DWARF 3 vs Vespera II: which is faster for deep-sky imaging?

DwarfLab DWARF 3 against Vaonis Vespera II, on the same targets from the same skies, using the same photon-budget model as the rest of the site. Times are for a solid image; the calculator gives quick-look and showpiece figures too.

Speed. Across the 30 most popular targets from a suburban Bortle 6 sky, they are about the same speed. From a rural Bortle 3 sky the Vespera II is 1.3× faster.

Field of view. The DWARF 3 shows 2.93° × 1.65° against 2.55° × 1.44°, so big targets such as the Andromeda Galaxy, the North America Nebula and the Pleiades fit with room to spare where the Vespera II needs a mosaic or a tight crop.

Detail. The Vespera II samples at 2.39″ per pixel against 2.75″, so it pulls finer structure from small targets: planetary nebulae, globular cores, galaxy arms.

Subs and dark skies. The DWARF 3 goes up to 60 s subs in EQ mode, the Vespera II tops out at 30 s. That matters little from a city, where skyglow sets the floor, and a lot from a dark site, where read noise does.

Filters. The DWARF 3 has a dual-band filter built in; the Vespera II does not, which costs it heavily on emission nebulae from any suburban sky.

Specifications side by side

Timed on the same targets

Suburban sky (Bortle 6)

Rural sky (Bortle 3)

Try the DWARF 3 in the calculator Try the Vespera II

About the DwarfLab DWARF 3

Small pixels on a 35 mm f/4.3 lens give a sharper image than its aperture suggests, and EQ mode with 60 s subs makes it the read-noise winner in dark skies.

About the Vaonis Vespera II

A 50 mm quadruplet on an 8 MP sensor with Vaonis’s mosaic mode for wide fields. Same optics class as the Seestar S50, four times the pixels.

Other comparisons

All comparisons · Buying guide · DWARF 3 page · Vespera II page