Interstellar dust clouds and bright nebulae abound in the fertile constellation of Orion. One of the brightest, M78, is near the centre in this view, covering an area north of Orion's belt. At a distance of about 1,500 light-years, the bluish nebula itself is about 5 light-years across. Its blue tint is due to dust preferentially reflecting the blue light of hot, young stars in the region. Dark dust lanes and other nebulae can easily be traced through the gorgeous sky scape that includes many Herbig- Haro objects, energetic jets from stars in the process of formation.(text from APOD)
Overall though, I'm happy with this image, taken over two nights under dark skies at my mate's property in rural Victoria. I was surprised how much Ha is present in this area, although this is only 3 hrs of it and of course I wanted more data (don't we always?) but I was prevented by a minor technical glitch & then the thick bushfire smoke hanging over Australia at present.
It sure was nice to be out under dark skies again though!
A good couple'a nights spent there Andy, you had a great time collecting it and with a nice image to show for your efforts and travels, I am sure you must be feeling quite satisfied...particularly after your recent rocket watching sojourn ....on space & astronomy cloud 9
Nicely done. That's a faint one and you've got the red tinge right on the outer neb.
Cheers Marc, I was really surprised by the amount of Ha captured in just 3 hrs, I suspect more would likely overpower the Nebula! Thanks for the nice feedback
Quote:
Originally Posted by strongmanmike
A good couple'a nights spent there Andy, you had a great time collecting it and with a nice image to show for your efforts and travels, I am sure you must be feeling quite satisfied...particularly after your recent rocket watching sojourn ....on space & astronomy cloud 9
Cheers Mike! Yes nice to be back on earth again - as you know, those long haul flights to the USA are pretty arduous, but was well worthwhile to see two launches! Nice to be back imaging again- I was never happy with my previous attempts at this target so it felt good to get the M78 monkey off my back!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Retrograde
That's a beautiful M78 Andy.
Excellent depth & resolution.
Thanks Pete! Dark skies make a heap of difference! Wish I could be undercthem more often
That's a lovely version of M78. Nice detail and you got some moody red background glow. Only comment I would make is the blue colours in the reflection nebula seems off. Too much magenta and looks too sky blue in my opinion.
That's a lovely version of M78. Nice detail and you got some moody red background glow. Only comment I would make is the blue colours in the reflection nebula seems off. Too much magenta and looks too sky blue in my opinion.
Greg.
Cheers Greg! re: the colour - that's probably the influence of the strong Ha signal present I suspect. Thanks for the nice feedback
Lovely result, just a pity the technical hitch interrupted things a bit, it would have been interesting to see what a few more hours would have done for it.
I had a really strong “taste” reaction to the red and grey - like the metallic taste of kidney beans not well washed after being taken from the can! Oddly specific I realize but it’s not a reason not to like the image. It made me react quite powerfully, which is bloody wonderful! P.S. Wasn’t it Michael Collins who said space smelled like burnt toast? The red and grey could equally conjure that in my taste buds as well
Lovely result, just a pity the technical hitch interrupted things a bit, it would have been interesting to see what a few more hours would have done for it.
Cheers Mate, yes well the best laid plans & all - seems it may have be a power supply issue at the property, everything seems ok again here at home? Nice to get out under those lovely dark skies of yours again though!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ross G
A great looking photo of a beautiful object.
Nice colours and composition.
Ross.
Cheers Ross, one I can now tick off the bucket list of Northern Summer objects
Quote:
Originally Posted by Benjamin
I had a really strong “taste” reaction to the red and grey - like the metallic taste of kidney beans not well washed after being taken from the can! Oddly specific I realise but it’s not a reason not to like the image. It made me react quite powerfully, which is bloody wonderful! P.S. Wasn’t it Michael Collins who said space smelled like burnt toast? The red and grey could equally conjure that in my taste buds as well
That's an interesting interpretation Ben!
Your point is well made though, you don't have to necessarily "like" an image to be moved by it, sometimes impact is key.
M78 is my favourite celestial object, and I have imaged it at least 30 times - it is also my desktop image, so I know what I am looking at
I'll be frank Andy - you've blurred it too mcuh IMHO. The dark regions and red H-a regions look like a photoshop blur action to mitigate noise, and doesn't "match" well with the not-so-blurred detail of the O3 blue regions. The dark dust and H-a regions should have a rather distinct and obvious edge to them
Sorry, but that's how I feel. Having looked at hundreds of M78 images - my own and many others including APODS - it's not right. Sorry.
M78 is my favourite celestial object, and I have imaged it at least 30 times - it is also my desktop image, so I know what I am looking at
I'll be frank Andy - you've blurred it too mcuh IMHO. The dark regions and red H-a regions look like a photoshop blur action to mitigate noise, and doesn't "match" well with the not-so-blurred detail of the O3 blue regions. The dark dust and H-a regions should have a rather distinct and obvious edge to them
Sorry, but that's how I feel. Having looked at hundreds of M78 images - my own and many others including APODS - it's not right. Sorry.
Flame suit on
No flame suit required. It's an average rendition that is not right as noted.
M78 is my favourite celestial object, and I have imaged it at least 30 times - it is also my desktop image, so I know what I am looking at
I'll be frank Andy - you've blurred it too mcuh IMHO. The dark regions and red H-a regions look like a photoshop blur action to mitigate noise, and doesn't "match" well with the not-so-blurred detail of the O3 blue regions. The dark dust and H-a regions should have a rather distinct and obvious edge to them
Sorry, but that's how I feel. Having looked at hundreds of M78 images - my own and many others including APODS - it's not right. Sorry.
Flame suit on
Hi Lewis, all good - you can pop the flame suit back in the cupboard (but keep it handy in case those real fires come any closer to you). I respect your love of M78 so will take your comments onboard. Cheers!
Quote:
Originally Posted by CosmicEcho
No flame suit required. It's an average rendition that is not right as noted.
I’ve noticed a generally negative and sarcastic tone to this and your previous comments. Until you post some images here of your own I’d prefer you refrain from commenting on mine. Have a nice day.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Peter Ward
Humm...I must be "impacting" people's opinions
A good M78 none-the-less
Thanks Peter, it’s a gentle reminder that there’s no hiding behind impact, composition & technique when making LRGB images- they’re basically right or they’re not! Always room for improvement & I’m happy to learn
This is the image I use as my desktop image - not sure WHO'S it is - pulled it off a Google search a while back (someone Davis??)
Marco also did a GORGEOUS M78 a few years back, as did Rolf Olsen. lus my very average low-data rendition from 6 years ago (f/9 FL-102S doublet and an OSC CCD: https://www.astrobin.com/full/106523/0/ - yeah, I blurred my mega-noise too ). You even commented on my image 5 years back
I'll NEVER be anywhere near decent at AP - not even half your talent Andy, but I do know M78
....on space & astronomy cloud 9 
). You even commented on my image 5 years back 
