Well, well, well… look who finally decided to dust off the ol’ blog! It’s been a solid three years since my last post (January 2022, for those keeping track), and honestly, I feel like I owe the internet an apology letter. Life’s been a whirlwind since then, though. I’ve swapped out the quiet skies of Prescott Valley for the Phoenix area—where the stars are brighter, but unfortunately, so is the light pollution.
Oh, and that teaching degree? Yeah, about that… I traded it in for an engineering gig working with lasers in the semiconductor industry. (Cue the pew pew sound effects.) Somewhere between the move and life happening, my astrophotography gear got downsized to “basically nothing.” But recently, I caught the stargazing bug again and decided it’s time to get back into the hobby.
Now, let’s talk about gear—or rather, the gear that drove me up the wall. My OAT (Open Astro Tracker) and SWSA (Star Adventurer) were like rebellious teenagers: stubborn, unreliable, and always needing “alignment.” Polar aligning them was less of a fun challenge and more of a cosmic horror show. It made me realize I need a go-to mount with auto-plate solving that doesn’t turn every session into a comedy of errors. Enter the Seestar S50, my current telescope crush.
I know, I know. Fellow astrophotographers have warned me: “You won’t like it because you can’t upgrade,” and “That money would be better spent on a proper rig.” And you know what? They’re probably right. But let’s face it—right now, I just want something simple. Something I can set up, forget about, and actually snap some photos with. The Seestar might not teach me the hardcore lessons of astrophotography or let me mod it into the next Hubble, but it will let me actually enjoy the process again.
Yes, it’s locked into ZWO’s ecosystem and isn’t upgrade-friendly, but for now, I’m okay with that. It’s a stepping stone—a gateway scope, if you will. And honestly? I think it’ll be perfect for some easy imaging sessions and maybe even a hike into the Grand Canyon next year for some jaw-dropping shots.
While I wait for the Seestar to come back in stock (seriously, why is everything on backorder these days?), I’ll be revamping this website a bit and sharing more space news. Consider this my official return to the cosmos—one easy-to-use telescope at a time.