First attempts with PixInsight

[mikey2000]

After a learning curve that reminded me of running into a 90' brick wall, I've finally got a result from PixInsight !!!

 

This is from 25x5mins with my 150PDS and unmodified Sony A6000 with Baader CC and Nedymum filter mounted on my shiny new EQ6-R.  Taken over two nights from my backyard....(Moderate LP, I can only make out one extra star in ursa minor, except polaris, on most clear nights...)

My own thoughts of things to work on....  Maybe the background is a little too black. (it was strangely blotchy and uneven after the stretch from linear to non-linear)   I have some little dots in the center of the larger stars.  At the top right, the stars are a little elongated (the final pic is a crop from a set where I didn't get my coma corrector adjusted exactly enough).  The centre of the DSOs is a little 'crunchy' looking.

 

I'm sure there is much I can improve on too but for now, I was pleased I didn't have to downscale my image at all.  I hope this link is clickable for the full resolution...

 

 

My next task is to run the same pics through DSS and Startools, my 'usual' workflow and see how that comes out...  (In fact, I'm surprised I didn't try that first of all!!!)

[jjosefsen]

Going to look a little harder later when I get to a pc, but that looks cracking man!!

You might already know this one, but I found this to be a really good guide.

http://trappedphotons.com/blog/?p=642

The steps taken here are pretty much the basis of my work flow, mixed with stuff from other guides and books.

[jjosefsen]

1 hour ago, mikey2000 said:

My next task is to run the same pics through DSS and Startools, my 'usual' workflow and see how that comes out...  (In fact, I'm surprised I didn't try that first of all!!!)

I did similar tests of the preprocessing (cal and stacking) features with DSS and APP, I found that I couldn't get nearly as good results with DSS, while APP did just as good a job as PI.

I never did get star tools to work at all.

I particularly like that you can assign custom weights to each frame with subframe selector script.

[sloz1664]

Pixinsight is a difficult programme to master as it has so many processes to understand. There are excellent tutorials online by Harry Page & Light Vortex that go into great detail on processing commands and workflows. Also, the book Inside Pixinsight by Warren Keller is a great source of information and is well worth a purchase. I looks like you have found a nice Pixinsight workflow to suit your images. Although there are some major artefacts showing on the image, which maybe remnants of dust bunnies. These can removed by clone stamping on your image. Better to remove them with flats before processing.

Steve

[MattJenko]

The star core holes are usually as a result of HDRMultscaleTransform operations. A simple star mask to protect bright star cores is the solution for this one...

[mikey2000]

Thanks for the feedback so far.  I'll definitely take a look at the trappedphotons stuff later on tonight.  Thanks for the link!

 

Here's my DSS then Startools version.  I processed it 'to taste' then compared the two.  It seems I avoided the PI Bright Star blobs but got a strange blueish look and a lot less interest in the spiral arms of M81.   I feel the PI version is better, more natural.  If I can just work out where the central starblobs came from.   PI Seems to have brought out the diffraction spikes a litte better too.

 

[mikey2000]

And another comparison.  One is Pixinsight, the other DSS+Startools.  I'm not sure why I cropped one a bit differently but I'm out of time to redo/recrop....

 

Both made from the same 4x10mins +darks, flats+bias with a just-rising half moon, about 90degrees away..  I'd like to get more 10 min subs on this one...

 

 

 

[happy-kat]

The top image is blue hue. There's more star colour and life in the bottom image.

[mikey2000]

Yep, startools definitely wants me to add more colour to the pic - look at all those orange and blue stars!  (Are there really that many orange anf blue stars???)

 

Here's a PI version of NGC281

^^^  whats this artifact in the bottom corner? 

And the startools version.  I processed this a few weeks back so sorry for the different crop and image resolution overall.   I always needed to crop Startools files to get the background removal to work acceptably.  Also, I was clearly having a Red night :-)  The PI version was colour calibrated with the Photometric tool so I think the colours are probably quite accurate. Also, the PI version seems to have tighter stars.

 

[jjosefsen]

I quite like the star tools version actually, the closer crop looks good.. On my phone they both look really excellent!