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TIL my telescope had the lens cap on for 3 years of moon photos
Last month I was swapping lenses on my 8-inch Dobsonian and noticed the dust cover was still snug on the front. I've been taking moon shots since 2022 from my backyard in Tucson, always wondering why they looked so soft. Turns out the cap was blocking half the aperture the whole time. I felt like a total clown standing there in the dark. My buddy cracked up when I told him, said it explains why my 'craters' looked like blurry pancakes. Anyone else ever catch a silly mistake like this after years of photos?
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avery_jackson23d ago
That story hurts me on a personal level, man. 3 years is a long time to be shooting the moon through a half-blocked scope. I once spent about 18 months taking photos of my daughter's soccer games with a smudge on the sensor that looked like a permanent ghost goalie in every frame. @gracec16 is spot on about those cheap filters too, I've seen more than a few guys at the shop come in frustrated with soft photos only to find a $5 UV filter was the culprit. Honestly, the fact that you stuck with it for 3 years before noticing shows some serious dedication. At least now you get to rediscover your own telescope all over again, that's kind of a silver lining. The blurry pancake crater comment from your buddy is gold though, I would've said the same thing to you.
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amy_anderson23d ago
Oh man, I feel this so hard. I spent two years shooting waterfalls and landscapes with my kit lens, wondering why everything had this weird haze. Finally realized the UV filter I bought for $5 on Amazon was basically a piece of cheap glass that was smudged and scratched the whole time. Not quite as bad as a lens cap, but I still wanted to crawl under a rock when I figured it out. At least you have an excuse, I just got lazy about cleaning my gear.
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