Questions new owners ask
Short answers, each with a link to the full guide.
- Do I need a tripod?
- Which filter do I use?
- Alt-Az or EQ mode?
- What exposure and gain should I use?
- How many frames, and how long a night?
- Can I shoot with the Moon up?
- Why did it say "Obstacle, redo" on a clear sky?
- Why did my finished picture lose its edges?
- When do I take darks?
- The Dwarf says it is full. What now?
- Does it work in a town?
- Can I photograph the Sun?
- How long does the battery last?
- The glass keeps misting up.
- Does it work without phone signal?
- I do not have a Dwarf 3.
- Is Orion Skies made by DWARFLAB?
Do I need a tripod?
Yes. There is not one in the box. Any camera tripod with the standard 1/4 inch screw fits. For EQ mode, a head that tilts and locks firmly makes it much easier. Accessories.
Which filter do I use?
Astro for galaxies and star clusters. Duo-Band for glowing nebulae such as the Heart or Orion. VIS for the Moon, and for the Sun with the solar filter on. Always check the filter by eye before you start: the screen has shown the wrong one. The right filter.
Alt-Az or EQ mode?
Alt-Az is fine for the Moon, the planets and a quick first night. Use EQ mode for every nebula and for any long run on one target, or the picture slowly turns and the edges are lost when it stacks. Set EQ mode before you search for the target. Setting up EQ mode.
What exposure and gain should I use?
Leave it on Auto for your first nights. After that, 15 seconds at gain 70 in EQ mode works for nearly every deep sky target on a Dwarf 3. Once your polar alignment is good, 60 seconds gives four times the light in each frame. Every target type at a glance.
How many frames, and how long a night?
Aim for 200 to 250 frames, and never fewer than 100. At 15 seconds that is about 170 an hour. Auto sets 999, which is over four hours, so set it to finish before the cloud or the Moon arrives. Frames from different nights stack together. How many frames.
Can I shoot with the Moon up?
For a glowing nebula on Duo-Band, yes: a bright Moon barely hurts it. Save galaxies and clusters for when the Moon is down. The right filter.
Why did it say "Obstacle, redo" on a clear sky?
In EQ mode the Dwarf stopped an hour and a half before the target was due south, on two separate runs. Start the target within an hour and a half of due south, or after it has passed. The EQ stop, and the flip.
Why did my finished picture lose its edges?
In Alt-Az mode the picture turns through the night, and only the part of the sky every frame covered survives the stack. On one 4 hour run it turned 75 degrees and about a third was lost. EQ mode stops it. Problems and fixes.
When do I take darks?
At the end of the night: ten, at the same exposure and gain, with the lens turned down into the body. The sensor cools through the night, and darks only work when the temperature matches. Darks.
The Dwarf says it is full. What now?
It holds about 110 GB, and each frame is about 16.6 MB, so it fills in about four long nights. Copy each night to a computer and to an external drive, check both copies, then delete from the Dwarf. Never let the computer format it. Back up.
Does it work in a town?
Glowing nebulae on Duo-Band cut through street light well. Faint galaxies need a darker place: only distance from the lights helps. Security lights coming on will spoil a night in the garden. Accessories.
Can I photograph the Sun?
Only with the magnetic solar filter from the box fitted and checked first, every time. Then autofocus, Sun Track and shoot. Never look at the Sun yourself. The Sun, in the daytime.
How long does the battery last?
About six hours on a full charge, less on a cold night. It can run while charging from a USB C power bank, so a long winter night needs one. A power bank.
The glass keeps misting up.
The Dwarf has no dew heater. A lens shade slows the dew down, so the glass sees less of the cold sky. Bring it in as soon as you finish and let it warm up before you pack it away. A lens shade.
Does it work without phone signal?
Yes, once you have opened the Atlas with signal: it downloads its star maps the first time. This site can be saved to your phone too, so the guides and target pages open at a dark site. Saved pages.
I do not have a Dwarf 3.
Choose your scope and the settings, frames and targets change to suit it. The DWARF mini and DWARF II use DWARFLAB's own figures and are marked as not yet tested on our nights. Your scope.
Is Orion Skies made by DWARFLAB?
No. It is unofficial, made by an owner, and not linked to or supported by DWARFLAB. For a fault, repairs or the warranty, contact DWARFLAB. About.
Not answered here? Problems and fixes has every fault we have hit, or ask on the owners' wall.