Hi! thank you so much for the honor and selection of my image for ASIWEEK. My name is Charles Bonafilia, I’m located in sunny San Diego, Ca and image from my backyard predominately. My current job allows me the opportunity to be in Bortle 1 skies; unfortunately, I’m unable to image due to all the rocking and rolling while at sea. I’m happily married and have 3 wonderful children.
Photography has always been a passion of mine, I’ve done quite a bit of family portraiture and landscapes. Landscapes, is where my journey began in to astrophotography, first with Milky Ways and progressing to deep sky imaging. The progression was quite sudden for me; I used the environment of being alone and focusing on one aspect to help cope with my diagnosed mental health issues. It provided an escape for me; it allowed me to focus my thoughts and calm my mind. In essence, it’s been a life saver for me literally. I’ve been imaging now for a little over a year and I continue to be in amazed by what is unseen by everyone else. Going out in night sky, looking up and being able to see all the colors and picturesque skyscape that only a few people know about expresses to me that there is so much more to life in general and I want everyone to have the same experiences that I do. Being able to involve my family is a huge benefit of this hobby. It gets us all out of the house and in to nature; it gives us more bonding time as a family.
I went through the dreaded buying gear phase of astrophotography, starting with the WO Spacecat and the ASI1600MM Pro, within 2 months I had already outgrown what I thought were the capabilities and wanted different means of producing the images I do. All my gear is ZWO, from the filter wheel, focuser and the cameras. I own the ASI533MC Pro, ASI294MM Pro, ASI174MM, ASI120MM and the ASI290MM and I finally settled on the ASI6200MM Pro. I can’t say enough amazing things about this camera it’s a workhorse and provides everything I’m looking for, small pixels, large well depth and 16-Bit capability. My main scope currently is the Sky-Watcher Esprit 120ED mounted atop the Sky-Watcher EQ6r Pro. All of this is powered through and managed with the ASIAIR PRO. I look forward to pairing my ASI294MM Pro with a newer scope so watch for those images coming soon.
Thank you, the Horsehead Nebula was a labor of love; I initially had the thought of imaging this target in the false color (SHO) and had 24 hours of Ha (Hyrdogen Alpha) data but after researching through imagers that processed it that way…it just didn’t stand out to me. So, I jumped on to my IG page and polled what people wanted to see, it was overwhelmingly for true color (RGB). I finished the image out with over 6 hours of each bandwidth imaging from my backyard (bortle 6)
Post-processing for me is pretty cut and dry. Prior to combining all the channels I develop a mental picture of what I want the final image to look like. From there it’s just peeling the layers back until I achieve the result I want. Stars seem to be a big issue, especially when imaging the Horsehead, imagers have to deal with Altinak. Other than having high quality filters to help prevent halos, I also process my image separate of stars and recombine them as a luminosity layer within photoshop.
I originally had a similar thought process, but like everything you do; it gets easier the more you do it. If you’re limiting yourself to only platform for processing then you’re limiting your creatively. If you’re comfortable using photoshop then use photoshop. The issues come up when the results are not what the imager wanted or thought they should look like. When that happens switch platforms and try something new. Pixinsight does great with background extractions, star mask and color mask, so do the technical processing in Pixinsight and the creative work in photoshop, lightroom or your specific platform you’re comfortable with; biggest thing is, don’t limit yourself.
Most of my photos are taken right from my backyard; the capabilities that are available to the consumer/hobbyist allow each of us to remain closer to home vice having to carry out all our equipment to secluded Bortle 2-3 areas. While I do venture out there for star parties, I’m comfortable sitting on the couch with my family while my imaging rig does its thing. Having a private dome/observatory is definitely in my future at some point. I just need to find the time to build one and set it all up.
Being still fairly new to astrophotography (1.5 years), my most memorable time to date is still going to my first star party. While it was limited in size due to restrictions in place because of the pandemic. It was fantastic to see the like-mind people that carried the same passion as I had. It made me feel like I was a part of something bigger, a movement that is happening all around the globe right now in expanding one thoughts of Earth being so small in the full realization of the universe and trying to increase our understanding the void that we call space. It’s not so empty and black…
I feel this is like asking if you have a favorite child! Nebulas are image du jour at the moment. They offer so many different colors ranges within the nebulosity. I use the natural highlights and shadows to my advantage. Although, galaxies continue to amaze me. I’ll definitely shoot more of them once I get a bigger telescope. I’m all about the details.
Definitely, I don’t look at the night sky the same anymore and I look at my own inner turmoil’s and see the really don’t matter in the grand scheme of things. I’ve learned to relax and take everything in around me; from the smells and sounds outside to finally seeing all the beauty the night sky has to offer.
I am. I still enjoy going out and imaging the milky-way whenever I get a chance, it’ll remain a passion. I’ve also been doing more visual astronomy; trying to get my family and community more involved.
My first ZWO was a used 1600mm Pro and it performed absolutely fantastic! I’ve never used any other astro-dedicated camera and I never will. The technology that is coming out with all the new CMOS sensors and ZWO at the forefront there is no reason to ever change. Everything I need is wrapped in an all-in-one red package.
I can’t say enough good things about this camera!! I went with the full-frame specifically for its 16 bit capability. Shooting objects thousands of light years away they tend to have a flat appearance and with the 16 bit capability I’m able to bring out variations in lights/shadows that lend to a better 3D effect. Nothing on the market compares!
The ASIAIR simplifies everything I need to produce the images I do. All the features available make it a one stop shop for me. I’ve used other programs and the versatility/portability (via my iPad) is second to none. I’ll be using both of my ASIAIR Pros for as long as I’m imaging. The easy of use and setup for each image within the ASIAIR App couldn’t be easier. The biggest aspect I enjoy about the ASIAIR is the regular tech refresh. ZWO adds new features constantly and listens to the feedback of its consumers. You don’t find that a lot.
This is a tough question. Customer support is excellent, product support is excellent. Is there anyway to branch out and have an office/distribution center in North America? Otherwise keep doing what you are doing. For app support, my only request would be to have the ability to select the same guide star after an auto-focus routine is complete. The guide star that I choose is typically the better star, based on size and brightness. When the focus routine completes the software choose the best star based on the programmatic software coding. This is not always the best…typically I stop the image and guiding to reselect my original star. Coding would be simple it the fact that it is a if/then statement.
Hello Vasile, thanks for accepting our interview invitation. Congratulations on winning the ASIWEEK competition in week #32/2024! Q1: At first, congratulation that your nice image won #ASIWEEK. Can you introduce
Hello Giacomo, thanks for accepting our interview invitation. Congratulations on winning the ASIWEEK competition in week #34/2024! Q1: At first, congratulation that your nice image won #ASIWEEK. Can you introduce
Hello Kamil, thanks for accepting our interview invitation. Congratulations on winning the ASIWEEK competition in week #28/2024! Q1: At first, congratulation that your nice image won #ASIWEEK. Can you introduce
Hello Sandro, thanks for accepting our interview invitation. Congratulations on winning the ASIWEEK competition in week #24/2024! Q1: At first, congratulation that your nice image won #ASIWEEK. Can you introduce
Hello John, thanks for accepting our interview invitation. Congratulations on winning the ASIWEEK competition in week #25/2024! Q1: At first, congratulation that your nice image won #ASIWEEK. Can you introduce
