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Do the Funky Chicken!


AndysAstroPix

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Hi everyone,

My first post here - thought I'd join up and hope you might enjoy seeing the odd Southern hemisphere target.

In 1969 Rufus Thomas wrote -
"You flap your arms and your feet start kicking
Then you know you doin' the funky chicken".


Which is possibly what the guys at the AAO were doing when they named the 'Running Chicken' nebula! 😀

I've presented NB versions of this timeless classic target here with and without stars.

6 Hrs HA x 900 sec
2 Hrs O3 x 900 sec
3 Hrs S2 x 900 Sec

Taken via Stellarmate (while sleeping!) from my light polluted Bortle 6 suburban Backyard in Melbourne, Australia.

Bigger versions on Astrobin

Takahashi TOA 130
Takahashi NJP
QSI 6162 LRGB, 5nm Ha & SII, 3nm OIII Chroma Filters
SX Lodestar
Stellarmate on RPi4

AIPP.LM, GM.Photog+1PB, FNZIPP, Wppi Master, Member ASV
Shortlisted Finalist: IAPOTY 2019 & 2020
 

 

IC-2944-HaO3S2_Starless_WM_iis.jpg

IC-2944-HaO3S2-stars_WB_iis.jpg

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Welcome to SGL!! 

WOW! You could have fooled me into thinking these were fine paintings, such is the detail and beautiful depth and color to these images, the full image on Astrobin 

is stunning, way to make an entrance!.

Bravo!

Edited by Sunshine
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17 hours ago, Sunshine said:

Welcome to SGL!! 

WOW! You could have fooled me into thinking these were fine paintings, such is the detail and beautiful depth and color to these images, the full image on Astrobin 

is stunning, way to make an entrance!.

Bravo!

Ha ha, thanks very much Sunshine - guess this isn't my first rodeo but very much appreciate the warm welcome here on SGL. 😀

Certainly, the joy and beauty of a starless image is that it reveals subtle details often masked by the presence of foreground stars.

 

 

7 hours ago, Craig a said:

What a fabulous image this is, it’s smooth as silk superb detail and the colour and depth is amazing, stunning 

Thanks very much Craig, glad you enjoyed the view! It's the result of many years of hard work, lots of mistakes and lessons learned from nice folks on forums like this! 😉

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33 minutes ago, andrew s said:

Fine images though I much prefer the one with stars. Air brushing them out seems wrong to me, but I accept it's a personal choice along with much else in astroimagej processing.

Regards Andrew 

Hi Andrew, thanks for your feedback. I agree that starless images are not for everyone, (especially if done badly) and although it's part of my regular Narrowband workflow, I agree that not all targets suit a starless presentation. 😉

That said, my technique for removing stars has nothing to do with airbrushing, it's done using AI driven software known as Starnet++. Quite tricky to set up if you're a mac user as it requires command lines entered via terminal. Much simpler if you're a Pixinsight user though, as I understand that there's now a dedicated Starnet++ module built in.

Clear Skies,

Andy

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1 minute ago, callisto said:

Nice to see some images from 'down south'....thanks for sharing :thumbsup:

 

Mark

Hey Mark, thanks for joining in the conversation - really appreciate the positive feedback! 👍 We are very lucky here in OZ 🇦🇺 to have views of some very nice targets - I look forward to sharing more with you all here on SGL. 😀

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Just now, AndysAstroPix said:

Hey Mark, thanks for joining in the conversation - really appreciate the positive feedback! 👍 We are very lucky here in OZ 🇦🇺 to have views of some very nice targets - I look forward to sharing more with you all here on SGL. 😀

I'll look forward to it 😀

Clear skies,

Mark

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8 hours ago, AndysAstroPix said:

Hi Andrew, thanks for your feedback. I agree that starless images are not for everyone, (especially if done badly) and although it's part of my regular Narrowband workflow, I agree that not all targets suit a starless presentation. 😉

That said, my technique for removing stars has nothing to do with airbrushing, it's done using AI driven software known as Starnet++. Quite tricky to set up if you're a mac user as it requires command lines entered via terminal. Much simpler if you're a Pixinsight user though, as I understand that there's now a dedicated Starnet++ module built in.

Clear Skies,

Andy

Yes, thanks, I realise how it's done. I used airbrushing in the sense of magazines improving the image of a cover girl or man, removing imperfections, rather than literally. Sorry to have misled you. Regards Andrew 

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Just stunning work Andy you are a true master!...the skill needed to remove the stars so cleanly is remarkable.....even if you dont like starless images you have to appreciate the skill needed to do it to that standard. In my opinion it is necessary and has a number of uses, at least in serval imaging workflows I use. The cleaner you can do it the better the end result.... Superb! 

 

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3 hours ago, peter shah said:

Just stunning work Andy you are a true master!...the skill needed to remove the stars so cleanly is remarkable.....even if you dont like starless images you have to appreciate the skill needed to do it to that standard. In my opinion it is necessary and has a number of uses, at least in serval imaging workflows I use. The cleaner you can do it the better the end result.... Superb! 

 

Just to be clear, I am amazed by Andy's skills and all those who produce such stunning images. My comment was just stating a personal preference.  

Regards Andrew 

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11 minutes ago, andrew s said:

Just to be clear, I am amazed by Andy's skills and all those who produce such stunning images. My comment was just stating a personal preference.  

Regards Andrew 

I totally agree Andrew, my comment wasn't aimed at anyone.   Personally I regard a starless image as something I often do during a process,  Its nice to such a clean results as I find quite often many artefacts that need to be addressed when I process.

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15 hours ago, andrew s said:

Yes, thanks, I realise how it's done. I used airbrushing in the sense of magazines improving the image of a cover girl or man, removing imperfections, rather than literally. Sorry to have misled you. Regards Andrew 

No problem and no offence taken. As a long time professional commercial/advertising/portrait photographer I totally get where you're coming from with regard to Airbrushing/retouching! Too much on a magazine cover girl/guy and it appears unreal. Too little and it's unflattering! I don't however, see removing stars from an astro image as removing imperfections, rather it's like lifting a veil or curtain to occasionally reveal hidden details lurking behind. 😀

Happily, the dreadful Melbourne weather finally let up last night and I was able to capture some RGB stars, so stay tuned for a new version of this image with "natural" stars. 🤩

 

 

Edited by AndysAstroPix
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14 hours ago, peter shah said:

Just stunning work Andy you are a true master!...the skill needed to remove the stars so cleanly is remarkable.....even if you dont like starless images you have to appreciate the skill needed to do it to that standard. In my opinion it is necessary and has a number of uses, at least in serval imaging workflows I use. The cleaner you can do it the better the end result.... Superb! 

 

Cheers Pete!  For those interested, after experimenting with Straton and other PS actions from Annie, Troy & JP Metsavavio -  I now prefer to use a combination of Starnet++ & Topaz NR Ai to achieve this result. 👍

14 hours ago, Saganite said:

Welcome to SGL Andy, that's quite an entrance !

Incredibly beautiful image.

Thanks Saganite, much appreciated! 😀

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14 hours ago, banjaxed said:

Hi Andy, welcome to SGL, those are excellent images, great work.

 

11 hours ago, Kon said:

Amazing image and the colours are beautiful! Fantastic job.  Nice depth of details.

 

Thanks kindly folks! Appreciate the good vibes and warm welcome. 🥰

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Lol, I was so mesmerized looking at the beautiful gasious detail in the first image that I hadn’t noticed the stars were removed, at all. 😂

Now you know why I’m not an imager, I’m the guy who’d curse like a trucker trying to figure out why everything is black, then remove the dust cap.

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7 minutes ago, Sunshine said:

Lol, I was so mesmerized looking at the beautiful gasious detail in the first image that I hadn’t noticed the stars were removed, at all. 😂

Now you know why I’m not an imager, I’m the guy who’d curse like a trucker trying to figure out why everything is black, then remove the dust cap.

Too funny Sunshine, but let me reassure you - I've been there & done exactly that myself! 😂😂😂

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The weather gods must have finally been appeased over Melbourne last night, so I captured some RGB data at long last!

HERE is the finished Astrobin version with RGB stars added.

Given my LP conditions I used 20 x short 2min subs each Chroma RG&B.

For those interested in this technique, to boost the starcolour "naturally" in PS I changed modes from RGB to LAB colour, then adjusted the curves in Channel B, which only affects Blues & Yellows, then back to RGB for the overlay in PS using 'screen' blend mode. 🤩

That one's all done now, time to move on to a new target! 😇

Cheers

Andy

RGB-stars-added_SGL.jpg

Edited by AndysAstroPix
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