Starfields

I wanted to try some basic starfield shots first of all, to get used to focussing with Backyard EOS and practice achieving good polar alignment.  Here are a couple of shots taken with my 400D with a 50mm prime lens on the HEQ5.  Exposures were 10x30seconds each at ISO 800.  Darks were also taken to reduce noise:

Deneb (the brighter star in the lower left) is the brightest star in the constellation Cygnus and one of the vertices of the Summer Triangle

Vega (α Lyr, α Lyrae, Alpha Lyrae) is the brightest star in the constellation Lyra, the fifth brightest star in the night sky and the second brightest star in the northern celestial hemisphere, after Arcturus.