My first ever deep sky image, Andromeda.

[LaurenceT]

I finally got everything together last night and managed half an hour before the clouds rolled in. The "processing" is really rudimentary, opened APP for the first time and simply followed my nose to get some sort of image. Then processed a bit in DXO Photolab with a bit of Topaz denoise and sharpening.

WO Z61 with FF, asi533mc pro, asiair pro, asi AEF, EQ5 mount. 30 x 60 second lights, no calibration frames and unguided.

 

[vernmid]

@LaurenceT That's a fabulous first image. Well done you 🙂

 

[LaurenceT]

I'd also appreciate some criticism, without that I'll learn nothing 🙂.

[Elp]

First attempt... surely not? Its fantastic.

[Craig a]

That’s a really REALLY good first image, it’s much better than any first image I got, what’s even more impressive is there’s no calibration frames either, you can darken the background a little bit though if you want abit of criticism but apart from that you should be extremely proud of that 

[glafnazur]

That's a great first image, way better than mine, well done 👍

[LaurenceT]

 

34 minutes ago, Craig a said:

That’s a really REALLY good first image, it’s much better than any first image I got, what’s even more impressive is there’s no calibration frames either, you can darken the background a little bit though if you want abit of criticism but apart from that you should be extremely proud of that 

I've had a little play with the image, it's darker but have I overcooked it? I've darkened it and reduced the blown out areas.

 

 

 

Edited October 21, 2022 by LaurenceT

[Mr Spock]

You are on the right track with the original - great start! All it needs is more data.

[Shibby]

That's a fantastic first image. I remember mine was just awful!

With flat calibration frames, you will find it much easier to process. You will be able to stretch out the fainter details.

[Jimbo64]

Nice work Laurence, both images are great.

[John Wick]

Well that's something to aspire to for my 1st attempt

[tomato]

+1 for more data and at some point, calibration frames. Your framing, focus and tracking are spot on, a great first DSO image. It’s tempting to push the processing beyond what the data can support, I much prefer version 1. 

[dark knight]

Lovely first image Laurence, its a great start, adding more data is the way forward.

[ollypenrice]

Good start. Here is the number one key part of stretching and you must get it right. This is your first image with the histogram opened in Photoshop Levels but all processing suites have the same. Look at the bottom left of the graph. There's a gap before the start of the data line. You must move the left hand arrow in at least as far as that flat line before the big peak.

But not this far!!!  This is the histogram of your re-process and now the peak is jammed up against the left hand side of the graph. This is 'black clipped' meaning you have discarded your faintest data.

 

The sweet spot is between the two. A black clipped image cannot be rescued but your first one can be improved by moving the left hand slider in a little, removing the gap and reducing the flat line without eliminating it.

This is, as I say, the number one starting guidiline when stretching. Refinements will follow but this is the basis.

Olly

 

Edited October 26, 2022 by ollypenrice
typo

[GalaxyGael]

You're off to a really good start for a first image. Read up on APP tutorials because the all important stretch is handled there really well, and might be an easier entry to good stretching that more manual options which you can also learn and master once you get a feel for various degrees of stretching, which are useful for different types of targets down the line. Olly outlined the things to watch for in a stretch but APP takes care of that for you, to different levels of stretch. 

Learn and practice light pollution removal tool and star color calibration to get a well corrected background and object color, and then the tips for the right hand side sliders to get a first round of post processing. 

The red button with a question mark on it in APP brings up the how-to dialog for all those sliders. It gives a great starting point to have an image for further processing, especially if you are using APP to stack. 

Very good start by the way

[LaurenceT]

1 hour ago, ollypenrice said:

Good start. Here is the number one key part of stretching and you must get it right. This is your first image with the histogram opened in Photoshop Levels but all processing suites have the same. Look at the bottom left of the graph. There's a gap before the start of the data line. You must move the left hand arrow in at least as far as that flat line before the big peak.

But not this far!!!  This is the histogram of your re-process and now the peak is jammed up against the left hand side of the graph. This is 'black clipped' meaning you have discarded your faintest data.

 

The sweet spot is between the two. A black clipped image cannot be rescued but your first one can be improved by moving the left hand slider in a little, removing the gap and reducing the flat line without eliminating it.

These is, as I say, the number one starting guidiline when stretching. Refinements will follow but this is the basis.

Olly

 

Brilliant, thanks

[LaurenceT]

1 hour ago, GalaxyGael said:

You're off to a really good start for a first image. Read up on APP tutorials because the all important stretch is handled there really well, and might be an easier entry to good stretching that more manual options which you can also learn and master once you get a feel for various degrees of stretching, which are useful for different types of targets down the line. Olly outlined the things to watch for in a stretch but APP takes care of that for you, to different levels of stretch. 

Learn and practice light pollution removal tool and star color calibration to get a well corrected background and object color, and then the tips for the right hand side sliders to get a first round of post processing. 

The red button with a question mark on it in APP brings up the how-to dialog for all those sliders. It gives a great starting point to have an image for further processing, especially if you are using APP to stack. 

Very good start by the way

Very useful, thank you.

[edarter]

Excellent 1st image! As everyone else has said - get more data and just keep at it with the processing.

Regarding post processing - this is my biggest hurdle, and I think it always will be. I've tried Photoshop, SIRIL, StarTools, APP and now I'm on PI. I have to say I got furthest with Photoshop, with APP running it a close second but for me it has quite a clunky interface. Having tried and purchased PI now I feel I am finally getting further and things are starting to click in to place, though it was a steep learning curve. I do still use APP for calibration and stacking though, lightyears ahead of DSS! Not tried that in PI yet. Everyone is different though and I think the biggest issue for me is how far do you go with each stage of processing, its VERY easy to overdo it and that messes everything up down stream. Less is definitely more!

Ed

[imakebeer]

As I said to you yesterday @LaurenceT that looks a cracking image to me - for me as a newbie it inspires me to keep pushing, keep learning and keep improving. So many things to learn but eventually I'll get there 👍