M42 again

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

This is my first serious attempt into DSO imaging, 10x 60's lights, with darks bias and flats.

SW200P at prime focus cropped in P.P. Canon 6D ISO 200 and yes I know most of the issue's with like the plane track and coma.

[PeterCPC]

Well done. I don't know how you stacked but star trails can be removed in DSS by Sigma Kappa stacking.

Peter

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

1 minute ago, PeterCPC said:

Well done. I don't know how you stacked but star trails can be removed in DSS by Sigma Kappa stacking.

Peter

Thanks Peter, I will give it a try sometime, stacked in both DSS and PI I can't remember which this was stacked from, PI probably as it did seem the best stacked image.

Like I said it's my first real attempt at anything other than static imaging and this was on the second night with the new mount.

[alan potts]

Very nice image Nicola, keep at it, coma is annoying but can be dealt with at a price.

Alan

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

52 minutes ago, alan potts said:

Very nice image Nicola, keep at it, coma is annoying but can be dealt with at a price.

Alan

Thanks.

I know, basics first though, solid mount, first thing, I am pretty sure there is not enough back focus on the 200p for a coma corrector, though might be an option if using a Barlow for the smaller objects.

I have to crop extensively with the 6d severe vignetting even with flats.

I have only been at it a week, well two nights with the neq 6, previous stuff had been static.

I did these last night, only quickly stacked as still learning the software.

 

Edited March 16, 2020 by Nicola Hannah Butterfield
spelling

[Gina]

Great start - well done

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

36 minutes ago, Gina said:

Great start - well done

Thanks Gina, I find the imagine side and stacking, straight forward enough, I guess from the photographic side.

It's just the workflow I need to really improve on, like messing up the darks last night.

Polar alignment is tricky where the scope usually is, as polaris is just above the roof of the house, but is achievable if not too many household lights on, neighbours bathroom I can't do much about and it shines right down on where the scope is, but when aligned polaris stays in the two circles of the neq 6 polar scope when R.A. is rotated. That said I don't seem to get better than 60's but could just be anything breeze or slight movement on the mount, as I said online had the mount put three nights in total, first was getting use to it.

I must admit wad quite pleased with the Horsehead because until I removed the background colour there seemed to be little there.

 

Edited March 16, 2020 by Nicola Hannah Butterfield

[alacant]

On 14/03/2020 at 11:36, Nicola Hannah Butterfield said:

SW200P

That's a perfect choice for galaxy season and the cleanest Alnitak I've ever seen:)

Great shots. Cheers.

 

Edited March 17, 2020 by alacant

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

12 minutes ago, alacant said:

That's a perfect choice for galaxy season:)

Great shots. Cheers.

 

Thanks, still need a coma correctoralong with several other things, however can practice in the meantime.

That's not knocking the scope only paid £140 almost as new with an eq5 but the mount had suffered damage and was missing the e.p. tray.

Like people have said it a goodl start, at least I feel it is, I am quite chuffed as I am seeing things I never did with my 10" dark star back into the 90's.

Edited March 16, 2020 by Nicola Hannah Butterfield

[happy-kat]

Seeing as you already have a 6d you might have some nice camera lenses, could be great for slightly wider field imaging.

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

2 hours ago, happy-kat said:

Seeing as you already have a 6d you might have some nice camera lenses, could be great for slightly wider field imaging.

I have a Tokina 16-28 ATX Pro f/2.8 and a Tamron 24-70 f/2.8 UCD VC blah blah, it seems to have more letters than the alphabet.

The 16-28 has issues with live view on the 6D, the Tamron I tried with 1.4 converter on M31 last August it was so so, though if I knew what I know now it would have been better.

The main problem here is actually seeing things it's a bortle 6 apparently, and the neighbours bathroom light don't help and the young fella in doors forever leaves lights on, this is why the goto really helps me, whack up the iso take a30's exposure and frame from there, try a few 60 or 120 (if that ever happens) then let the interval timer do it's bit, I did a piggy back on the static eq5 of about 30's on the Tokina, which when process was ok it wasn't anything to write home about.

I also have a vintage i.e. circa mid 90's )if you can call that vintage, I don't think it's quite old enough yet.EF-70-210mm f/3.5-4.5 USM though it's manual ring is a little stiff, good lens on the 40D not so on the 6D

I am actually thinking of getting a SW 130PDS, but we will see, I need to get the basics better first.

[Sunshine]

Well those shots are awesome! inspires the lazy donkey that is me to give AP a try.

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

11 minutes ago, Sunshine said:

Well those shots are awesome! inspires the lazy donkey that is me to give AP a try.

Thanks, not quite sure about awesome though, I am pleased with the results, given it's only really been two nights, but I have a long history in photography, and an interest in astronomy all my life, though the latter not much in recent decades.

[alan potts]

21 hours ago, Nicola Hannah Butterfield said:

Thanks.

I know, basics first though, solid mount, first thing, I am pretty sure there is not enough back focus on the 200p for a coma corrector, though might be an option if using a Barlow for the smaller objects.

I have to crop extensively with the 6d severe vignetting even with flats.

I have only been at it a week, well two nights with the neq 6, previous stuff had been static.

I did these last night, only quickly stacked as still learning the software.

 

I only use a Paracorr coma corrector in my large Dob and know nothing about their use with AP. You talk of vignetting, I had this fairly bad on my ZWO 071 used with a Borg EDII 77mm which is 330mm F/L. One of my biggest helper tells me Flats will remove this but the flat I had taken were of no use, I am still to get round to re-doing them. Basically they were too over exposed to be of use. May be worth having a look at yours or posting one for the more experienced to view. Your doing very well for one week, I spent the first two weeks trying to get guiding to work, I now have 5 cables, only one worked, mount fault I think.. There is so much to go wrong.

Alan 

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

45 minutes ago, alan potts said:

I only use a Paracorr coma corrector in my large Dob and know nothing about their use with AP. You talk of vignetting, I had this fairly bad on my ZWO 071 used with a Borg EDII 77mm which is 330mm F/L. One of my biggest helper tells me Flats will remove this but the flat I had taken were of no use, I am still to get round to re-doing them. Basically they were too over exposed to be of use. May be worth having a look at yours or posting one for the more experienced to view. Your doing very well for one week, I spent the first two weeks trying to get guiding to work, I now have 5 cables, only one worked, mount fault I think.. There is so much to go wrong.

Alan 

The vignetting is primarily due to a full frame camera and not enough image to fill the frame, it's why so many images are taken on AP-C sensors I presume. I think it's either the draw tube is not wide enough or the T2 adaptor not being quite wide enough to create a full 35mm image.

This is a single frame of the M81 sequence adjust in light room and then the original. These from a test shot.

 

Edited March 17, 2020 by Nicola Hannah Butterfield

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

And this from the sequence of subs stacked with flats ect with ABE in PI before further processing. Flats I do with a white t-shirt stretched over the front and aimed at a bright daylight bulb source, maybe the exposures are wrong.

 

Click to choose fil

[happy-kat]

New flats worth a try. Av mode it sorts the exposure, same focus as lights, ISO and aperture. T shirts can add grain. I use a tablet on a camera lens and application lightbox

[MarkAR]

I picked up a sheet of 40% opaque acrylic, looks like it works well pointed at a white laptop screen.

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

59 minutes ago, happy-kat said:

Grain

Please explain how something that is on the front of the scope that's basically at infinity focus has grain. I can understand patterns if not totally white, the main problem is more likely the light source possibly being to small point and or possibly to close, I will inspect the raw file later. As for the other info iso focus and camera orintensation on the focuser, I know this,

Shooting in av mode will give different results depending on metering mode, ie spot or partial centre will give a darker grey than centre weighted or matrix metering as it's measuring what is primarily just the light source,  the others will include some of the vignetting and will produce slightly (possibly up to two stops) lighter flat.

It's not so much the edged that is a concern but the odd ring, which might be reflection possibly the focus tube

 

[alacant]

4 hours ago, Nicola Hannah Butterfield said:

av mode will give different results

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hi.

We started with the t-shirt method but found it hit and miss. So now use a cheap led panel. This gives far more predictable results. Exposure wise, Av should get you close with any metering. If you want to nail it, switch to M and adjust the exposure whilst looking at the histogram; get it somewhere near the centre. Slightly left of centre works well here with a 700d. To combat banding, go for at least 1s. Use grey card to dim the led panel if necessary.

HTH

 

Edited March 17, 2020 by alacant

[Adreneline]

4 hours ago, Nicola Hannah Butterfield said:

Flats I do with a white t-shirt stretched over the front

This was my approach also but then I discovered that I didn't always stretch the tee-shirt evenly or consistently and I started to get some rather strange, uneven and inconsistent looking flats. I used an iPad as a light source placed on top of the stretched tee-shirt.

I've now moved away from the stretched tee-shirt and instead use a non-stretched tee-shirt - I just lay the material on the end of the scope. My flats now appear more "uniform" / "symmetrical" - not really sure how best to describe them as everyone interprets the adjectives in a different way. Whatever they work for me.

 

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

This is one of my flats from Sunday night this one for everything bar the Horesehead

 

Edited March 17, 2020 by Nicola Hannah Butterfield
error

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

And this for the galaxies.

 

[alacant]

On 16/03/2020 at 14:09, Nicola Hannah Butterfield said:

not enough back focus on the 200p for a coma corrector

All non-reducing correctors are fine. The Baader MK3, the GPU, the GSO...

HTH.

[Nicola Hannah Butterfield]

6 minutes ago, alacant said:

All non-reducing correctors are fine. The Baader MK3, the GPU, the GSO...

HTH.

There is one on eBay at the mo along with a 130pds.