NAN gone wrong

[Jpr78]

10 lights at ISO400/120s, 5 darks @ the same. Stacked in DSS and PP in CC. Shot with Nikon D750 and a 200mm f4 Nikkor prime mounted on a GEM. I believe my skies are 6 on the Bortle scale but I also have a lot of bright LED lights in my area. A ton of stars showed up after stretching the data but barely any nebulosity. Is this a matter of Not using any filters or light pollution or a combination of both? Also I am a bit new to PS and all of the astronomy tools. I followed Trevor’s workflow from AB’s page (which btw created a whole new idea of what development workflow meant to me). I feel as if I pulled a lot more out of my data than any previous attempts on a target but perhaps I just didn’t have enough total exposure time. Being a member of S.A.S. I would normally go to our observatory but due to the pandemic it’s closed to the public as well as members. I also have 40 Lights taken at ISO1600/30s but I feel like that will yield the same results.

[CloudMagnet]

Really an unmodified DSLR will really struggle to pick up Hydrogen alpha (what is emitted by most nebula) as most cameras will have a filter within them that blocks this wavelength of light. This means that very little of the nebula light will actually reach your sensor. The relative short exposure and low ISO won't help either i'm afraid. This is quite a dim nebula as well which benefits from narrowband filters and a modified DSLR/ dedicated astronomy camera.

No harm in stacking your other data as well, but i'm not sure how much it will help

 

[Jpr78]

7 hours ago, CloudMagnet said:

Really an unmodified DSLR will really struggle to pick up Hydrogen alpha (what is emitted by most nebula) as most cameras will have a filter within them that blocks this wavelength of light. This means that very little of the nebula light will actually reach your sensor. The relative short exposure and low ISO won't help either i'm afraid. This is quite a dim nebula as well which benefits from narrowband filters and a modified DSLR/ dedicated astronomy camera.

No harm in stacking your other data as well, but i'm not sure how much it will help

 

Well I still have my D7000 in my bag that is no longer used. I went ahead and did a conversion this evening (pretty easy I might add). I successfully removed the ICF stack. I did not replace it with clear glass as I can live with the loss of focus through the viewfinder. I will be using this camera with backyard Nikon exclusively. AF and M focus are both tack sharp still using live view and my images are pleasantly red! Now of course the clouds have rolled in for the weekend here in Syracuse so I won’t get a chance to test it out. Hopefully this will give those nebula a run for their money.

Edited June 5, 2020 by Jpr78

[CloudMagnet]

13 hours ago, Jpr78 said:

Well I still have my D7000 in my bag that is no longer used. I went ahead and did a conversion this evening (pretty easy I might add). I successfully removed the ICF stack.

Nicely done, a modified camera will be a big step up in terms of what you will see with emission nebula, so good luck!

[Jpr78]

Regarding my recent full spectrum mod. Will I need a use a filter no matter the conditions or can I shoot the same as before?

[MKHACHFE]

This is a tough one to process if the images have been taken with less than ideal camera and darkness. I know as I've spent 3 nights on it last week from my B6 zone with the cheapest DSLR canon sell and an F.5.6 stock lens.

 

My advice is keep at it as it's definitely possible to ger a nice enough shot with an absolutely entry level setup.

I'm a professional 3d animator and compositor and am very well aquatinted with post processing software, but this was very tough. Here is my final image.

68 X 150sec

No calibration files

Star Adventurer Mini

Canon 4000d 70mm f5.6

Processed in lightroom and after effects

 

I'm missing a large chunk of the pelican part apparently.

 

I think your image is pretty decent, you just need to play with it a bit more in whatever processing software you are using.

 

Well done on a tough DSO

 

[Jpr78]

Got back out tonight with my newly modded D7000. The waning gibbous really wreaked havoc on my naked sensor but I acquired useable data. Stacked in DSS  and PP IN PS CC. 

[CloudMagnet]

7 hours ago, Jpr78 said:

Got back out tonight with my newly modded D7000. The waning gibbous really wreaked havoc on my naked sensor but I acquired useable data. Stacked in DSS  and PP IN PS CC. 

Great progress, its amazing what taking out a little filter will do. How long was the total exposure time?

[Jpr78]

2 hours ago, CloudMagnet said:

Great progress, its amazing what taking out a little filter will do. How long was the total exposure time?

I notice that at infinity my stars are a bit soft. Removing the ICF stack caused me to need more back focus. I am currently trying to see if there is an adjustment in my 200mm prime. If not I will have to order the replacement optical glass to put in place of the stack.