Photo processing programs?

[Andrew.Rappolt]

Hey guys,

I'm pretty new to astrophotography and was wondering what you would all suggest for some photo processing programs. I've been reading some of the posts and some speak of stacking frames and i get the concept but I was wondering what it was for:icon_scratch: and any programs that would be good for this.

Thanks for looking.

[ScubaMike]

Capture software (to create the AVIs)

SharpCap, Craterlet (both free)

Stacking software:-

Registax, Avistack (both free)

(good idea to have VirtualDub to convert incompatable AVIs too)

Stiching software (for combining multiple staked images to form a mosaic):-

Microsoft ICE (free), iMerge (free)

Post Processing:-

Photoshop (licenced)

I also use FocusMagic (licenced) for post process sharpening.

The idea behind stacking frames is that you stack a lot of short exposure images which enable you to pick those frames which are taken during the momentary periods of good seeing, thereby minimising the effects of atmospheric interference. There are some stunning images in the lunar & planetary sections here which have used this technique. This method is used for the Moon & planets. The frames are generally taken with a modified webcam.

Deep Space Objects (DSOs - like nebulae, clusters etc) use a different method involving long exposures which are then stacked using DSS or similar. Again there are some breathtaking images being showcased on this forum. These frames are generally taken with a dedicated astro Camera (or modified DSLR).

[yeti monster]

Also, for post processing, Gimp is free (google it) and there is a RAW plug-in available should you require it.

[JimStan]

I'm surprised that ScubaMike didn't mention "Deep Sky Stacker" as free stacking software. It probably has more users than the others, combined!

Also, PhotoShop Elements can do almost anything that PhotoShop does, at a much lower price!

I found a nice program called Paint.net, that is free, but you do have to have the Microsoft .net programs installed to use it. They are also free, but do take up a fair chunk of your HD and ram when being used.

Jim S.

[Andrew.Rappolt]

Thanks guys,

this is very helpful, but this seems to be for web cams, etc....what should I use for a DSLR?

[Smeg]

Buy a Wacom Intuos4 and get software free.

Wacom is worth it

There is always Gimp, digiKam and the camera supplied software.

I think a lot of people also forget about Lightroom (cheaper than photoshop but geared towards photography).

Why pay an arm or a leg for Photoshop when there is cheaper alternatives that do most of what astro imagers need.

What do you need? High pass filtering, layers, historgrams, channels, colour manipulation. Most if not all programs do that.

[JimStan]

DSS IS made for stacking of images with lots of stars in them, and less capable on images that are extended in size ( planets, the moon )

[ScubaMike]

I'm surprised that ScubaMike didn't mention "Deep Sky Stacker" as free stacking software. It probably has more users than the others, combined!

I did. See the last paragraph of my post

I would argue that DSS is used primarily by DSO imagers, and as Planetary & Lunar are easier to capture, registax is more widely used. But I may be wrong.

[Merlin66]

Registax etc can stack individual images as well as AVI frames.

I use AstroArt V5 to control all my cameras including the DSLR and do the image processing; darks, flats etc. A good, but under rated piece of astronomical software.