AstroLandscapes #60 - Trails and Tribulations

[FenlandPaul]

In a field about 4 miles outside Cambridge is a treasure trove of astrophysical history. Giant iron skeletons tower above the hedges and ditches, interspersed with rows of wires strung between wooden posts, resembling a dormant vineyard.  This is the Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory, at which in 1967 a young Jocelyn Bell discovered pulsars using an instrument she helped to build.  

During one of the scarce clear nights in January, I visited with the intent of capturing three shots.  I'd wanted to do an extended star trails image over the beautiful structure of the One Mile Telescope, a foreground that in my eyes never gets old.  Additionally I'd planned two mosaics, one of the Cygnus Milky Way and one of the Orion region, both with the One Mile in the foreground.  

In the end I captured over 5 hours of star trails, and after painstakingly removing all the usual plane and satellite imperfections (and dealing with an accidental shift of camera position when I changed the battery), I got a shot that I'm super happy with - definitely the best star trail image I've created and I had a lot of fun with editing it.

Unfortunately the two mosaics I captured proved almost completely unusable.  Whilst they stitched (a miracle in itself given the haphazard way I shot them), the images suffered from horrible gradients and brightness differences that I've managed too get almost nowhere with, despite some very helpful suggestions from people over on the Image Processing part of this forum.  I just couldn't get an image I was happy with - maybe some data to return to in the future, especially if I ever graduate beyond PhotoShop.  I felt rather silly wasting a stunning 5 hour period by over complicating things; I should have gone for a shorter focal length and just captured more exposures, rather than going overly long (85mm) - it's not as if I was planning on printing the final image super large!

So a few weeks later I returned to capture the Orion image at a much more sensible 35mm; sadly it was too late in the season to capture Cygnus as it was now well within the murk after sunset - one to save for next year (provided no work has started on the giant solar farm currently awaiting planning permission for the area!).

As usual, I made a video journal of the night, which you can see below.

I'd welcome any feedback and thoughts - clear skies!

Paul

✨Spectral Vortex✨

📷Canon 6D with Samyang 14mm f/2.8 lens

🔧902x 20s exposures at ISO640 and f/4

🎞️ Edited in StarStax, Lightroom and PhotoShop

 

✨Revealing the Unseen✨

📷Canon 6D (astro-modified) with Samyang 35mm f/1.4 lens and SkyWatcher StarAdventurer tracker

🔧Foreground: 30s at ISO1250 f/4. Sky: 14x80s exposures at ISO800 and f/4, plus H-Alpha 5x180s exposures at ISO800 and f/2.8, p;us dark frames

🎞️ Edited and assembled in Sequator and PhotoShop

 

 

[Second Time Around]

That's the best star strails pic I've ever seen! Stunning!

[Swoop1]

Great images Paul!

You are right about the setting- the One Mile Telescope makes a very evocative foreground.

I look forward to your return visits.

[FenlandPaul]

25 minutes ago, Second Time Around said:

That's the best star strails pic I've ever seen! Stunning!

Very kind of you. It was really enjoyable to make.

 

19 minutes ago, Swoop1 said:

Great images Paul!

You are right about the setting- the One Mile Telescope makes a very evocative foreground.

I look forward to your return visits.

Thank you. It’s nice to have a foreground like that which isn’t hours of driving away! Shame about the local light pollution, but it could be a lot worse. 

[The Admiral]

That first image is a rather spectacular one. In some ways I feel the light pollution is an integral part of the image, enabling you to silhouette the background which to my mind helps with the composition.

I note that the star colours are quite saturated, presumably enhanced in post, but I like that, it's the artistic aspect which appeals rather than any scientific accuracy.

Ian

[FenlandPaul]

11 minutes ago, The Admiral said:

That first image is a rather spectacular one. In some ways I feel the light pollution is an integral part of the image, enabling you to silhouette the background which to my mind helps with the composition.

I note that the star colours are quite saturated, presumably enhanced in post, but I like that, it's the artistic aspect which appeals rather than any scientific accuracy.

Ian

Thanks Ian. I agree re the light pollution, which is just as well as it’s rather unavoidable round here!

Yes I’ve played with the hue and saturation in post, as well as applying a slight spin blur. Definitely art rather than scientific accuracy in what I do! There are plenty of other people producing beautifully accurate star colour shots, so I’m trying to be a bit different in this, whilst generally getting the message out to the wider world that not all stars are white!

[saac]

Fantastic Paul. The video really puts across the dedication and effort that you put into achieving these wonderful images. Massive thanks, these really are amazing images, so evocative. 

Jim 

[FenlandPaul]

9 minutes ago, saac said:

Fantastic Paul. The video really puts across the dedication and effort that you put into achieving these wonderful images. Massive thanks, these really are amazing images, so evocative. 

Jim 

Thanks very much for watching, Jim, and for your kind comments.  

[Albir phil]

Well I have seen lots of star trail images but this one is on steroids.Amazing, it would make a great book cover.👏👏

[Gerr]

Hi Paul,

Another great video I happily watched and the star trail image was just amazing - love it and the 'hidden nebula' 😄! 

Super well done  !!

[FenlandPaul]

1 hour ago, Albir phil said:

Well I have seen lots of star trail images but this one is on steroids.Amazing, it would make a great book cover.👏👏

Very kind - really appreciate that. 

 

51 minutes ago, Gerr said:

Hi Paul,

Another great video I happily watched and the star trail image was just amazing - love it and the 'hidden nebula' 😄! 

Super well done  !!

Thanks so much Ger - really appreciated. 

[AstroNebulee]

I love the star trails shot (actually I love both) but especially the intro when panning out from the dish with the music choice, just like it should belong in a movie. 

Thank you for all your dedication and hard work that you make look so effortless Paul. 

It's a beautiful location and your blessed with amazingly clear skies in the east of England. 

Lee 

[FenlandPaul]

1 hour ago, AstroNebulee said:

I love the star trails shot (actually I love both) but especially the intro when panning out from the dish with the music choice, just like it should belong in a movie. 

Thank you for all your dedication and hard work that you make look so effortless Paul. 

It's a beautiful location and your blessed with amazingly clear skies in the east of England. 

Lee 

Thanks Lee - super kind.  We've actually only had about 4 clear nights since the start of the year, but I've tried to max out as many of them as I could!!  I appreciate the support.  🫡

[clarkpm4242]

Excellent!  Is the 6D a full spectrum mod?

Paul

[FenlandPaul]

14 minutes ago, clarkpm4242 said:

Excellent!  Is the 6D a full spectrum mod?

Paul

Thanks Paul. No, it’s IR cut only. Andy’s site is this one:

http://www.astronomiser.co.uk/intro.htm

[skyhog]

Stunning images. Will have to revisit on a bigger screen. 

[WolfieGlos]

On 16/02/2024 at 08:43, FenlandPaul said:

902x 20s exposures

I’d dread to think how long that took you to stack! But it was worth it, that is a stunning star trail image. It almost looks like you have some Aurora at the bottom with the greens too? 

[FenlandPaul]

14 minutes ago, WolfieGlos said:

I’d dread to think how long that took you to stack! But it was worth it, that is a stunning star trail image. It almost looks like you have some Aurora at the bottom with the greens too? 

Thank you - very kind. It was the cleaning up that took the time rather than the stacking - so many planes, satellites and other stuff up there! I think the green hue is just local light pollution that’s come out that colour after the way I’ve edited the stars. Shame because I’d love ti get aurora over this one day - on the list for this year!!

[Alan White]

Great images Paul and interesting to read your journey in achieving them.

As a visual only observer I always enjoy the wonders imaging can produce. 
 

 

[FenlandPaul]

54 minutes ago, Alan White said:

Great images Paul and interesting to read your journey in achieving them.

As a visual only observer I always enjoy the wonders imaging can produce. 
 

 

Thanks Alan. I love being out under the stars as a visual observer too!

[ollypenrice]

Tremendous. (Also nice to see the Seagull with Orion.)

Olly

[FenlandPaul]

6 hours ago, ollypenrice said:

Tremendous. (Also nice to see the Seagull with Orion.)

Olly

Thanks Olly. Appreciated.

[John_D]

The star trail is amazing. I noticed the slight shift in camera position in the video when you changed the battery. That must have added to the processing fun! I've been looking for a way of powering my DSLR from an external USB battery pack but not come up with a cheap & reliable solution yet.

( That big radio telescope is unused you say. It would be just the thing for cloudy weather. Do you know how well it's bolted down? 😁 )

[FenlandPaul]

1 hour ago, John_D said:

The star trail is amazing. I noticed the slight shift in camera position in the video when you changed the battery. That must have added to the processing fun! I've been looking for a way of powering my DSLR from an external USB battery pack but not come up with a cheap & reliable solution yet.

( That big radio telescope is unused you say. It would be just the thing for cloudy weather. Do you know how well it's bolted down? 😁 )

Thanks John. Good spot - you can see the jump in the timelapse. It was VERY frustrating! In the end I did 2 star trail images (before and after the jump) and then overlaid them to offset the slight move. It was fiddly but thankfully salvageable. Unlike the mosaics. 🤦‍♂️