McErono: Hall of Fame Winner Spotlight
I recently introduced quarterly challenges for Galactic Course members, with each challenge winner receiving a prize and becoming eligible for the Galactic Course Hall of Fame. Since this new community initiative launched midway through the year, I decided to make the first Hall of Fame special by looking back at all the beautiful images shared in the Galactic Lounge and Discord over the past year and selecting my favorite.
From now on, the next Hall of Fame winners will be selected at the end of each year!
If you'd like to participate in this challenge and other contests, earn prizes and get access to so much useful content, make sure to join the Galactic Course!
The Winning Picture
Congratulations to... Marc (aka "McErono") for this beautiful picture of the Elephant Trunk Nebula! I chose this image because I immediately fell in love with the colors. The details are also very neat and the stars small and round.
For information about the gear used, the integration time, and more details on what made this image possible, keep reading!
Interview with the Winner
Want to get to know the winner a little bit? Let's go over a few questions that you might also find useful.
1) Marc, Tell us a little bit about yourself
I started astrophotography 9 years ago, though the seed was planted earlier: I bought a cheap telescope for my son 15 years ago and ended up using it far more than he did. It took me a few years before I got seriously into imaging.
I've always been a bit of a hardware geek, and this hobby perfectly combines several of my interests: the wonders of the universe, imaging technology, software and robotics.
99 per cent of the time, I shoot from the comfort of my balcony in the heart of Switzerland, in a Bortle 5 city.
2) What inspired you to image the Elephant Trunk Nebula?
Normally my total exposure times are very short, around 1–2 hours. For this image I wanted to push the boundaries a little further for a change.
I started in 2023 and finished in 2025, for a total of 6 hours. Honestly, it wasn't a specific target, but I've always liked IC1396A (my one and only printed astroimage is the Elephant's Trunk Nebula in my living room), and with my then-new RedCat 51 and the OSC APS-C sensor the field of view was just perfect. In 2023 I gathered 3 hours, then in 2025 I added another 3 to see what doubling the integration time would do. Plus, Bill Blanshan's scripts had just come out, and I used them to test how to get really beautiful narrowband images out of a one-shot colour camera. Something totally new for me back then.
3) Can you walk us through the gear and acquisition details?
It's 120 × 180 sec, shot with an Optolong L-Extreme filter, William Optics RedCat 51 V2 on an iOptron CEM26 and an Omegon 571C camera. It was meant to be my portable setup but, as you can tell, it was used on my balcony for this image.
4) What are your main goals for the future?
I've already reached my goals, I guess. I no longer need the best and latest equipment. I'm happy with the setup I have and make sure to use it as often as possible. It really is as they say: the best equipment is the one you always use. And I intend to keep doing this for many years to come, so I never feel any stress if I miss a target in a season, because there will hopefully be a lot of seasons ahead.
I have "only" three telescopes: a RedCat 51, a Skywatcher Esprit 100ED and a Celestron 8" EdgeHD (with reducer and Hyperstar)… oh, and I forgot the brand-new SVBony SV535.
In the future I'd like to spend more clear nights out and about rather than on the balcony. The Swiss mountains are perfect for astro trips, and I'll never forget seeing my own shadow on top of a mountain in the middle of a moonless night, cast just by starlight. Amazing.
5) If you could give one piece of advice to a beginner just starting out, what would it be?
Start small, with a refractor like the Askar SQA55 or RedCat 51 (which I didn't do — I started with the 8" EdgeHD). You have so much to learn, don't make it harder than it already is. And if you can lean on a guide — an experienced astrophotographer, a course like the Galactic Course, combined with forums and Discords — you'll see very fast progress.
But embrace the issues that will arise. They're bound to happen, and trying to resolve them completely (or working around them with adjustments to your equipment) is where you'll learn by far the most.
Software is extremely important. Set up your own workflow, but don't spend too much time on processing. All my images are done within 30 minutes of stacking at the latest. Beginners tend to overprocess.
Other Astrophotography Work by Marc
Want to follow Marc and see his other pictures? You can check out his Astrobin page!
And before we finish, I wanted to ask our winner two extra questions:
Q: Marc, what's your favorite target?
A: Everything from south to northwest (due to my balcony 😅 )
Q: And what is the biggest lesson you have learned so far?
A: That the issues are part of the hobby!
Final Thoughts
Congratulations, Mark, on becoming the first overall winner for the Imaging category! 🎉
Your image is now permanently featured in the Hall of Fame.
Marc's socials:
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Clear Skies,
Galactic Hunter
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