At last some images worth posting, M33 and M42

[focaldepth]

At last some images worth posting, M33 and M42.

Hi all,

I have been imaging for 4 years now and have struggled every step of the way. So far I have not posted any of my work. Now however, here are my 2 latest attempts and finally I am not too embarrassed by the results. Thanks to all the help, advice and tips on SGL.

I have just had 4 nights at Kielder and we had 3 good nights there so I concentrated on M33 and before packing up on the last night, I had a very quick go at M42.

So my practice imaging through urban murk has paid off at a dark sky site.

Here is M33 L 33x10min, B 10x10min, G 12x10min, R 10x10min

8” Quattro on HEQ5 with SXVR H18 and SX Costar on OAG (My new(ish) portable imaging rig)

And M42 L 19x35s, B 13x35s, G 11x35s, R 11x35s

8” Quattro on HEQ5 with SXVR H18 and SX Costar on OAG (My new portable imaging rig)

I also took a few shots of the milky way with a canon 7D on astrotrak at 17mm f/2.8, Here is one.

It features Casiopea and Triangulum and you can just make out M33 bellow and to the right of M31.

Now I am back home I will try for some HA to add to M33. The first attempt was scuppered by a swinging power supply pendulum.

I also need a lot more work on my processing skills as I am sure there is more to pull out of the data.

Next up I need to get the hang of Wavelets and Noise Reduction. I thought I was nearing the top of the learning curve and over the summit is another one.

Anyway, enjoy.

[StargeezerTim]

Nice images. I particularly like the M42. Thanks for posting.

[beamer3.6m]

I like the M33.

I tried this for the first time last night and it is tricky.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Nice detail in both images. There seems to be a slight colour gradient in the M33 image. Don't know what caused that

[laudropb]

Ice images. Thanks for posting.

[Tyson M]

They are all great. M33 is my fav, thanks for sharing these! 

[focaldepth]

Thanks for the nice comments.

Nice detail in both images. There seems to be a slight colour gradient in the M33 image. Don't know what caused that

Yes I know, I always seem to get a colour gradient. I have blamed it on my polluted urban skies. In Kielder there is hardly any visible sky glow, except there was a bit low down and to the east. I think it is my processing that is at fault. I think I have some good data so will try again to reduce the gradient as I can see much more detail in the galaxy but when it reveal it the gradient dominates the picture.

[Mr Spock]

There's a lot of detail in these images. I expect there's more to come from the processing side but what you have so far is excellent.

[xtreemchaos]

great set mate,  well done. thanks for posting  charl.

[MarsG76]

WOW, nice.... very nice pics.... 

[KStu]

Love the M33 image, beautiful view, I remember being there with you at Kielder as you took some of those frames. And the M42 image looks almost 3D with the highlights inside the nebula.

[Dixie]

Really beautiful pictures.

[focaldepth]

Thanks for comments.

 

I have had a few more attempts at processing and this is where I have got so far. That gradient still keeps creeping back in. I'll keep trying......

[ollypenrice]

Very well done. If you have, or can run to, Pixinsight then those gradients will be child's play for Dynamic Background Extraction then SCNR Green. 'Gone, baby gone...'

Olly

[Guest]

Very well done. If you have, or can run to, Pixinsight then those gradients will be child's play for Dynamic Background Extraction then SCNR Green. 'Gone, baby gone...'

Olly

Olly! Are you beginning to turn to the Pixinsight way of processing??

[focaldepth]

Very well done. If you have, or can run to, Pixinsight then those gradients will be child's play for Dynamic Background Extraction then SCNR Green. 'Gone, baby gone...'

Olly

Thanks Olly,

Yes I am using PI and yes I love DBE. As is the norm with this hobby, I have hit a series of brick walls with this image.

I am working my way one by one over/through/round them though.

So far I have found:

1. I wanted to try processing L,R,G,B all at the same time (never tried it before with BPP) but my images have missing Fits headers so it needed a Linux script to repair them, easy.

2. PI BPP script does some strange things when files are held on a network server. I always have my images on a server for speed, access and ease of manipulation etc. This has given me non registered images and missing master flats. So now files are on a local disk.

3. I had to learn that the placing of DBE samples is very critical to get the best out of it.

4. Some of my flats had a funny bright patch down one side. I was using my new home made light box but I can't account for it. Any way I have now removed those flats from the processing.

5. Now everything is working fine except that the calibrated L flats come out black ( zero pixel value). This is crazy as they are processed at the same time as the R,G,B flats. The only difference being the Ls are 3 times brighter than the RGBs. I can calibrate the flats manually though.

So I am ready to give the stacking another go, until I find another wall just around the next corner.

[ollypenrice]

Olly! Are you beginning to turn to the Pixinsight way of processing??

Never in a million years! I like to see what I'm doing in real time, using Layers, rather than guess what effect masks are going to have. 

However, I've been making PI my first stop after stacking for several years now. DBE and SCNR green are always the first step with RGB for me, and I use DBE for the colour balance as well. I like LHE at the end, too, but I always export it to Ps to apply selectively as a Layer. I couldn't work without Layers. Masking is such a lumbering alternative!

Olly

[focaldepth]

OK, I've spent a lot of time failing with DBE. Trying 1 to 4 passes of DBE with and without blurring the colour stacks. I also tried with and without flats. All to no avail. What ever I did the colour gradient got worse with each step.

 

Then, for some reason I changed the DBE to divide the BG model rather than subtract. POW, the gradient almost vanished.

 

So here is the result of a simple stack, DBE, Combine, stretch, Luminance and saturation.

 

I am quite happy with the result now. Next I need to get into propper image processing with masks, noise, stars etc.

[Tim99]

Very nice.  I have just gotten started imaging DSO's.  There is a lot to learn for sure!  Looks like you have things figured out.  I can't get enough of these beautiful images!

[focaldepth]

Very nice.  I have just gotten started imaging DSO's.  There is a lot to learn for sure!  Looks like you have things figured out.  I can't get enough of these beautiful images!

It is one of those hobbies that sounds simple, stick a camera on a scope and take a picture but turns out to be a long journey. It is the journey that makes it fun though. When you consider that there are only a few hundreds (or thousands in the bright bits) of photons hitting each pixel in each sub photo and they have travelled 2.7 million years to get here, to get any image is amazing.