scotty38

Either will need decent PA and with that being accurate guiding in RA for a short while should be fine, which is what you're doing here. If you check the Astrobackyard videos Trevor used this type of setup without guiding and got some great results so it's definitely possible. Maybe have a look at those and see if he does anything different to you?

I always try and level as well as I can, I mean why not, but I have read plenty on here that says it's not "that" important to be spot on so if that's true it's not the cause of the changing streaks... Just scrolling back to check what guiding kit you're using but not sure why it would change other than a DEC versus RA issue for one or the other but even so I don't really know how that would manifest itself in the image.

Absolutely great. I have been playing with this target but my images don't quite look like this, great work!

Check out the Adam Block WBPP videos (as well as his other stuff)

Thanks both and will look at the others. I think I may have seen Izar but as mentioned I didn't record them so I could be mistaken.

Would it be a fair assumption to say these would not be possible with a Stellamira 80 ED? I'm new to this so I'm still unsure of whether it's eyes or scope that limits me. I've found a fair few doubles but I've not recorded which ones to then check if they're "easy" or not....

You've done well there as I expect it was pretty low and you'd have had decent moonlight throwing a spanner in the works too. I think that's why I had a try with M13 as it's sort of the other direction and I took a load of 30 seconds exposures so you could maybe try that one same as me?

Same here I think my first image was M42 and I was pleased as punch with it but even I can see what's wrong with it now. You'll get loads of advice and just recently I've had so much good info passed on regarding PI processing that you'd be mad NOT to post your images as the help you get is priceless...

I don't like listing the kit as it makes me shudder although it's a drop in the ocean compared with some.... WO GT81/0.8x Flatterner/ZWO 294MC Pro WO 50mm Guidescope/120mm mini ZWO EAF ZWO Mini Filter Wheel (to try things like UV/IR and L-Extreme so I can leave the train set up) AZ-EQ6 and iOptron ipolar (I bought this before I knew enough and with hindsight I didn't need it) I have an old laptop running NINA/PHD2/Sharpcap etc that I remote into once I've done the polar aligning.

Just to add as it may not have come across is that I was accepting that the reason I get anything like an ok picture is because I've thrown a bit of money at it. Everything I have works together and is recognised by the software (NINA and PHD2 mainly). All that said it takes a huge amount of fiddling which would be way, way harder I think if I was trying to get my Sony A7 connected/focused for example. Basically I've made it about as easy as I could (for me) but I try not to think about what I've spent to take the "easy" way out 🙂

I've been at it a couple of months but I have put at least one leg into the money-pit but happy enough with this one given the moon etc, taken a week or so ago I am reasonably technical so have read lots and do have a normal photography background. If that helps at all I wouldn't know 🙂 I have since had another go at it and got rid of the light pollution a bit but this is the original. Where I am utterly clueless is in the processing which is mind blowing really, well at least it is to me....

Brilliant and I will be having a play with your data too thanks!

Brilliant thanks Steve, dropping the Lum onto the RGB image is the bit I was missing as I was trying to pull the images into the tool which obviously can't be done with the RGB combined already....

Hi Steve I tried a similar process but when I got to the LRGB combo I got stuck with some error message. How do you use that process when the RGB channels are already combined? I guess I'm missing something obvious....

Thanks will have another go although I think I did this first time round and got myself in a mess but also not sure how I should really combine/process and in which order.... Still learning 🙂

Here's my attempt done in Pixinsight but struggling to get some of the colours others seem to achieve yet using the same/similar processes. It's a long road.... 🙂

Image/Undo Image/Redo should do what you want, it's how I do it although there may well be other ways

That's an excellent piece of work.

Apart from anything else you can move your mount with the laptop if you’re using sharp cap etc with ascom drivers. As said though you can get it done via cdc which is free too and shouldn’t need to do it manually at all.

And he was probably still around when this thread was started 🤣

Just to note that I am massively new to PI too and Lee has helped me out before too! If you look at the STF tool just to the right of your screenshot there's a "PC" type icon I think that "enables/disables" the STF settings so you can always see what your real image looks like if that makes sense. Don't forget if you have it enabled and then apply any histogram settings don't panic when it suddenly becomes washed out as you need to then disable STF as you're now stretching twice. Obvious when you realise but it caught me out 🙂 Oh I have those books too as I'm intending buying PI when my trial runs out.

If you deselect the "locked" channels in STF I think that will cure your problem... Edit oh sorry that wasn't your question, ignore me lol

Thanks for that and you've done nothing to dampen my interest in an FC-100 🙂

Thanks Lee, I didn't crop it at all as I was too busy trying to get an image that looked something like... My previous attempt had been at 2 or 3 minutes so wanted to try a much shorter exposure to see if I could combat the moon and also not blow out the centre of the cluster as much. I'm then trying to see what I can do in either APP or PI as my trials for those run out soon but really all I've been doing in either of them is stack all the frames 🙂

I took this a few nights ago and plenty of moonlight so tried for a greater number of shorter frames....