ArtCentrics

Course Summary

East Valley Astronomy Club (EVAC) is offering an introductory for planetary, Moon and Sun imaging.  This course consist of three 60-90 minute ZOOM meetings and two or three labs held at the Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch in Gilbert next to the Gilbert Riparian Observatory.  The focus class will cover a number of basic concepts associated with imaging the planets, Moon and the Sun.  It will review the current techniques and hardware required to get the best image possible for your system.  A telescope is required for this class but the club does have one camera and computer that can be rented for the capture sessions.

Course size will be limited and will be closed once limit have been reached.

Course Resources

• Materials
  • Class Book (PDF) – Contains all the material we will be covering in the meetings.
  • Make a Solar Filter (PDF) – Instructions on how to make a solar filter from filter paper.
• Recordings (MP4)
  • 2026-04-21 Chapter 1,2,3: Course overview, Student Introductions, Setting Expectations, Atmospheric Considerations, Optical Train and Hardware.
  • 2026-04-22 Chapter 3-6: Hardware and accessories, Optical Tube Assembly, Mounts, Cameras, Filters. Calculations and lucky imaging. Bringing it all together: Two Working Examples.
  • 2026-04-23 Chapter 7 & Live Demo : Bringing it all together, live demo using SharpCap Pro
  • 2026-04-30 Live Demo: Processing a Moon Photo

Course Details

• 4 Zoom Classes and 1 Demonstration
• ZOOM Meetings & Demonstration – Sign Up/Pay Here
  • $5 for EVAC Members
  • $10 for Non-EVAC Members
• Join EVAC HERE
• Ages 15 and up
• Class size is limited

Course Schedule

This class will be held from Tuesday, 04/21 to Sunday, 04/26

• Three Days of ZOOM Class
  • 3 recorded classes, 90 minutes each, 7pm – 8:30pm
  • Class Meets: April 21, 22, 23 (Tues, Wed, Thu) at 7pm
    • Meeting ID: 882 1594 9459 | Passcode: 165071
  • Final Zoom Demo: April 30 (Thu) at 7pm
  • Meeting ID: 865 6594 7709 | Passcode: 608224
• Lab:
  • Location: Gilbert Rotary Central Observatory
  • Dates/Times: 7:30pm – 9:00pm
    • Friday, May 1st – Imaging Jupiter with SharpCap Pro

Student Information

The following information is required from each student for registration

• Name
• Contact Information
• Email Address
• Contact Phone Number
• Do you have a telescope you plan on bringing to the labs?
• Make & Model of telescope
• Imaging hardware list including make and model (if you have any)

Additional Online Resources