Elephant trunk nebula...Stick or twist?

[StargeezerTim]

Got 16 x 10 min (iso 800) subs of IC 1396 last night (plus darks, bias and flats). I have processed the DSS output in GIMP, using mainly repeated iterations of levels and curves.

On one hand, I am pleased because my DSLR (unmodded) definitely captured something, but I am also aware that there is much more to get.

Do you think it is worth getting another couple of hours of subs, when the clouds clear, or is this is good as it can get with an unmodded camera? Suggestions please, and yes, I need a coma corrector! 

p.s. shot from a light polluted site without a filter.... 

[xtreemchaos]

nice image tim,a few more subs wouldnt hurt,its still a good image"dam light pollution".thanks for sharing..charl..

[ollypenrice]

If you do more I'd reframe it. The Elephant Trunk Nebula is just showing coming into the top of the central part of this framing.

(For reference this is rotated 90 deg clockwise to your image. http://ollypenrice.smugmug.com/Other/Best-of-Les-Granges/i-LpHKpk5/0/X3/Elephant%20Trunk%2C%20TEC140%20V3scnr-X3.jpg

You have certainly captured it. I don't know how you deal with colour gradients in GIMP but some kind of gradient removal would transform this image. The best is DBE in Pixinsight.

Olly

[StargeezerTim]

If you do more I'd reframe it. The Elephant Trunk Nebula is just showing coming into the top of the central part of this framing.

(For reference this is rotated 90 deg clockwise to your image. http://ollypenrice.smugmug.com/Other/Best-of-Les-Granges/i-LpHKpk5/0/X3/Elephant%20Trunk%2C%20TEC140%20V3scnr-X3.jpg

You have certainly captured it. I don't know how you deal with colour gradients in GIMP but some kind of gradient removal would transform this image. The best is DBE in Pixinsight.

Olly

Thanks...I thought it wasn't quite framed properly. I don't really know how to reframe the scope accurately, especially when none of this is visible through eyepieces or even through a single image. At least I have a reference now. Even if I had turned the camera 90 degrees, it would have captured it.