Process files from both sides of a Meridian Flip in Nebulosity 3.... Help, please!

[PhotoGav]

So, I have 7 x 900s subs of the Horsehead Nebula that I am trying to process. They are shot on a canon 60D, so are .CR2 Raw files.  Two are from one side of the meridian and the other five are from the other side and therefore flipped. I cannot for the life of me work out how to stack the files in Nebulosity 3...

I have tried rotating the flipped five in both Digital Photo Pro and Photo Mechanic, but this does nothing to the raw files. So, when i open them in Nebulosity 3 (on the Mac) the are not rotated and remain flipped compared to the first two.

What am I doing wrong?!?

I have stacked the five files and then taken the stack into photoshop and rotated it - there is some lovely data in there, but i feel hard done by at not being able to use the other two files. Furthermore, this means that I can't do anything that requires a meridian flip, which surely cant be the case!

So, I plead with you, Please Help Me!!!

Thank you,

Frustrated of Wiltshire.

[lensman57]

So, I have 7 x 900s subs of the Horsehead Nebula that I am trying to process. They are shot on a canon 60D, so are .CR2 Raw files.  Two are from one side of the meridian and the other five are from the other side and therefore flipped. I cannot for the life of me work out how to stack the files in Nebulosity 3...

I have tried rotating the flipped five in both Digital Photo Pro and Photo Mechanic, but this does nothing to the raw files. So, when i open them in Nebulosity 3 (on the Mac) the are not rotated and remain flipped compared to the first two.

What am I doing wrong?!?

I have stacked the five files and then taken the stack into photoshop and rotated it - there is some lovely data in there, but i feel hard done by at not being able to use the other two files. Furthermore, this means that I can't do anything that requires a meridian flip, which surely cant be the case!

So, I plead with you, Please Help Me!!!

Thank you,

Frustrated of Wiltshire.

Hi,

I have not had this problem in my imaging but there is a flip option in Nebulasity under the image drop down list, it is worth a try.

Regards,

A.G

[PhotoGav]

Hi AG,

Thanks for your reply. I have tried the rotate 180 option in Nebulosity, but you then have to save the file and I have failed to save in a useful format. So, my question to you is - how do you process your files when you've flipped?!

[dmahon]

I haven't used Nebulosity to stack for a while, but when I did you had to select one star from each image if they were all the same, or two stars if they were rotated / different sizes. Just select the two stars bearing the rotation in mind and Nebulosity will rotate them for you during the stacking.

[Zakalwe]

When you Align and Combine select the "Translation + Rotation" option in the Alignment/Stacking dialogue box.

See page 6 of this pdf:

http://www.stark-labs.com/help/nebulositytutorials/files/PreProc%20Walkthrough_comp.pdf

[swag72]

Blimey I've never bothered with this - I shove it all into PI, stack it and it sorts the flips out, I think even DSS sorts it out. There must be an easy way.

[Zakalwe]

Blimey I've never bothered with this - I shove it all into PI, stack it and it sorts the flips out, I think even DSS sorts it out. There must be an easy way.

Nebulosity returns good results, but frankly, it's process it a bit of a pain in the bum. it requires the user to load the output of the previous stage as the input of the next. the result is a folder full of temporary files. I don't know why Craig Stark didn't create a batch file to allow the process to be automated. Especially in light of PHD , which is a great piece of software to make guiding as simple as "Push Here, Dummy". Why then, did he make Nebulosity stacking so user-intensive?

Depp Sky Stacker will automatically handle translation and rotation. Just chuck the subs into it and let it get on with it. Much quicker than all the palaver that goes on with Neb (IMHO).

[martin_h]

If you rotate them in Neb just use "Save current file" that saves as a Fits file.

[PhotoGav]

Excellent - thank you for all the replies. It looks like I'm just being a bit of a muppet and it really shouldn't be as tricky as I'm trying to make it!

[lensman57]

Hi AG,

Thanks for your reply. I have tried the rotate 180 option in Nebulosity, but you then have to save the file and I have failed to save in a useful format. So, my question to you is - how do you process your files when you've flipped?!

Hi Gav,

I don't use Nebulasity for stacking but I do have it, there is also an option in the stacking dialog Translation and Rotation. I was led to believe to belive that this is the correct option when a flip has taken place. Could this not work If you clicked on the two same satrs for alignment?

A.G

[PhotoGav]

Absolutely - that must be the option... I will be giving it a go later today. Unfortunately I say again - I am a muppet! Nothing better than a Schoolboy Error though - they are normally very easy to solve...

[Gib007]

Blimey I've never bothered with this - I shove it all into PI, stack it and it sorts the flips out, I think even DSS sorts it out. There must be an easy way.

Agreed, very easy. I do concur, DeepSkyStacker does sort out the flip automatically. I've had it do this without me telling it to. Naturally, PixInsight will do so as well. I don't use Nebulosity for anything other than capturing my images, so I'm unaware of its calibration / post-processing features, though if it has a calibration feature and it can translate & rotate, then you're sorted. 

[lensman57]

Agreed, very easy. I do concur, DeepSkyStacker does sort out the flip automatically. I've had it do this without me telling it to. Naturally, PixInsight will do so as well. I don't use Nebulosity for anything other than capturing my images, so I'm unaware of its calibration / post-processing features, though if it has a calibration feature and it can translate & rotate, then you're sorted. 

Not only NEB3 has the option , translate an rotate but also there is an option of translate, rotate and scale. I am more interested in this one as if I take it on face vaue it can take the captures taken by different scopes and cameras and align and scale them together, if I am wrong then perhaps amor knowledgeable person could correct me.

Regards,

A.G

[Gib007]

Not only NEB3 has the option , translate an rotate but also there is an option of translate, rotate and scale. I am more interested in this one as if I take it on face vaue it can take the captures taken by different scopes and cameras and align and scale them together, if I am wrong then perhaps amor knowledgeable person could correct me.

Regards,

A.G

Ahhh, very interesting! There's software specific for that (scaling), that is apparently extremely successful at it. I can't remember the name but astrophotographers commonly use it. Does PixInsight not do it though? PixInsight looks to me as being the "industry standard" for post-processing. 

[dmahon]

Yes - the only time I use Nebulosity is for scaling and it does work very well but is labour intensive. Registax I think would be the preferred option but as I do it so rarely I am loath to pay out yet again. Maybe when I start doing mosaics I will consider it.

[Zakalwe]

Ahhh, very interesting! There's software specific for that (scaling), that is apparently extremely successful at it. I can't remember the name but astrophotographers commonly use it. Does PixInsight not do it though? PixInsight looks to me as being the "industry standard" for post-processing. 

Are you thinking of Registar? It's a one-trick pony, but very very good at that one trick.

Pixinsight scares me to death...it looks so very different and unintuitive. Plus, I personally think that I can spot a PI processed image at a hundred paces..they seem (to me anyway0 to be a bit gaudy and almost supernatural looking.

Olly swears by Astro-Art for stacking, I think?

[PhotoGav]

Well, I finally got there... Have posted the result here: http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/204703-horse-with-a-flip/

It was a bit of a convoluted route to success though. I tried the translate & rotate option with the unmodified files from both sides of the flip, but it came out with this:

Bit random to say the least!

So, I resorted to rotating the processed files from one side of the flip before doing the alignment and it all worked perfectly. I'm amazed that it isn't better dealt with in Nebulosity - though it probably is and I'm just doing something wrong!

Anyway - thanks for your help along the way folks.

[lensman57]

Well, I finally got there... Have posted the result here: http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/204703-horse-with-a-flip/

It was a bit of a convoluted route to success though. I tried the translate & rotate option with the unmodified files from both sides of the flip, but it came out with this:

IC434-03-Stacked.jpg

Bit random to say the least!

So, I resorted to rotating the processed files from one side of the flip before doing the alignment and it all worked perfectly. I'm amazed that it isn't better dealt with in Nebulosity - though it probably is and I'm just doing something wrong!

Anyway - thanks for your help along the way folks.

Hi Gav,

Glad it worked out, super image BTW, really like it. RegiStar does all this in one click but I am still refusinto part with $150.00 for it particularly as the licence is machine specific, if you  want to have it on two macines you need to request another licence, I hope they won't charge for that.

Regards,

A.G

[Zakalwe]

if you  want to have it on two macines you need to request another licence, I hope they won't charge for that.

Regards,

A.G

A second licence for personal use is free

http://www.aurigaimaging.com/extra_key_request.html