Had to choose between a wide field shot of the Milky Way or focusing on the Andromeda Galaxy last night

I only had a couple hours of clear sky before clouds rolled in, so I had to pick one target. I went with Andromeda because my new 300mm lens just arrived and I wanted to test it. I managed to get about 45 minutes of 90-second exposures before it got too hazy. The detail in the core is way better than my old shots, but I'm kicking myself a bit for missing the wider galactic band. For those of you with limited time, how do you decide what to shoot?

3 comments

3 Comments

nancythomas18d ago

Classic astro problem, always feels like the universe is messing with you. You finally get the gear and the clouds show up just to laugh.

johnson.paul18d ago

Tell me about it, @nancythomas, my new telescope is basically a cloud magnet.

taylor_miller1013d ago

Feel like you have to sacrifice a clear forecast to the astronomy gods before you even open the case. My last attempt ended with me just staring at the moon through a break in the clouds for ten minutes before it vanished. What did you even try to look at before the sky shut down?