Lee_P

A very promising start!

@ONIKKINEN is spot-on in my opinion.

Gain 100, always. Controlled using an ASIAIR Plus.

I use an ASI2600MC Pro -- same sensor as your camera I believe. I always shoot 120s subs, regardless of target or whether I'm using an L-eXtreme or no filter at all. Always 120s. Bortle 8 skies, to make things even harder. Check my gallery and you'll see it can work well

I've used the Evostar and found it to be very good for the asking price. I wrote this review: https://astrogeartoday.com/sky-watcher-evostar-90-660-az-pronto-review-a-good-first-telescope-option/

PixInsight has some good processes that help, in particular NormalizeScaleGradient. Nowadays I don't even factor the Moon's position or phase into my imaging, even when shooting broadband targets. But I do aim for long integration times, typically 20+ hours.

Definitely agree. This is 660 x 120 seconds, ASI2600MC PRO, no filters, under Bortle 8 skies. (@ollypenrice and most of the data were taken with a bright Moon nearby in the sky!)

I think that a big benefit of modern CMOS sensors is their ability to function well with short subframe lengths. This has a few benefits, such as putting less pressure on your mount's performance. Also note that the newer generations of CMOS sensors, such as those used in the camera I use (ASI 2600MC PRO) have no amp glow. I agree, processing skills make or break an image, regardless of sensor type used. I'm sure that before long you'll be producing great pics with your new camera. But if not, you could always go back to CCD; just because it's old technology doesn't mean it's bad. All these cameras are tools for us to use, choose whatever suits you best and you enjoy using

This is great advice. Shout-out to PixInsight's NormalizeScaleGradient function too, which helps with subframes have gradients due to moonlight.

Add 21 more hours and then we'll compare 😁

Let me know if you want a Beta tester for version 2 😃 Thanks again for making and sharing GHS!

That's interesting, thanks @vlaiv Maybe worth waiting for the newer dual-band filters to see if they're any better then?

The L-eXtreme is great, I'd go for that if I were you. (Or wait a little longer as new dual-band filters are on the way). Sure, you get some halos around very bright stars, but it's not that much of an issue really. You can minimise them during processing. For broadband targets, I doubt you really need any filter from Bortle 4/5. For reference, I'm under Bortle 8 skies and use an L-eXtreme for narrowband targets, and no filter for broadband targets.

Oh sure, I use NSG as standard now. It's great!

How are you using your kit, exactly? Are you sat there clicking the shutter button every few minutes? Or are you using an intervalometer? Or something else?

Thanks, yep it was without the reducer. I spent five weeks on this project, and it was cloudy most of the time! I actually captured way more than 22 hours, but whittled it down so as to only have the best quality data in the stack.

I've spent lots of time recently capturing faint nebulae, so it was nice to image something a bit brighter! Lots more info on my website, but I'll paste the key capture info below for those that don't want to click through. For this image I used the Generalised Hyperbolic Stretch method by @mike1485 and @Gunshy, outlined here. It's well worth a look if you process using PixInsight. * Dec 2021 – Jan 2022 * Bristol, UK (Bortle 8 ) * Telescope: Askar FRA400 f/5.6 Quintuplet APO Astrograph * Camera: ZWO ASI 2600MC-PRO * Filter: none * Mount: Orion Sirius EQ-G * Guide: William Optics 32mm; ZWO ASI 120MM Mini * Control: ASIAIR Plus, ZWO EAF * Software: PixInsight, Lightroom, Topaz DeNoise AI * 660 x 120 seconds Total integration time: 22 hours By Lee Pullen

Looks great, I particularly like the unusual composition.

Thanks for putting this all together @mike1485 and @Gunshy. I've just been trying it for the first time on some fresh M45 data. Here are some comparisons using three different stretching methods: Data stretched by applying STF to the Histogram: Data stretched using EZ Soft Stretch: Data stretched using GHS: GHS obviously has a lot of potential! There's loads more nebulosity, and the stars are nicely controlled too. And this was just my first play around with it. I'm processing the data now, but already I've discovered one happy result of using GHS: stars are so well controlled that Topaz Denoise doesn't have trouble with them in the same way it often does after stretching with the other methods. If the developers are open to requests, I'd be very interested in a more user-friendly tutorial on the interface. I relied on the Zoom recording posted on YouTube, and that was just enough info to start me off. It would also be wonderful if there could be a real-time preview of your adjustments onto the actual image, rather than just a histrogram. No idea if that's possible. Anyway, thanks again for making this tool!

I think this is a brilliant summary.

The L-uLtimate is now listed on an Australian site: https://www.testar.com.au/collections/new-products/products/optolong-l-ultimate No price given on that webpage, but the Google preview says 599 ASD, which converts to £323. No idea if that would be the 1.25" or 2" size.

This is great, good job!

I'm glad you found that article interesting, the fact that you've got a cooled camera makes things a lot simpler

I take 16 to 24-hour images using an ASIAIR Plus. Using Plan mode you can plate solve to the same location over many nights. Don't remove your camera / rotate it during the project, and then your framing will be consistent. As for calibration, are you using a cooled camera? That makes things a lot easier. Always take your subframes at the same temperature (e.g. -10 degrees C). You can then use one set of temperature-matched dark frames. As for Flats, one set taken at some point during your imaging project will do. You can then calibrate all your data together at once, rather than night by night. More info here.

Thanks very much! Maybe those opinions aren't as controversial as I thought 😂