May comparison

[xelasnave]

Originally Posted by kosborn

Hi Alex,

I have a huge tree in my front yard (to the east) many metres high so for me the Cat's Paw doesn't rise until about 10:30pm. Last night though I got a good couple of hours in until clouds came over about 12:30. I was imaging narrow band 5 minute subs but there was a very strong Ha signal so I'm guessing it should be well visible in rgb with shorter subs. The recent spectacular image of the "half chicken and chips" by RickS in the big person's astrophotography forum (http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/a...e.php?a=227406) inspired me to spend some time on the Running Chicken while waiting for the Cat's Paw to appear. Looking at the half chicken and chips it seems like I should be patient and spend many, many hours integrating subs...

Kevin

I will have another go maybe but both mounts need a pull down..the new heq 5 got to hot and the grease melted it seems...I thought I had the heat covered but apparently not.
Excuses excuses but I am so sick of dismanling mounts.
I have even thought of power screw drivers and allen keys and do an f1 pull down approach in mind mumbing speed..for utube☺ or at least for me to make it less tiresome.
I got the Eq6 just great in dec with no back lash but the thing wont move under motor power. A little bit but only enough for a short dither..which is sortta ok but I need goto down here so it will have to be slacked off..so I guess I cant gave what I wont get..pull it down and back off a few settings...mmm I will give it some of the new fancy grease that I got for the heq 5 ... that right going with grease..I like just oil on the gears but you have to pull it down often for lubrication. Should look at getting an oil line in there maybe...and self clean thingy.

I set up with the old refractor to check out the Sun but it won't fit the way I want in the cube. Had the little zwo in the refractor on resting on a chair looking at leaves.
Alex

[xelasnave]

I missed doing the running chicken I dont know why I didnt do it when up North...too concerned about M83 I think and taken with the rising other end of the Milky Way.
Alex

[Benjamin (Ben)]

Had another crack at this with minimal time - 10 x 120s Ha, 14 x 10s RGB (so 27 minutes all up). Was really happy with the colour I could get with the moon up and the LP in my backyard. Stars the usual disaster on the 8" Newt (guiding mostly and some kind of tilt in the image train). Again tried to process into vaguely round blobs but given the initially streaky stars lots of definition is lost in the nebula itself. Odd colours too seemed to arise but think that's down to the lack of time and noise being read into everything?

[PKay (Peter)]

Well done Ben

It looks like a magnificent painting that should be hung in a gallery.

[Lognic04 (Logan)]

The prawn! more details in the thread in deep space section.

[xelasnave]

I finally managed something.
In Sydney and rather windy which does not usually bother me but getting focus was not easy with the star jumping around.

I used the 8 inch reflector F5 (still not adjusted and as is from Andrews Communications), Camera the 24 meg Nikon D5500 unmoddified and going with my now usual approach at 1600 iso, 30 second subs but a lot...199 in all....And this was on the EQ6 mount in the new cube (little observatory 4x4x4ft)..which is working out fantastic..it is snug but I fit and can sit on a little chair... well its some sort of antique thing so I should replace it with something else.

Told DSS to select 95 % and it stacked 173...so more than usual...ditthered a bit but did not put in much effort there as I was not confident if I had it as nothing showed in the subs at all...the stars looked in the right spot but so did they the other night when I mised it. Despite a dither took 16 darks ...no lights cause I was so very tired and I could not find any clean white t shirts and no bias because it would have taken far too long


Processed in Adobe camera raw and photoshop then in Gimp about 30 minutes so an extrodinary amount of time on processing

At first I could not get any colour but then somehow it popped out and it became difficult to get rid of it...anyways I hope the colour is not too bad as I tried really I tried to get it right ..but I cant tell so its a guess really.

alex

[xelasnave]

Originally Posted by Benjamin

Had another crack at this with minimal time - 10 x 120s Ha, 14 x 10s RGB (so 27 minutes all up). Was really happy with the colour I could get with the moon up and the LP in my backyard. Stars the usual disaster on the 8" Newt (guiding mostly and some kind of tilt in the image train). Again tried to process into vaguely round blobs but given the initially streaky stars lots of definition is lost in the nebula itself. Odd colours too seemed to arise but think that's down to the lack of time and noise being read into everything?

That is excellent and what a hard act to follow as they say in parliment.
Brown? what brown

You did well and good on you for contributing to this months efforts.
alex

[xelasnave]

Originally Posted by Lognic04

The prawn! more details in the thread in deep space section.

Thank you for posting here Logan.
But hang on its us old fellas who should be showing you what to do not the other way around.

I was thinking you should tell the journalist who gave you some fame that you are building a scope..thats newsworthy stuff for them, so you are doing them a favour, plus you get your message out there again.

Dont stop pumping and even if the water is a long way down the sweeter it will be ...and if you stop the water in the pipe goes all the way back down and you have to start again....

Again thanks for posting here it all helps to encourage new folk and young folk so them seeing what you are doing is really a wonderful thing.

alex

[xelasnave]

Logan...Great image by the way...that is a great set up you have.
alex

[Benjamin (Ben)]

Looks great Alex. It is a very red object. When getting the very short 10s RGB subs there was very little G and B (only around the upper middle ‘pad’ with the streak through it).

[xelasnave]

Originally Posted by Benjamin

Looks great Alex. It is a very red object. When getting the very short 10s RGB subs there was very little G and B (only around the upper middle ‘pad’ with the streak through it).

I think I may have lost data looking at that red in my image ..its like flat paint.
But I was tired when I processed it.
I went to bed 3am last night and the night before so this morning processing was a hurried affair..I think when I realised it was there I slacked off to have a snooze.
Now that I am retired I have to get my sleep at night😊
Alex

[xelasnave]

Originally Posted by Lognic04

The prawn! more details in the thread in deep space section.

OK where is it on the map herewith☺
Alex

[Lognic04 (Logan)]

[Atmos (Colin)]

This is one that I want to photograph again but fate has been against me recently. Every clear night in Melbourne has been a night that I haven’t gotten home until 11:30pm and needing to go to sleep for my 5:45 work alarm

So, this is last year’s effort with a Nikon D810 and a 130mm F/5.2.
19x300s at ISO 800.

[xelasnave]

Originally Posted by Atmos

This is one that I want to photograph again but fate has been against me recently. Every clear night in Melbourne has been a night that I haven’t gotten home until 11:30pm and needing to go to sleep for my 5:45 work alarm

So, this is last year’s effort with a Nikon D810 and a 130mm F/5.2.
19x300s at ISO 800.

You do such wonderful images Colin.
They are inspirational not in the sence that I think that I could ever do as good ...its like watching a great bike rider and knowing what it takes to take it to that level...but that there is someone out there who can do things so well.

And look you need to retire so this work doesnt interfere with your astronomy. ..My advice is make a vast fortune quickly and set up a number of remote observatories around the place so bad weather lessens its impact on photon time.

That why I would love a dragon fly set up no filter wheels as one scope one band.

It was so good when I lived the hermit life..That photo above was taken over and over night after night all night five nights or more but full time ..slept during the day played astronomy all night.
You can never get enough and after a ehile its weird how out there you get...I dont know if you have ever exlerienced standing but loning up with out there even though you are on the planet but your perception changes to out there...you are standing on a big ball ...sounds strange and it was the way I could experience the whole thing.
I cant name a lot of stuff but I have spent just countless hours exploring and its like a city but down here all the streets are gone.
Even when I look at where I know the Milky Way is and know the stars its just foreign somehow..
Alex

[PKay (Peter)]

Originally Posted by xelasnave

I finally managed something.

At first I could not get any colour but then somehow it popped and it became difficult to get rid of it...anyways I hope the colour is not too bad as I tried really I tried to get it right ..

alex

I love it Alex, Red and it kept me looking. Sometimes it not about technical perfection. Astro Art.

[xelasnave]

Originally Posted by Lognic04

Thank you Logan.
Down here I will strugle to find it yet up North you would see it in the binos I expect.

I just point the scope like a pool que..no problems...you know the ring nebula...looked on the star chart checked where all the balls were ..I mean stars..stood by the scope at the same distance as if it were a pool que maybe more yes perhaps a meter... and lined it up having worked out where all the balls were..I mean stars☺..bent down there was the ring nebula in the field of view.
Down here its just different I need to do goto I guess. Plus I have lived in a house oriented in a certain way different to this so you walk out the door things seem different..
Alex

[xelasnave]

Its tail of the scorpian.
This should be easy for anyone to find I expect and I expect it would be a good object with a camera a d whatever lens you have ...
Folk thinking about aztro photography should find this easily...but will I find it I know where is ..its so worrying when you look and they are not there...third night 3 am I really need a job to get some sleep.

Alex

[xelasnave]

Wait there is it?
Mmmm sleep deprevation is kicking in.
Alex

[xelasnave]

tried a bit harder but I dont know ..been too long on it..but check out the stars with red difraction spikes.
alex