Copyright 2010 Cloudsbegone.com | All Rights Reserved.
I started dabbling in Astronomy a long time ago and got my first telescope, a 4" F/10 reflector back in 1976 when I
was still in France. This led to the purchase of a Celestron 8 in 1978 and while the mount is gone, the OTA is still with
me but my primary scope now is the Starizona 12.5" Hyperion astrograph.
I moved to the United States in 1985 just after my father had built me an elevated platform with concrete column near Paris. The poor thing never got much use and was later dismantled. My first stop in the US was Detroit, Michigan and I did not do much observing there but I did get a Losmandy GM8 in 1994, just before moving again. I ended up north of New York City (about 40 minutes) and got back into this hobby in 2003. Living close to a main street and pretty much down town did not make for a happy visual observing experience. Setting up and taking apart the system every time also was getting tedious, not to mention that even when taking pictures, I still had all these lights from passing cars ruining my night vision.
This led to the construction of an observatory and it is only since May 2007 that I no longer have any excuse for not getting out (oh yes, the cold...).
By day, I work at making tiny things called microdisplays (link is here if you want to know more). This has provided me with insight on how we look at things, not so much on how we image things, but it is still somewhat related.
Then it was time to start structuring all these activities and that led to this website which hopefully will get better as my imaging techniques improve. The nice thing about this hobby is that the subject matter remains put (when the clouds are gone!) and never disappoints in its richness.
Olivier Prache
Pleasantville, NY December 2007
I moved to the United States in 1985 just after my father had built me an elevated platform with concrete column near Paris. The poor thing never got much use and was later dismantled. My first stop in the US was Detroit, Michigan and I did not do much observing there but I did get a Losmandy GM8 in 1994, just before moving again. I ended up north of New York City (about 40 minutes) and got back into this hobby in 2003. Living close to a main street and pretty much down town did not make for a happy visual observing experience. Setting up and taking apart the system every time also was getting tedious, not to mention that even when taking pictures, I still had all these lights from passing cars ruining my night vision.
This led to the construction of an observatory and it is only since May 2007 that I no longer have any excuse for not getting out (oh yes, the cold...).
By day, I work at making tiny things called microdisplays (link is here if you want to know more). This has provided me with insight on how we look at things, not so much on how we image things, but it is still somewhat related.
Then it was time to start structuring all these activities and that led to this website which hopefully will get better as my imaging techniques improve. The nice thing about this hobby is that the subject matter remains put (when the clouds are gone!) and never disappoints in its richness.
Olivier Prache
Pleasantville, NY December 2007
About Me