, Texas. Twenty-five 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

** LRGB image of galaxy NGC 6217 in Ursa Minor, processed by Al Kelly from wide-band and narrow-band filtered images (435W, 625W, 658N, and 814W filters) taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. All processing accomplished in AIP4WIN and Photoshop.

LRGB image of edge-on spiral galaxy NGC 5907 in Draco, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 5/18-19/12 from Friendswood, Texas. Twenty-seven 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of elegant spiral galaxy NGC 3486) in Leo Minor, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 4/18/12 from the Texas Star Party near Fort Davis, Texas. Fourteen 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of galaxies NGC 4438 and 4435 (the "Eyes") in Virgo, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 4/17/12 from the Texas Star Party near Fort Davis, Texas. Fourteen 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of peculiar galaxy NGC 4656 (the "Hockey Stick") in Canes Venatici, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 4/20/12 from the Texas Star Party near Fort Davis, Texas. Fourteen 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of disturbed (colliding?) galaxies NGC 3227 and 3226 (Arp 94) in Leo, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 4/19/12 from the Texas Star Party near Fort Davis, Texas. Fifteen 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of globular cluster M3 in Canes Venatici, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 4/16/12 from the Texas Star Party near Fort Davis, Texas. Twelve 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of edge-on spiral galaxy NGC 3198 in Ursa Major, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 3/24-26/12 from Friendswood, Texas. Forty-eight 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

** LRGB image of Seyfert's Sextet in Serpens, processed by Al Kelly from wide-band filtered images (439W, 555W, and 814W filters) taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. All processing accomplished in AIP4WIN and Photoshop.

** LRGB image of Strefan's Quintet in Pegasus, processed by Al Kelly from wide-band filtered images (438W, 606W, and 814W filters) taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. All processing accomplished in AIP4WIN and Photoshop.

RGB image of Jupiter, Europa, and Ganymede's shadow, made from video taken by Al Kelly with a Philips Toucam Pro 740 webcam, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f35 on 12/27/11 from Friendswood, Texas. Six hundred thirty-five 1/100th second frames were processed in Registax, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

** LRGB image of distant globular cluster NGC 2419 in Lynx, processed by Al Kelly from wide-band filtered images (475W, 555W, and 625W filters) taken by the Hubble Space Telescope's ACS/WFC camera. All processing accomplished in AIP4WIN and Photoshop.

LRGB image of edge-on spiral galaxy NGC 891 in Andromeda, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.8 on 11/28/11 from Friendswood, Texas. Thirty-one 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of distorted spiral galaxy NGC 772 in Aries, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.7 on 10/28/11 from Fort McKavett, Texas. Nineteen 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of planetary nebula Abell 39 in Hercules, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.7 on 6/30/11 from Johnson City, Texas. Eight 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of emission and dust nebula Sharpless 2-112 in Cygnus, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.7 on 6/30/11 from Johnson City, Texas. Eighteen 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of distant globular NGC 6229 in Hercules, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.7 on 6/1/11 from the Texas Star Party near Fort Davis, Texas. Seven 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of barred spiral galaxy M109 in Ursa Major, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.7 on 4/1/11 from Fort McKavett, Texas. Thirty-three 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of low-surface-brightness galaxy NGC 3319 in Ursa Major, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.7 on 2/28/11 from Johnson City, Texas. Forty-three 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

LRGB image of globular cluster NGC 5466 in Bootes, made from images taken by Al Kelly with an Orion Parsec 8300C one-shot-color camera, Lodestar autoguider, and a Celestron CGE 1400 at f6.7 on 3/1/11 from Johnson City, Texas. Thirteen 600-second subexposures were guided in Astroart and processed in MaxIm DL, AIP4WIN, and Photoshop.

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ALL IMAGES PROCESSED BY THE AUTHOR (AL KELLY) FOR THIS WEBSITE FROM DSS (DIGITIZED SKY SURVEY) DATA ARE SUBJECT TO THE COPYRIGHT PROVISIONS SHOWN AT THE FOLLOWING WEBSITE: http://archive.stsci.edu/dss/copyright.html . THE THUMBNAIL DESCRIPTIONS FOR ALL SUCH IMAGES ARE DENOTED BY *

ALL IMAGES PROCESSED BY THE AUTHOR (AL KELLY) FOR THIS WEBSITE FROM HST (Hubble Space Telescope) DATA ARE SUBJECT TO THE COPYRIGHT PROVISIONS SHOWN AT THE FOLLOWING SPACE TELESCOPE SCIENCE INSTITUTE (STScI) WEBSITE: http://archive.stsci.edu/hst/acknowledgments.html . THE THUMBNAIL DESCRIPTIONS FOR ALL SUCH IMAGES ARE DENOTED BY **

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About CCDs and Astrophotography

A Charge-Coupled Device (CCD) is a silicon-wafer electronic component which was developed and first manufactured in 1970. Its key characteristic is the ability to use the photoelectric effect to efficiently convert impinging photons to electrons, which can be stored and counted. During the 70's CCDs were used to make the first experimental all-digital astronomical images at visible wavelengths. In the 80's CCDs began to establish dominance as the primary detectors at the focus of professional telescopes. In the 90's and early 00's the CCD explosion reached the marketplace of amateur astronomers with many commercial instruments available, such as the Santa Barbara Instruments Group (SBIG), Starlight XPress, and Apogee line of cameras. Also in the 90's, The CCD Camera Cookbook by Richard Berry, Veikko Kanto, and John Munger established itself as an invaluable tutorial for the construction of inexpensive, high-quality CCD cameras for amateur astronomers. Much as with the now-venerable practice of amateur telescope making, CCD astronomers found that doing- it-yourself yielded excellent equipment, low cost, and immense satisfaction. Although the Cookbook Camera technology now is essentially obsolete, its application led to significant imaging advances by amateurs.

Although many astronomers emphasize the differences among visual astronomy, film astrophotography, and CCD astrophotography, there are more basic similarities than differences. In each case there is a system for rendering a graphic portrayal of the light coming from a distant object. For the eye it is the brain's visual cortex and memory; for film it is millions of light- sensitive halide crystals and chemical processing of plastic and paper materials; and for the CCD it is an array of thousands (or millions!) of light-sensitive silicon cells and computerized digital processing of generated electrons. Each system provides best results under dark skies, with steady atmospheric conditions, and using the best quality optics. Each system depends on a high signal-to-noise ratio to discriminate the desired image (signal) from random confusion (noise)....garbage in, garbage out always applies.

Click the following items for more detailed information:

What a CCD camera is and how it works.

My background and imaging techniques.

Imaging galaxies from the city by Ed Grafton.

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To learn about the Cookbook CCD Camera system click on the Cookbook Camera Home Page

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Active links to other astronomy resources on the Internet
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Astronomical Image Research Library

Adam Block's Images from the Kitt Peak Public Observing Program

Doug Clapp's Astronomy and ST-6 CCD Imaging Page

Robert Dalby's Hundred Foot Observatory Page

Fort Bend Astronomy Club ("Bendonites") Home Page