M51 the Whirlpool Galaxy

[Space Oddities]

Hello!

Yesterday was supposed to be clear, so I took advantage of this moonless night to photograph M51 for the first time. I never had the opportunity to photograph this gorgeous galaxy, so I was really excited  

Since my focal length was limited to 600mm, I decided to test again my ASI585MC camera to get a bit closer. I wasn't expecting much, especially because of the average seeing, but I'm really happy with how it turned out and how easy it was processing the files in PixInsight.  

I didn't bother doing any sort of calibration, and it actually seems to be working great like this. The small sensor eliminates the need for flats, and NoiseXTerminator did a fine job at eliminating the noise. I also used BlurXTerminator to improve the details in the galaxy's arms and reduce the stars. Finally, a bit of color calibration and curves adjustments, and voilà  

I think this combo will work great for small nebulae and galaxies. I don't have a high power telescope, so that will be a usable alternative I believe!

ZWO ASI585MC (gain 252, 80x180s - 4 hours)
Astronomik L-2 UV/IR filter
Askar 80PHQ (600mm f/7.5)
RainbowAstro RST-135