ParallaxPete

No such luck here in Aberdeen, it's currently snowing!

Thank you for the kind words. I didn't really notice the green cast at first, but when I went back and adjusted the levels it became very apparent indeed. Very happy with the image now, can't wait for the next clear night to do some more imaging. I certainly wish I hadn't waited so long before getting back into astrophotography again.

Thank you. Aha, you are quite correct. I did have the background a more neutral colour but ending up fiddling with the image again which seems to have altered the balance. I'll go back and tweak it again. I do an initial colour calibration in SiriL and then edit in GIMP.

Like everyone else I took advantage of another rare clear night and had a go at M81 and M82 with my Esprit 100 and ASI2600MC Pro. I have been quite surprised with the images I have been getting given that the scope is still setup in my work office garden under Bortle 7/8 skies. Still looking forward to taking it home where I have Bortle 3/4 skies. This was 110 x 120s subs using an Optolong L-Pro filter.

Spent the evening (and early hours!) re-processing my image from scratch. Much happier with the result now. Thanks to all who offered advice/tips etc.

Thank you again 🙂 That's looking a lot better. I am currently using SiriL and then finishing off in GIMP. I haven't played with the Hue-Chroma tool though, something I will definitely look into.

No problem at all 🙂 Thank you for having a go, that does indeed look much better. I'm always torn between going too subtle or too far when processing, so it's good so get second opinions 🙂 I still need to work on some noise reduction as I'm still struggling to get my backgrounds quite how I want them.

Thank you 🙂 I might have a play later on and try and improve it.

Lovely clean images. I'm still struggling to get images this nice with my setup.

Finally had a clear night to get some imaging done. Only managed to get 2.5 hours before the clouds rolled in, but I'm fairly happy with the result. Anyway, this was 75 x 120s subs using an Optolong L-Pro filter with my Esprit 100 and ASi2600MC Pro. Really like the wide field the Esprit gives on subjects like this. I have been planning to get an 8" EdgeHD for galaxy work but think I will hold off for a while.

Fantastic image. I'm hoping to get the chance to image this before it disappears for the year. If it's even half as good as this I'll be pleased 😀

Thank you 😀 Indeed, I agree about the black point. I played with it a bit but couldn't decide if I liked it darker or not. Hopefully I'll get a chance to image it again soon with less light pollution and moonlight.

OK, this image isn't going to win any awards, but I'm glad to finally start imaging again (my first serious image for probably 20 years) and end up with an image I am reasonably happy with and can build upon. I started out using the Esprit 100 with the Starizona Apex reducer but cannot for the life of me get the flats to calibrate the lights properly and just end up with a horrendously over-corrected image. So, for the time being I have reverted back to the standard Skywatcher FF which has worked fine. Anyway, this is my Rosette nebula using the Optolong L-Extreme from Bortle 8 skies and 78% illuminated moon. The scope is currently setup in my office back garden, once I get it setup properly at home I have Bortle 3/4 skies to play with. 40x240s lights, 30 flats and 30 darkflats. It ended up turning into more of an 'arty' image as it's my first time processing data from a dedicated CMOS camera, but I'm happy with the result which is what matters I guess 😀

Wow, truly outstanding images!

After what has felt like an eternity my new imaging rig is now almost complete. I'm still waiting on a bracket to be fabricated to hold my powerbox and NUC PC on the scope itself, and I still need to make some custom power cables, but finally glad to have something that actually resembles a telescope 😀.

Nice writeup 😀 I've been looking for some observing sites in that area to take advantage of the dark skies (found a nice site up by the Lecht I'll be going to). I believe most of the area is Bortle 2, which is nice. Even though I've been in the north east for over 40 years I think I've only been up in the cairngorms a couple of times before.

Wow, that is an outstanding image! I would never have believed that was taken in the UK given how poor our skies tend to be. M45 is something I want to image this winter as I have never managed to do it justice before, you have set the bar incredibly high!

Wow, that's a beautiful image! I have been binging on ASI2600MC images recently (I have one on order) and this is the nicest one I have seen so far.

Thank you all for the warm welcome 😀 I'm a bit of a Photoshop fan, but I am tempted to start using PixInsight. It looks like it'll take a bit of getting used to, but seems to be very powerful. As for other software, I intend to use NINA and PHD2. Yes indeed, I'm glad to see it's still going. I actually met John MacNicol through work around 20 years ago (showing my age now 🤣) and he said back then I should join, I just never got round to it.

Hi all, I've lurked on here for quite a while and decided it's time to sign up. Finally finding the time to get back into Astrophotography after working in the Oil/Gas industry for far too long. I have an Esprit 100ED, EQ6-R and ASI2600 on order from FLO and hope to get going in time for the dark Scottish nights 🙂 Pete