More about RAW format
[from Nkon Digital .org (not affilliated with Nikon)]
The decisive moment ... 
[photos of Melanie Kipp of Caught in Time]
Mars through a telescope:
Upon seeing the first Mars from the new camera (right), the old Coolpix 950 swaggered onto the porch and waved its new big brother aside with a twist of its lens section, "Step aside Dee 100, let me show you how it's done."
And with that, the little camera that could snapped the shot on the left below using the 6mm orthoscopic eyepiece for an eighth second exposure:
Ah, thee's a learning curve. First lesson, the mirror and shutter jar the telescope enough to make it wiggle. Second lesson, go easy on the magnification. The right exposure is made with the D100 and a 32mm erfle eyepiece in projection mode, through a #23 red filter.
Notice the south pole ice cap - or the lack of it. The area now seems to be lighter in color, but not stark white as it had been for the last few months. The dry ice has sublimated, leaving behind a frigid tundra. Martian midsummer has arrived!
Spectrum of a florescent lamp.
