By day, David Cruz works as a digital designer. By night, he designs something far greater — images of the universe itself. “Since I was young, I was always interested in astronomy and used to watch the Milky Way during summer vacations in my parents’ village,” David recalls. “Five years ago, I took my first steps in astrophotography during a weekend workshop. I was completely amazed by what we could do with just a camera and a tripod. Since then, I never stopped exploring.” That simple workshop changed everything. What started as curiosity became a passion that reshaped his life — and his backyard.
David’s astrophotography setup has evolved dramatically over the years. In the beginning, portability was everything — living in the city meant every imaging session required traveling to the countryside. “The game changer was when I acquired an AM5 harmonic mount,” he says. “I removed 10 kg of stuff I had to carry, and the performance was unbelievable.” Later, after moving to the countryside, David began constructing his permanent observatory setup around a custom-built 10-inch Newtonian telescope — handcrafted in France specifically for astrophotography. He upgraded his camera from the ASI183MM Pro to the ASI2600MC Pro, a change that completely transformed his workflow. “I switched from mono to color because it just made sense — simplicity in acquisition, in processing, and cost. Dual-band filters are so good now that there was no point in investing in a mono setup,” he explains.
Current Setup:
Mount: Sky-Watcher CQ350 Pro
Telescope: Custom 250mm f/4 Carbon Newtonian
Corrector: TS Maxfield 0.95x
Camera: ZWO ASI2600MC Pro
Guide: ZWO ASI120MM Mini + Askar OAG
Focuser: ZWO EAF
With the ASI2600MC Pro at its heart, David’s system runs like a precision instrument — efficient, balanced, and powerful.
David now images from his Bortle 3 backyard observatory in rural Portugal — a place where the stars still shine as they did centuries ago. “Most of the time I shoot without filters,” he says. “I only use a dual-band filter when I want to mix Ha-OIII into broadband data.”
One of his most memorable nights came in October 2023, when Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–Atlas) reached its peak brightness. “I had never seen a comet with the naked eye before. We planned everything carefully, but as night fell, it wasn’t showing up — there was a bit of disappointment. Then, slowly, it started to appear, brighter and brighter, and it was just amazing to witness.” “The funniest part? I met a couple there who said they found the spot thanks to ChatGPT — the exact same place I’d planned all along!”
Moving from a 6-inch to a 10-inch Newtonian came with its share of challenges. Larger optics meant heavier mounts, more complex guiding, and even dealing with air turbulence inside the tube. But David took it all in stride.
“It was a steep learning curve — switching to NINA, using an OAG for the first time, and handling a heavy payload. But in the end, it was worth it. The image quality improved dramatically.” And the biggest lesson learned? “When you think you know everything, astrophotography reminds you that you are always learning.”
As a designer by profession, image processing comes naturally to David — but astrophotography requires a different kind of precision. “I experimented with different editing approaches and finally built a workflow that works perfectly for me,” he explains. “I use PixInsight for stacking and basic processing — WBPP, linear to non-linear transformation — and then separate star and starless images. The final touch always happens in Photoshop, with a non-destructive layer-based process.” This structured approach lets him achieve deep, clean results that balance science and art — a true reflection of his dual background in design and astronomy.
David’s favorite targets these days are galaxies — and with his new setup, they’ve never looked better.“When I captured the Triangulum Galaxy (M33) this year, I was blown away by the resolution. The combination of a big light bucket and a high-performance camera like the ASI2600MC Pro made it look like I have a mini Hubble in my backyard.” His deep-space works — from Sh2-82 to HGC68 — show both technical excellence and artistic expression.
The journey, however, is far from over. David’s next step is to push his equipment and creativity even further. “I just bought a 1.5x coma corrector, and there are many galaxies I’ve never shot before already on my wish list,” he says. “But more than that, I want to start sharing what I’ve learned — especially about image processing. I plan to do one-on-one mentoring to help others edit their own data and solve real problems, not just follow YouTube tutorials.”
For David, ZWO has been part of his astrophotography story from the very beginning. “Honestly, I don’t even remember where I first heard about ZWO,” he admits. “In my mind, ZWO was always at the front of the line. I started buying ZWO products because of the ASIAIR ecosystem — I wanted something easy to learn and use. It made sense to have everything from the same brand working flawlessly.” Even now, though he uses NINA for acquisition, his setup remains fully integrated with ZWO products — a testament to their reliability and design.
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