nebula Tarantula Nebula ( NGC 2070 ) in the Large Magellanic Cloud ( LMC ) - re-processed

[MikeODay]

Tarantula Nebula ( NGC 2070 ) in the Large Magellanic Cloud ( LMC )

Re-processed to tweak colour balance and bring out a little more faint detail:

New version:

 

Original:

( click/tap on image to see full size - the above compressed version looks a little soft; the full size version is sharper )

The Tarantula Nebula ( NGC 2070 ) is the largest and brightest emission nebula in the nearby irregular galaxy, the Large Magellanic Cloud ( LMC ). At a distance of 160,000 light years away from us, the Tarantula Nebula is so bright that it would cast shadows on the Earth if were as close to us as the Orion Nebula in our galaxy.

First image with new telescope and autoguider/setup.

Links:
500px.com/MikeODay
photo.net/photos/MikeODay

Details:

Nebulae:
NGC 2070 Tarantula Nebula
NGC 2048
NGC 2060
NGC 2077.

Open clusters:
NGC 2042
NGC 2044
NGC 2050
NGC 2055
NGC 2091
NGC 2093
NGC 2100 

Image centre RA 5h 38m 57.3s, Dec -69deg 20' 36.6" (nova.astrometry.net) 
Field of view (arcmin): 58.7 x 39.2
Scale (full size image) 0.585 arcsec/pixel.

Telescope: Orion Optics CT12 Newtonian ( mirror 300mm, FL1200mm, f4 )
Corrector: ASA 2" Coma Corrector Quattro 1.175x
Effective Focal Length / Aperture ): 1410mm f4.7.

Mount: Skywatcher AZ Eq6 GT
Guiding: TSOAG9 Off-Axis-Guider, Starlight Xpress Lodestar X2, PHD2 

Camera: Nikon D5300 (unmodified) (sensor 23.5 x 15.6mm, 6016x4016 3.9um pixels)
Filter: none

Exposures:
14 x 240 sec ISO400
12 x 120 sec ISO400
10 x 60 sec ISO400
11 x 60 sec ISO200
10 x 60 sec ISO100
10 x 30 sec ISO100

Pixinsight & Photoshop
20 December 2016

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Very nice image. I have only seen the Tarantula Nebula through cheap 15x70 bins, but it is a superb object even in those. This image makes me yearn to go back down-under one day

[PatrickGilliland]

Nice work Mike - one of those targets on the to do list.  Seeing  his makes me feel like a holiday is due  

Paddy

[MikeODay]

15 hours ago, michael.h.f.wilkinson said:

Very nice image. I have only seen the Tarantula Nebula through cheap 15x70 bins, but it is a superb object even in those. This image makes me yearn to go back down-under one day

 

12 hours ago, PatrickGilliland said:

Nice work Mike - one of those targets on the to do list.  Seeing  his makes me feel like a holiday is due  

Paddy

Thanks guys.  I see so many great images of objects that I can not see from down here and I forget that we also are blessed with many wonderful sights that you can not see - weather permitting of course; I've been on holidays for a month and there has only been about 12 hours total of clear skies without a moon    

[toxic]

great image Mike 

 

[MikeODay]

10 hours ago, toxic said:

great image Mike 

 

Thanks Chris.

[MikeODay]

Re-processed to tweak colour balance and bring out more faint detail - see updated image in original post above.

[MikeODay]

Re-processed again ( still clouded in  ) ...

Still trying to optimise colour balance...

 

[evansg]

Mike,

You have very good data and a stunning frame. With all do respect I edited your original photo and made some enhancement.

I believe you should do three things: (and this is what I also did)

1. Reduce a little bit the stars to bring the nebula into surface (I did it with carboni tools in PS)
2. Play with the colour balance.  Your frame is FULL of Ha (red colour). Lab colour in photoshop and increase contrast in a and b channels. Increase saturation also in RGB
3. Play with selective colour in photoshop to enhance other colours in the reflection nebula (blue)

Thanks,

Evans

 

[MikeODay]

10 hours ago, evansg said:

Mike,

You have very good data and a stunning frame. With all do respect I edited your original photo and made some enhancement.

I believe you should do three things: (and this is what I also did)

1. Reduce a little bit the stars to bring the nebula into surface (I did it with carboni tools in PS)
2. Play with the colour balance.  Your frame is FULL of Ha (red colour). Lab colour in photoshop and increase contrast in a and b channels. Increase saturation also in RGB
3. Play with selective colour in photoshop to enhance other colours in the reflection nebula (blue)

Thanks,

Evans

 

 

Thanks Evans for your efforts in editing the image and giving me the details of what I can try in order to improve it.  Your version is very different from mine and I like the overall effect.   

I have not heard of  the "carboni tools" - are they a plugin?

And, I have not used Lab Colour or done any processing in different channels before, I will have to experiment.

Much appreciated.

Mike

[MikeODay]

Still raining ...

I went right back to the raw files and re-processed them again - this time I converted the raw files without any white balance adjustment and only balanced the colours after integration and I have also increased the stretch a little.

 

[MikeODay]

And one more ( still raining / cloudy grrrrr.... )

This time focusing on the brighter stars and trying to keep them small and getting the colour balance` "right".

[MikeODay]

Oh, and just for comparrison, this was my first attempt from 2014 ( this was one of my first ever images - Skywatcher 10" Quattro, tripod not pier mounted and unguided )

[MikeODay]

It was chuffed to see this show up on the Sky at Night page on the BBC website

Link:       BBC Sky at Night - Your Images January 2017

[ollypenrice]

Gorgeous! Looking at this and knowing it's 'south only' is torture!

Olly

[MikeODay]

Thank you Olly, much appreciated