Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 65
is manufactured to be flat enough to ensure parallelism for
f/6 and slower optical systems. With faster optics, however,
some small adjustments may be required. To test a round
camera, remove its 2-inch nosepiece and install the camera
face down into the camera mount on the top of the tester.
Most camera tilt plates include three or four sets of pushpull
screws. Since most cameras come from the manufacturer
with the adjustment plate flush against the front of the camera,
you'll have to loosen the pull screws half a turn and rotate
the push screws ¼ turn or less to get a bit of adjustability.
Approximately center the camera in the rig and rotate the
three nylon washers until they are touching the camera body.
Then refine the camera's centering by rotating it by hand. Be
sure to mark the side of the camera so you have a startingpoint
reference for the coming measurements. Next, turn on
the laser (which you pre-aligned to strike the center of the
sensor) and examine the projected pattern. Rotate the camera
slowly while pushing down on it a bit to keep it flush to the
Masonite plate. If the beam traces out a small circle, then
the sensor is tipped, and adjustments are needed. The goal is
to confine the circle it traces to less than 1
/8-inch. When the
traced circle is closest to you (as you're standing in front of
the fixture), it's farthest along the base plate from the laser.
At this point, put a sticky backed note on the base plate
and use a fine-tip marker or pencil to plot the laser dot's position
at six different angles separated by about 60°. Remove
the camera and adjust the push-pull screws to decrease the
spacing of the plate on the side closest to you, or raise the
opposite side, whichever is best aligned with the side facing
you. Use increments of 1
/8-to ¼-turn to avoid overcorrection.
Return the camera to the test fixture and check again.
Camera window (ignore)
Sensor window
FOLLOW THE BRIGHTEST DOT The brightest reflection is from the
window over the sensor and is the one to watch. You should ignore all
the others (like those circled in the above photograph).
TAKE AIM When in place, the target makes it easy to aim the laser at
the exact center of your camera's detector.
CENTERED DETECTOR The camera shown is mounted and ready
for testing. Swivel the nylon washers to secure the camera in the center
but still allow it to rotate freely. Note the black arrow on the camera body
that's used as an indexing point as you turn the camera during testing.
sk yand tele scope .o r g * APRIL 2025 65
http://skyandtelescope.org
Sky & Telescope - April 2025
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Sky & Telescope - April 2025
Contents
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - Cover1
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - Cover2
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 1
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - Contents
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 3
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 4
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 5
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 6
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 7
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 8
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 9
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 10
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 11
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 12
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 13
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 14
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 15
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 16
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 17
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 18
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 19
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 20
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 21
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 22
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 23
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 24
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 25
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 26
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 27
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 28
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 29
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 30
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 31
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 32
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 33
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 34
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 35
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 36
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 37
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 38
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 39
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 40
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 41
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 42
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 43
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 44
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 45
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 46
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 47
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 48
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 49
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 50
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 51
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 52
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 53
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 54
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 55
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 56
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 57
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 58
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 59
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 60
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 61
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 62
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 63
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 64
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 65
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 66
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 67
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 68
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 69
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 70
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 71
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 72
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 73
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Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 81
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Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - 84
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - Cover3
Sky & Telescope - April 2025 - Cover4
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