24/1/15 - Vallis Rheita

[Blazar]

Hi all,

Went out on Saturday evening and did an hour on the surface. Usual set-up. Due to the early time I set up, the contrast is not as bold, and a slight lack of definition is evidence (IMO). Well this one is of a very dramatic valley in this phase and well worth a look. I also noticed an upscale in image size due to using placing a ZWO filter wheel in the optical path (as I want all the filters I have in the week I thought I would use it). I did try a few by adding the TAL barlow lens from the x2 onto it, but not sure how good those are going to be.  AVI Pre-processed in PIPP, Stacked in AS2, Wavelets in RS6, and final image constructed in PS.

Thanks as always for looking.

[Scooot]

Nicely done Steve. Great presentation. 300 miles of linked craters in 1), Id never have imagined that from just the pics.

[Blazar]

Cheers Richard. The scale of the Lunar surface really does get you sometimes. I guess its that most of our planet is covered in water, so we don't get the whole picture here at home.

[Droogie 2001]

Lovely picture. I am staggered by how natural the image looks. I seem to be constantly battling contrast and over /under exposure all of the time.

I have similar kit to yourself aside from you have a superior OTA though same aperture size. You also have the ASI120MM and I have the ASI120MC.

Any tips?

[Blazar]

Lovely picture. I am staggered by how natural the image looks. I seem to be constantly battling contrast and over /under exposure all of the time.

I have similar kit to yourself aside from you have a superior OTA though same aperture size. You also have the ASI120MM and I have the ASI120MC.

Any tips?

Thanks for the kind words.

As for tips....I have a couple of other things that I usually use that do play a big part in the images. A moonlite crayford focuser (helps minute adjustments), and an IR pass filter (used to be in the end of the camera, now its in the filter wheel).

The IR pass does soften the images slightly, but more importantly helps cut through the turbulent atmosphere (also used a lot on Luminance channels of planetary images). its quite expensive for what it is, but then again all astro stuff seems to be that way!

Focusing with the moonlite is a breeze. its 8:1 ratio means really tiny adjustments can help you nail focus...(seeing does play a big role though). I also zoom right in using the capture software to find where I think its best. sometimes though, no matter how much you tweek it the seeing just might be generally poor, or clouds ruin the evening. Take your time as well...i rushed about one evening and hit a radio button by mistake and it ruined all my AVI's...which were quite good by the looks of it.

Manual control of the exposure. I used to use automatic, but found it kept blowing out highlights. if whilst you are focusing you also keep checking around the image to look for issues with exposure etc. trial and error is the main thing. take several AVI's varying the exposures and see what works, and what does not. then make a note of them. 

Processing pathway:

I use PIPP (to pre-process them). I then throw them in the stacker (AS!2) to see how good the AVI's are, and then only stack a small percentage. I usually stick to only those frames that AS!2 says are 75% or better quality. If you end up with over 100 or so then i usually stack them. if I end up with less, then the avi is rejected. Then its into Registax 6 to use the wavelet feature on the TIFF file spat out by AS!2). I use linked wavelets, and usually only push the first and second (if lucky enough) sliders (with adjustments to sharpness and de-noise). I have found that with less frames, then you cannot push wavelets as hard. Finally I put the image into Photoshop to crop the edges, and see if there is anything else to fix. and then build the information around it. A bit long winded, but it keeps me busy ;-)

The biggest tip is to have fun...;-) 

Might be good to see some of your images  and then others can also help with suggestions.For reference this is the unprocessed TIFF spat out by AS!2. 374 frames, and as you can see, processing is where you extract the detail.

[Droogie 2001]

Hi Steve,

Thanks for the comprehensive tips. Have been toying with a new focuser for a while but just bought a WO Star 71 for wide field which has sucked up a lot of funds. Also see you have one too?! Like you say AP is expensive.

Also raised to IR filter question in the ZWO forums a few times and I was concerned with A. Ruining my new ASI120MC, B. Was not sure if it would work with a colour camera.

I thought PIPP did not work for lunar shots? I am using v2.4.3 which I downloaded a few weeks ago (have used the older versions for a year or two so not sure if this was something that was added in new version)

When I run it through PIPP and select Optimise for Solar/Lunar Close-up it does not seem to make any noticeable difference, not sure if I am missing something? Tried this on lots of different AVI as well.

I also then use AS2, Registax and PS.

My Flickr account has some examples, though some older ones were taken with a Neximage 5:

https://www.flickr.c...os/droogie2001/

Thanks,

Mike

[Blazar]

Nowt wrong with those images. I picked up my WO71 in the states when I went out last. great little scope but not really had a chance to use it. only a couple of shots (I don't have a modded DSLR). I can guide now though (or will do when I get time to practice again!). The filter just pops into the nosepiece, so doubt it would ruin it...though thinking about this, the colour camera has an IR/CUt cover over the sensor..whereas the mono just has clear glass....so in theory you would pass the IR through the filter, then loose it just before the sensor (think thats why a lot of people use mono and filters)...

PIPP is excellent at what it does (as it was first developed for planetary only). It does a good job of sorting and cropping the frames for analysis in AS!2, so would continue with it.

[Droogie 2001]

Thanks Steve.

You are right about the colour camera you have to remove IR cover.

Ok re PIPP I will have a play with this and spend longer on all of the steps and I may even upgrade to the Mono camera at some point.

As for the Star 71 I have only just got received mine and I an intending to use the ASI120MC for guiding with a new guide scope.

Anyway thanks again look forward to seeing more of your images, both Lunar and DSO's.
 

[cgarry]

I thought PIPP did not work for lunar shots? I am using v2.4.3 which I downloaded a few weeks ago (have used the older versions for a year or two so not sure if this was something that was added in new version)

When I run it through PIPP and select Optimise for Solar/Lunar Close-up it does not seem to make any noticeable difference, not sure if I am missing something? Tried this on lots of different AVI as well.

Actually the next version of PIPP will support stabilising lunar/solar surface video frames.  The code is pretty much complete and is currently going through testing.  If all goes well it should be released very soon.

Cheers,

Chris

[ghostdance]

Thanks Blazar - superb lunar images as always + really helpful & educative information - another one for me virtual learn-the-Moon book!

[Blazar]

Actually the next version of PIPP will support stabilising lunar/solar surface video frames.  The code is pretty much complete and is currently going through testing.  If all goes well it should be released very soon.

Cheers,

Chris

Heading out after dinner Chris...I will give it a go tomorrow....

[Blazar]

Sorry to post again..but found another image of the same region a little later on. you can see the contrast has improved. I have not annotated this one, just left the sheer size of the image. quite a lot of low level details as well, like Jansen Rille I think is in there as well. 

[AndyUK]

That's very nice... .  I've (very foolishly) ignored lunar imaging for many years, but with images like these, I'm beginning to consider revising my kit...

[gnomus]

Stunning.  The improved contrast (and size) makes this a more arresting image than the previous one (which I also liked).  Exposure is perfect and the level of detail is astounding.   It is difficult to see how you could improve on this.  To get this 'close' are you using a barlow with your C8 Edge?

I have one comment.  It is interesting that the top part of the image (the southern part of the moon?) seems softer (and just a bit grainier) than the rest.  Is this an issue with the optics?  Is this a mosaic? 

[Blazar]

Stunning.  The improved contrast (and size) makes this a more arresting image than the previous one (which I also liked).  Exposure is perfect and the level of detail is astounding.   It is difficult to see how you could improve on this.  To get this 'close' are you using a barlow with your C8 Edge?

I have one comment.  It is interesting that the top part of the image (the southern part of the moon?) seems softer (and just a bit grainier) than the rest.  Is this an issue with the optics?  Is this a mosaic? 

Thanks Andy, I find Lunar to be quite interesting...always something now to look at or find.

Gnomus, cheers (thats what I thought, so would post it). There is no barlow at all used in this. However as the camera has moved further down the optical path then it has increased the image scale (or so it seems). I can add the lens from the front of my x2 into the mix as well, though I think the atmosphere would need to be really steady for that.

Re the softness of the edges. This is a result of stacking (and then sharpening). When you select 'expand' instead of 'crop' in AS!2 then it softens the edges of the whole image. The crop option removes some of the image, but have not really used it. might have a go and see what it does.  The shot is a single image.

[gnomus]

Thanks Andy, I find Lunar to be quite interesting...always something now to look at or find.

Gnomus, cheers (thats what I thought, so would post it). There is no barlow at all used in this. However as the camera has moved further down the optical path then it has increased the image scale (or so it seems). I can add the lens from the front of my x2 into the mix as well, though I think the atmosphere would need to be really steady for that.

Re the softness of the edges. This is a result of stacking (and then sharpening). When you select 'expand' instead of 'crop' in AS!2 then it softens the edges of the whole image. The crop option removes some of the image, but have not really used it. might have a go and see what it does.  The shot is a single image.

Thanks for the information.  The comment about softness was asked out of interest - I'll have to check to see what I have set in AS2.  I was thinking that the softness (as one recedes into the image) gives the illusion that the viewer is closer to the surface (just as in a terrestrial landscape shot if a nearby foreground is sharp, the background may be soft).  Photographically this works really well - you have the shadow area bottom left and the softer area at top - so the main feature is well 'framed'.  Aesthetically, I'm not sure I would seek to change it.     

Regards

[Blazar]

Funnily enough its not oriented correctly. if you do, then it does not make as much impact IMO. I have done this on other areas (Theophilus etc) . Put them into a landscape view and they seem to work better, and more detail is viewable (again IMO). I see what you mean about an optical illusion though...(obviously I meant to do this on purpose ;-))

[gnomus]

Funnily enough its not oriented correctly. if you do, then it does not make as much impact IMO. I have done this on other areas (Theophilus etc) . Put them into a landscape view and they seem to work better, and more detail is viewable (again IMO). I see what you mean about an optical illusion though...(obviously I meant to do this on purpose ;-))

Oh, I know you did.