The Dark Tower

[Paul Haese]

Located near the tail of Scorpius this dark mass of dust and gas looks like an a huge tower which is being illuminated by bright stars behind and near the edges of the tower.

I broke my new rule of 20 hours plus on an image. Only 12.83 hours of data on this one, but since nearly all the noise had dissipated and signal looked good. No smoothing at all used, just pure frames to dispatch noise.

[RickS]

Very nice, Paul. I presume that's an LRGB? I have seen more dramatic versions but I think they all have a large helping of Ha.

[Paul Haese]

Hi Rick,

no it is HaRGB. I blended the Ha in just enough to get the effect of Ha detail but not too much. I sort of like this look myself, but might not suit others.

[tilbrook@rbe.ne]

Hi Paul,

Good to see another image of the dark tower, I imaged it a couple of months ago. At that stage didn't know it was called that.

I like your rendition, now I have a good image to go by when I revisit.

Thanks for posting this.

Cheers,

Justin

[Paul Haese]

Thanks Justin, the Ha is a little more muted than most images of this target, but the rest looks about as it should be.

[rustigsmed]

hi paul,
love the subtle colours, thanks for sharing.

cheers

russell

[IanP]

Hi Paul,
The “TOWER” displays, as usual, solid performance. Like the colours ...
Thanks for sharing !!!
:thumbsup:

[marc4darkskies]

Very nice Paul. I too initially thought it was LRGB. So, I honestly think that some more red is called for since you've collected Ha. All renditions (that aren't just LRGB) show plenty of emission. I know my version may not be to your taste in terms of saturation, but it caught DM's eye (a little bit ;)).

Go on, just a bit more red? :)

My last more trivial critique ... towers are supposed to point up aren't they ;)

Cheers, Marcus

[Paul Haese]

Thanks guys for the comments.

Marcus, your right it needs more red but I am struggling to get the Ha to deliver without it looking odd. Could you PM me with some tips on how you blend. I am happy to admit Ha blending has always been a problem for me. I have followed Rob Gendlers tips but I suspect blending the Ha and then putting it through CCDstack is what is causing issues for me.

Yes I need to orientate it correctly. 100% right.

BTW your image was viewed several times and I wondered how you got it so red.

Bottom line is that there is always more to learn.

[marc4darkskies]

No worries. I've been meaning to put something together on this topic. I also tried Rob Gendler's technique, as is, but it never worked. I think there are some steps he hasn't fully enunciated that are somewhat variable in their execution.

I'll put something together this weekend and send it to you.

[Ross G]

Great looking photo Paul.

Beautiful detail.


Ross.

[Paul Haese]

Thanks for doing that Marcus, much appreciated.:thumbsup:

Thanks Ross for you comments.

[Rigel003]

Lovely detail and well composed, Paul. It doesn't worry me that it's on the side - could be a fallen tower. I tend to agree with Marcus though that the colours are rather muted and the emission features not much to the fore compared to most photos of this object.

[atalas]

Very nice work Paul!well composed with the dust lifting beautifully.

Ah,blending Ha,and It's secret ?really?....seems to be a tough cookie to crack,with varying results on different objects.

Brightness levels through the channels pallet...In fact,brightness levels for all color you are trying to push.

I think It was in Wodaski's first book where he states the importance of the right amount of brightness being allocated to where It belongs.

Paul,If your not using a color wheel get one so you can see how hues and saturation relate to each other.

I say brightness levels because, that is what your really working with in your editing program!

It doesn't see colors!only shades of gray...remember mate,color is a result of your monitor or printer.

Hint: Brightness and Contrast filter and an inverted layer mask in the HaRed blended channel.....experiment!have fun.:)

Note: you can use this technique in any channel.