What imaging software ImagesPlus or Pix insight

[VikN46]

Hi,

Any opinions on which of the above would be the best purchase for imaging software??

or anything else you recommend.

Thanks in advance!  

Vik

[Langy]

Hi Vik

I know nothing about either, but when I look for things like that I look for the tutorials, ideally video tutorials and especially look for items on places like YouTube done by actual users. You can then get a good idea for yourself. Learning with these things is often the biggest battle.

[davefrance]

Most software worth looking at has a free demo download allowing you to try before you buy. Imaging software is down to personal preference, the type of images you wish to process, the level to which you want to process and the amount of time and effort you want to put in.. Decide what you want to do then experiment it will cost nothing and you could save some costly mistakes. There are also some reasonably good free programs well documented/reviewed on this site. 

[glowingturnip]

I don't know ImagesPlus, but as a new user of Pixinsight, I can say that is is excellent.  All the tools there, of which there are loads, are very well implemented, usually with their own in-built  multiscale processing, noise reduction, masking and lum/colour separation.  The learning curve is undeniably steep and somewhat daunting though and you will need to watch all Harry's video tutorials.

Don't get Maxim DL, PI is hundreds of times better.

[swag72]

There are things I like about PI and others that I don't. To that end I use PI for all my stacking and calibration. Then I use Photoshop for making a pretty picture

[Sp@ce_d]

You can't really compare these two as they don't both start from capture do they?.

Are you looking for capture or just processing or the whole lot?

Some such as maxim, astro art, nebulosity for instance will capture through to processing. Pixinsight, Photoshop are post capture processing tools. Most of us use a combination of software to get the results.

What do you have/use now (if any) & where are you looking to be?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[lensman57]

Hi,

Any opinions on which of the above would be the best purchase for imaging software??

or anything else you recommend.

Thanks in advance!  

Vik

Hi Vik,

I not familar with Image Plus but if you have not done any processing before I would keep away from PI, it has really not been written for the casual imager,  however you can download it and apply for a trial licence which is valid for 30 days and the software is fully functional including the save feature,  after 30 days you can decide if it is for you or not.  I also have Nebulasity3 which I think for $80.00 is a bargain as it can capture, align and stack and also has quite a bit of post processing tools.

Regards,

A.G

[IanL]

I use PixInsight for all my image processing.  It is excellent, but it does depend on your experience level.  If you have done a fair bit of astro-imaging and processing you'll pick it up.  If you are just starting out it is very daunting and doesn't 'hold your hand' at all.

You might take a look at using deep sky stacker (DSS) http://deepskystacker.free.fr/english/index.html to do the initial stacking of multiple exposures.  It's free and it is where pretty much everyone starts out (free doesn't mean 'bad' here, it is a very competent and simple to use package and the things it doesn't do you will only really care about after a couple of years of learning, if ever).

Then you will need something to do the post-processing of the stacked image.  One to consider is StarTools http://startools.org/drupal/ which I haven't used, but from what I have seen it is very much aimed at the beginner/intermediate imager. It definitely does hand-hold you through the various processing steps.  Some of the tools aren't even available in more advanced packages.  It is also pretty cheap at less than 50 quid.

All of the specialist software available offer trial versions (either limited-time trials or restricted features).  It is definitely worth getting some of your own images and giving them all a try before you part with your cash.

[lensman57]

I use PixInsight for all my image processing.  It is excellent, but it does depend on your experience level.  If you have done a fair bit of astro-imaging and processing you'll pick it up.  If you are just starting out it is very daunting and doesn't 'hold your hand' at all.

You might take a look at using deep sky stacker (DSS) http://deepskystacker.free.fr/english/index.html to do the initial stacking of multiple exposures.  It's free and it is where pretty much everyone starts out (free doesn't mean 'bad' here, it is a very competent and simple to use package and the things it doesn't do you will only really care about after a couple of years of learning, if ever).

Then you will need something to do the post-processing of the stacked image.  One to consider is StarTools http://startools.org/drupal/ which I haven't used, but from what I have seen it is very much aimed at the beginner/intermediate imager. It definitely does hand-hold you through the various processing steps.  Some of the tools aren't even available in more advanced packages.  It is also pretty cheap at less than 50 quid.

All of the specialist software available offer trial versions (either limited-time trials or restricted features).  It is definitely worth getting some of your own images and giving them all a try before you part with your cash.

I do have StarTools it is my main image processing software, I think it is excellent and with a bit of practice and following the tutorials can give you very good results very quickly , the noise module is the best that I have seen even comparing to PI.

A.G

[Erquy]

I tried both imageplus and pixinsight in parallel. I would say similar results can be achieved. But i finally went for buying pixinsight as i found the interface better to work with together with all its processes -still many i am not using- (it takes sometime to get used to it, more than imageplus, but once you get a grip on pixinsight, it really a wonder.). Also i get a better understanding on parameters to play with in pixinsight than in imageplus

Note that before going into this, i did use nebulosity for quite sometimes and it gave me full satisfaction on all its features (but once using Neb to almost its full capabilities, you want more, hence i went to consider above 2 options). And before Neb, i started with dss.

So i think it depends clearly your level. I think my step process starting with dss, then nebulosity and now pixinsight has helped me to understand and progress (i guess you could start directly with pixinsight, but if you are a complete newbye, it is certainly overshoot starting with PI). And first of all, you need good sub (no need of PI if you are still in a stage of learning getting good subs)

[wxsatuser]

After a long period of thought I have just bought ImagesPlus, I'm sure it will do everything I need.

[VikN46]

Hi thanks everyone, I have just asked for a trial of Pix insight, will give it ago and see how I get on, once I get a pic to start on that is due to the really rubbish weather!!

[Russe]

I stack with DSS and work on the pic in photoshop CS5 (or6??)

I record my data remotely with APT.