Messier 42

[alan potts]

I know its been done before and no doubt many times better than I have, but it is such a nice target.

This is un-guided at 50x 60sec and 10x 8 sec with darks and flats etc with a 115mm F7 APO no flattener using a modded Canon 40D. It is of course a composite image with both exposure blended in PS

I am getting a new SW guide scope from FLO next week so I will again try to get guiding to work after so many setbacks, many not my fault. I will however hold my hand up to wasting 2 hours once trying to find a guide star and then seeing I had not removed the lens cap. I am receiving the SW 50mm ED guide scope so I have high hopes for it, this will have my 290 ZWO mini plugged into it, which I have had for about a year and never used, I hope it works.

Feel free to rip it to bits, I am only a learner and you will not offend me no matter what you say.

Alan

[PeterCPC]

Not much wrong with that Alan, considering that it's unguided, but you might want to reduce the noise a tad. Have you tried AstroFlat Pro?  There is also a free plug in that I find quite good http://www.colormancer.com/free/download-filters/noise-reduction.htm.

Guiding will give you good results I'm sure.

Peter

[Allinthehead]

Very nice Alan. Good luck with the guiding and i reckon we've all left a lens cap on or forgotten to power something up at some stage.

I recently tried to put my dew shield on with the lens cap in place. I couldn't figure out why it wouldn't go on until the cap crashed to the ground. It wasn't one of my finer moments.

[alan potts]

3 hours ago, PeterCPC said:

Not much wrong with that Alan, considering that it's unguided, but you might want to reduce the noise a tad. Have you tried AstroFlat Pro?  There is also a free plug in that I find quite good http://www.colormancer.com/free/download-filters/noise-reduction.htm.

Guiding will give you good results I'm sure.

Peter

Do you know Peter I feel I forgot to even run the noise reduction in PS, which I know isn't that good. Most times I use a noise reduction using clone stamp and blending but it isn't so good on this type of target. As for the guiding I'm not holding my breath,I have had everything that can go wrong, even a faulty new camera that would work 50% and there was me thinking I was the problem again., will look at the link thank-you.

Alan