Stellina First Impressions – A lot of potential in a “small” package

M42 – 20 Minute exposure time

To say I was impressed would be an understatement. I was amazed at the quality and colors Stellina was able to capture and process. And knowing that I could even get the raw image files to process myself just added to the excitement.

Stellina capturing the Orion Nebula picture seen above – iPhone Night Mode picture

Every object you can photograph with Stellina has a recommended exposure time. This will allow the telescope to gather enough data to pull out details that would otherwise be faint. The Orion Nebula was the only target that I committed to getting the full time on during those first few nights. Afterward, I was excited to get an idea of how other targets would look for future nights, and expect more images with the full recommended time during my full review.

I followed the Orion Nebula with the Andromeda Galaxy. This is a target that has been a personal pain to photograph with my equipment. Even though I didn’t reach the 30-minute exposure time that is recommended, it captured a great amount of detail.

The Cigar Galaxy is a target that I have never photographed myself. Knowing how dim it is coupled with the suburban light pollution around my house, it never came to mind. However, the light pollution filter that is integrated into the telescope helps. Again, I didn’t reach the recommended exposure time. This was where I called it a night.

The following night

Moon – single exposure
The following night I took Stellina for another spin. This time the Moon was high enough that I could capture an image. I was shocked when the picture appeared on my phone. I don’t know what I was expecting but the picture it got exceeded any expectations.

This night I planned on committing to the recommended exposure times for targets. The first object I chose was the Flame Nebula, located in the Orion constellation. I’ve captured this nebula before and knew it would be a challenge from my backyard. Overall the nebula is darker than I expected it would be but there is still great detail.

Next was the Pleiades star cluster. I knew this target would be an interesting test because the Pleiades is different than most star clusters; it has nebulosity. However, this nebulosity is hard to capture and can be a real tell between those just beginning in astrophotography and those who are experienced. After waiting for the recommended time I was sort of let down, but it was not the telescope’s fault. I didn’t anticipate the view of the star cluster to be so tight and excluding some of the stars. However, you can see some of the nebulosity that exists in the constellation in the areas around the brightest stars.

Stellina observes the Moon – iPhone Night Mode

Overall, I am very excited to continue using Stellina. While every observation made so far has been from my backyard, I plan on taking it out to an area with darker skies. Also, look forward to a direct comparison piece between Stellina and the Unistellar eVscope 2. Once I can get more time under clear, night skies, I will publish my overall review of the Stellina telescope.

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