Eta Carinae

[peter_4059 (Peter)]

Here's my second attempt with the new gear from last night (400D through 10" Newt using the new Paracorr). Too bad it was full moon.

I managed to get the guiding working last night after discovering a clash between my Belkin video grabber and the Canon EOS utility that meant I had to change guide cameras to a webcam based system. I'd be interested if anyone else has encountered this problem?

This image is 6x90 secs ISO 800, ICNR, no flats. I'm very pleased with the performance of the paracorr.

Comments/suggestions welcome.

[Dennis]

Hi Peter

A very nice image, especially given the limitations of an um-modified DSLR. I had a quick play around in CS3 (file attached) and I think you’ll find you have a lot more data that you can show if in that shot. Very nice indeed.

Cheers

Dennis

[peter_4059 (Peter)]

Thanks Dennis - any chance of letting me in on what you did in CS3? Is it a bit more curves to brighten and increased colour saturation?

[AlexN]

Definitely looks the goods Peter! The field looks fairly flat too which is a big plus! I like the little touch up that Dennis posted too.. A quick pass with a deconvolution filter and a selective layer should see the stars tighten up a bit too, I definitely like what you've achieved, and look forward to many more from you with this setup!

I am actually really upset that I didn't get to setup last night.. Got roped into a drinking session with friends... spent half the night outside looking up at the beautifully clear sky wishing i was at home imaging! haha..

[Dennis]

Originally Posted by peter_4059

Thanks Dennis - any chance of letting me in on what you did in CS3? Is it a bit more curves to brighten and increased colour saturation?

Hi Peter

Do you have CS3? If so, PM me your e-mail address and I’ll send you the .psd file which will show you the Layers and what I did on each one. In summary, I used Saturation, Exposure, Levels and Curves on separate Layers to boost the colour and make it “pop” on my uncalibrated LCD. The top Layer was a selection of the central brighter region which I feathered in so the changes were only made on the selection and not the entire image.

At the risk of incurring the processing wrath of Jase, I kinda just played around as I’ve yet to establish any defined processes, due to my absence at the ‘scope over the last few months; or is that years!

Cheers

Dennis

[peter_4059 (Peter)]

Thanks Dennis - sounds more sophisticated than anything I've tried so far. Iv'e pm'd you the email address.

Thanks,

Peter

[peter_4059 (Peter)]

Alex,

Thanks for the tips. I've found my deconvolution add-in spits the dummy with the size of the DSLR image. I'm having to shrink the image down before I can use it. I've been playing with smart sharpen and this seems to work quite well.

It was a good night except for the moon last night. The forecast also looks good for the next few days. Hopefully it will last until new moon.

Peter

[Ric]

A very nice image Peter, the colours look very natural.

[peter_4059 (Peter)]

Thanks Ric. It sure is a whole lot easier to get a colour image with the DSLR than the DSI II pro. I should have tried this a long time ago.

Peter