Deep Sky Photography Made Easy: Dwarf II Smart Telescope Review

[@davidaaaa4611]

I may get one of those. Thanks for the video. M31 looked great.

[@damienmortimore6784]

Great review thank you. Please keep us informed with updates and improvements

[@StarScaperPhoto]

Thanks for letting me know! I am glad it was of any help.

[@nekite1]

I use a Bahtinov mask on mine and a cheap power bank to keep the scope powered. I bought the Deluxe version with the lens holder, 2 solar filters, a spare battery and a UHC filter. It's also great for a bit of solar photography and is generally easy to use. I had a problem with my original unit (pinched optics), and emailed them about this. Very prompt response, asked me to share my data with them and they replied within the hour to confirm that they would ship a new unit to me. No need to return the old one. Really good customer service.

[@StarScaperPhoto]

Including a bahtinov mask would indeed be a great idea! Glad you are enjoying the dwarf.

[@GrowPhotography]

Great review Jeroen, an interesting bit of kit and as per your conclusion, I could definitely see this as a gentle introduction to deep sky photography. Or as something else to play with while out there shootimg nightscapes 👌.

[@StarScaperPhoto]

I totally agree with what you say here, well put! Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

[@Mark_Wierda]

Great review! Cool device to play around with

[@StarScaperPhoto]

Thanks Mark! It really was 😀.

[@KopLamp]

Hey Jeroen! Nice video. I was contacted by Dwarflabs too for my KZbin channel, but I turned them down as I didn't feel like I could add anything new what wasn't already shown in other already existing videos. Watching your video fills me with a little bit regret on that decision ;-) Did a review on the AM5 for Ganymedes a year ago and that took ages (for me) to turn into a watchable video. Purchased it in the end (a bit expensive for Ganymedes to make into a freebie).

[@StarScaperPhoto]

Thanks Martin! The AM5 is on a whole other level ofcourse. I agree with you that a review video is not as easy as you would expect. This one also took me way longer than my 'regular' nightscape adventures 😅

[@DG-ss1gc]

I applaud your attitude , but you should always agree as long as they give you 100% content and editorial control and they must see the video when it’s released (no preview for them) . If you state those things in your intro and stick to them consistently you’ll be respected. And don’t underestimate yourself. You absolutely add something others can’t , that no one can … YOUR experience. Your audience watches to see what YOU say. Doesn’t matter if your overview is the same, if you feel it’s already been done gloss over that stuff and talk more about your thoughts .

[@KopLamp]

@@DG-ss1gc I might still have a chance to review one, but just not as a freebie. I think I can loan one, as well as a seestar and then compare both. 🤞

[@tariqalkindi8045]

hola nice demo thanks can you kindly let me know how to shoot with it milky way?

[@StarScaperPhoto]

Thank you! I would prefer using a regular camera for milky way since this scope is more zoomed it, better for deep sky targets.

[@AstroRoad]

As a tech gadget I love it, seems to take a lot of faff out of the technical side of acquisition. The fact it seems to deliver on that is really commendable. Not a photon bucket though which is so much of what DSO is. Wonder if they could apply a similar approach to a device made for exploring fine detail if the moon? Would also love to see what it can do with solar imaging.

[@StarScaperPhoto]

It really does take out a lot of faff which is an absolute plus point of the device. Haven't tried it myself on the moon or sun but there are plenty of examples out from people who have on KZbin as well as other social media.

[@Videomakerrobin]

Ah yes yes interessante vidoe yes yes🎬

[@StarScaperPhoto]

😄

[@Seegurkenwombat]

RANDOM astro buddy please!!! ;) Crazy light pollution going on beneath the clouds... For the price this is a truly neat device!

[@StarScaperPhoto]

Haha, it was you that horse?! 😄.

[@Seegurkenwombat]

@@StarScaperPhoto horse the band!! 😘 I needed to check you out before meeting in person. Maybe you would be cringe. 😂

[@StarScaperPhoto]

@@Seegurkenwombat haha, wise man! You never know what to expect when meeting up with someone in the middle of nowhere in the dark. Can't be too careful, right? 😁

[@shrekshrek]

Here in Brazil you need to pay a fee of 92% of the value of the product

[@StarScaperPhoto]

That doesn't sound too practical :-(

[@damienmortimore6784]

What tripod is that? I am not a fan on the table top one that comes with it

[@StarScaperPhoto]

It's just a regular photo tripod. It's a carbon fibre leofoto urban something. But any decent tripod will do.

[@Francois15031967]

Talking about deep sky, that practically doesn't evolve over a lifetime, what is the final difference between using this kind of contraption and browsing for pictures of celestial objects on the internet, since the final experience in both cases is a mere staring at a digital image on a screen?

[@StarScaperPhoto]

Haha, I seriously think this is a relevant question! :-). On the one hand I see your point. Shooting deep sky might feel a bit more 'detached' compared to shooting nightscapes where you are out in the field, experiencing the night sky and getting creative with compositions. On the other hand, there is the fascination and wonder that you can photograph objects millions of lightyears away from your own backyard with your own equipment. I can see the challenge in trying to improve your skills to get a better and better result of those same deep sky objects over time. But yeah, you will most likely never beat a picture by Hubble or James Webb ofcourse. So, is it something for you? I think the answer to that entirely depends on how much you enjoy the process yourself.

[@waccooga]

Nebulas do change, and, if you photograph them a year apart, you can see the changes (slight though they may be). New nebulosity appears and fade. Also, if you shoot galaxies, you may find Novae or notice variable stars in those galaxies. Shooting series of the same area also will reveal asteroids and comets that might be in frame. This is how things are discovered.

[@matej.mlakar]

Not my cup of tea, but still interesting device and maybe a good foundation for future of portable DSO rigs for those who want simplicity

[@StarScaperPhoto]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts Matej! My preference also remains with nightscape photography but sometimes I think it's nice to go out of the comfort zone a bit :-). For me it was really fun and easy to use this device to change things up. However if I was to 'reboot' my deep sky hobby again I would want a bit more final picture quality and would have to go all the way again with the investment of time and money. Maybe sometime... but for now I just want to go out again and experience the night sky again as soon as possible! Haha.

[@matej.mlakar]

@@StarScaperPhoto hah yeaaah... fingers crossed for November :D