Bought a $200 solar filter for my telescope

Saw a deal online and grabbed it without checking reviews. First use left weird spots on all my sun photos. Anyone else get burned by cheap astro gear?

3 comments

3 Comments

troyknight4d ago

Oh man, I got burned too with a cheap filter that left weird artifacts on my sun shots. Spent hours trying to fix them in editing before I learned my lesson - you really do get what you pay for with solar gear.

linda_reed4d ago

Spend that much on a filter and you could've bought a whole new lens. Half the fun of solar photography is figuring out workarounds when your gear isn't perfect. Plus, those artifacts can actually look kind of cool if you lean into them instead of fighting them.

paige1664d ago

lol same energy as when I bought a "pro" tripod that wobbled like a flamingo on roller skates. That $200 filter sounds like it's giving you the solar equivalent of a bad hair day - no amount of photoshop will make those weird spots look intentional. I swear my astro gear budget is just me paying for lessons in humility at this point. Last month I dropped cash on a motorized mount that sounded like a dying robot every time I tried to track the moon. Honestly your filter might be punking you but at least you didn't accidentally fry your whole camera like I did with a $50 solar film that was basically kitchen wrap.