[Shiraz (Ray)]

Originally Posted by Astroman

Fantastic scale Ray, nicely resolved. love the colours.

Hi Andrew - Thanks

Originally Posted by marc4darkskies

Apart from your minor guiding problems, that's a very good image Ray! Although I do tend to like more saturated colours I reckon the first one is best. Some great detail in there!! You could always blend the two. In Photoshop you'd blur the saturated version slightly and overlay it as a colour layer on top of the first and set opacity to taste to get the best of both worlds!

Cheers, Marcus

Thanks for the kind comment and helpful advice Marcus - will give it a try, although I do not currently have PS

Originally Posted by E_ri_k

Really nice image there Nice resolution! I like the first one.
Erik

thanks Erik

Originally Posted by PRejto

Hi Ray,

Love your images, but I do prefer #1 with a more muted colour approach. Your data sure looks "smooth!" Would you mind sharing how long your subs were and total times in LRGB? I'm working on this target too, but seem to be getting nowhere "fast" with lousy weather and getting used to new gear (ONAG + barlow on my TEC). I'm having the most trouble with RGB. Usually I try not to bin 2x2 because I don't like what it does to my smooth background in luminance (1x1). Probably I just need a lot more time in RGB to get a better result.

Anyway, I digress. I think your image is what I'm aspiring for! Congrats!

Thanks for the comments Peter. Subs were 1 minute for L and 2 minutes for the colours - total times were LRGB 47:60:42:52. I also had huge trouble with the RGB and ended up manually adjusting levels and gains so that the data was within the ranges that the auto adjust algorithms in neb and pixinsight expected - biggest problem was upper level haze and thin cloud that picked up every bit of stray light from nearby street lights and even from Adelaide at about 50k distant.
I thought that I might get away with 2x binning for the colour, but the features in M83 are small coloured features and the colour res had to be as good as the lum - hence needed a lot more time on colour than on lum. If you are using a 2x Barlow, expect to sit there for 4x as long as you would without it - looks like there is no substitute for time.

Originally Posted by Joshua Bunn

Its above the image Peter, LRGB 47:60:42:52

Thats a cracker of an image Ray.

Josh

Thanks Joshua

Originally Posted by ChrisM

Nice work Ray. Just to be difficult, I prefer the colour of the galaxy in the first pic but the background of the second pic! (It's less hazy, but I realise that that may in fact be how it is.)

Chris

The galaxy does not have an abrupt boundary, but slowly fades - the only way I could show that was by bumping up the background, since it seems to be difficult to see very dark transitions on the average lappy display. Thus the haziness of the background of the first image. Is this better?

Regards Ray