My 1st DSO, M42 (be gentle)

[acharris77]

Hi all, so I went out tonight with the intention of actually catching something on the Sc1 webcam which I can actually work with now I have sorted the tracking issues with the scope. So I decide to have a go at the M42.

I know this is not the best attempt that have been posted on here, as it seems the stars are overxposed or slightly unfocused and I could not catch the colour very well, though I think most of it is down to me and not doing a very good processing job due to in experience.

I used K3ccd tools and took 25 x 10 sec frames which saved to an AVI and then I did the same with the lens cap on. There was some wind which did cause vibrations in the scope. Then I used registax and adjusted the levels in CS4. Result below:

If anyone got any advice on processing better or want to take a go at the image feel free to. At least I managed to capture my 1st DSO finally. Thanks.

[MishMich]

If you are concerned about focus, a Bahtinov mask will help. "Stay Focused" do a wide range of these. I find them indispensible, and when I tried focusing using my DSLR the other day realised what a lot of pain they take out of the process. I've never tried imaging DSO's with a webcam, so am not really sure what they are capable of, or to pass judgement - but from what I have seen, this looks pretty good. I guess if you lowered the gain (or length of exposure) you might get more out from the trapezium, but that would be at the cost of the nebulosity. Some people make the two exposures into layers, blending the less exposed trap over the more exposed, thus keeping the nebulosity and bringing out these stars. Never done it myself, so can't advise how you do that.

M.

[gary1968]

Great 1st attempt mate! I am no expert but I do think the focusing is slightly off. I used a sc1 Toucam last winter and did a M42. IIRC mine was 30 secs subs and a good deal of the neb. came out, You might want to try uping the exp. to 30secs and soo how you get on.

As mentioned, a Bartinov Mask is, at the moment, the ultimate focusing aid and they are not too expensive.

Thansk for sharing and looking forward to your next image.

Gary

[MartinB]

Stick it in the first DSO thread at the top of the this board. That's a lovely first attempt. M42 is a bit of a pig because the trapezium is so bright but the outer areas are so dim. To get the dimmer stuff you need to go for longer exposures. Welcome to the learning curve Anthony!

[coxie]

nice image achariss good to see you again, maybe next you can teach me how to produce a basic image

[acharris77]

Thanks all for the advice, I finished cutting out my home made Bahtinov mask today which I laminated, but now I either need to make a cardboard collar or maybe use some tape to hold it on, as I seem to struggle to find a mask for a 130mm newt from suppliers. Most people I showed this picture to cant believe that that much is in the nebula, as through the EP they see four stars and a very little bit of nebulosity on a dark night.

@coxie Nice to see u too, sure I will try to help you with that and give some advice, If you have a digital camera or decent camera phone, maybe you can try holding the camera at the eyepiece and take some images, it is how I started out in imaging, the moon and my standard digicam. Simple and not to complicated to begin with.

[Beyond_Vision]

A good start Anthony and as Martin says it a very hard target due to it's dynamic range.

Regards

Kevin

[Coco]

I think that's a cracking start...

If your scope was slightly less powerful it would look even better..

Highly magged up images will always be less forgiving..

You'll learn a lot on here... . . I am

Guy

[MishMich]

If you put a couple of screws through the mask, slightly above where they will meet the tube, cover those in something like gaffer tape (to prevent them scratching the tube), and just rest the mask on the front, resting by the screws. Mine came with plastic screws, but I'm not sure where you would get them from. Or you could use a couple of corks, I guess, if you have left enough overlap, and glue them to the mask.

M.

[astrokat]

what about sticky backed velcro bud may work ! very good start well done

toby

[Psychobilly]

Thats a cracking first DSO with the modded webcam... Focus must have been pretty close to show so much detail in the structure round the core and the dust lane..

For fixing the mask Tape is quick and easy fold the tape back on itself at the free end so it leaves a tab Makes it easier to remove the mask in the dark...

Oh dont forget to take it off either .. I think all of us who use them have imaged through them at one time or another

Peter...

[ncjunk]

Nice start to imaging. M42 is a great one to practice on and you will quickly get better...

[acharris77]

Thanks all for the great advice on the mask, I was stuggling to come up with ideas how to hold it on the scope, will look into 1 or 2 of them. Thanks again for the replies and comments.

[Helen]

That's a great start Anthony!

Helen

[Shibby]

Well done on the capture. You have the exact same scope as me - do you use a barlow?

For my bhatinov, I use a flimsy piece of card with tabs left on it and my girlfriend's bobble to attach

[acharris77]

Well done on the capture. You have the exact same scope as me - do you use a barlow?

For my bhatinov, I use a flimsy piece of card with tabs left on it and my girlfriend's bobble to attach

Hey, no I did not use a barlow for the M42, I only used a barlow when I captured Jupiter, otherwise I try to use just the webcamcam at prime focus, as that is almost equal to a 6mm eyepiece.

I was thinking of leaving tabs on it and use a elastic band or something to attached, or like above 2 screws to hang it on.