The Tarantula Nebula (NGC2070) in Dorado

[Octane]

Hi all,

Taken at Zane Hammond's Farmstay, Lake Bathurst.

Read and view here (http://members.optusnet.com.au/octane2asphyx/Magellan_Observatory/Magellan_Observatory_20060729_Taran tula.html).

Comments and critique welcome.

Warning: file is approximately 1.1 MB in size.

Regards,
Humayun (http://members.optusnet.com.au/octane2asphyx/Magellan_Observatory/Magellan_Observatory_20060729_Taran tula.html%22%5BURL=%22http://members.optusnet.com.au/octane2asphyx/Magellan_Observatory/Magellan_Observatory_20060729_Taran tula.html)

[Lester]

Hi Octane, (sounds explosive)

very nice image. I see you have gone for the green looking nebula and didn't use a filter to achieve that. Still looks very nice. I will get use to it.

[astronut]

That is an awesome image:eyepop: You're lucky Humayun, my club went to Zane's last week and it rained:sadeyes:

[iceman]

Wow, stunning!

[tornado33]

Beaut image. The green colour actually reflects strongly what the human eye can see if it could pick up colour at low light levels (thats why M42 apprears greenish)
Scott

[Striker]

Lovely image Humayun.....everything looks spot on and the overall green bias still looks appealing...nice job.

[strongmanmike]

Hmm...?

Like the FOV, the stars (some colour in them too!) and the sky background buut I'm not too keen on the terquoise blue nebulosity...? :shrug:

Can you do anything about that or is just inherent in the camera?

Mike

[[1ponders]]

Nice one Humayan. Love the realism. What did you use to guide? Or was it unguided

[astroron]

It is one of the most natural images of the tarrantula nebula I have seen! a little darker and it would represent what the human eye sees through a good telescope.:thumbsup: great image:eyepop:

[Octane]

Lester,


Hehe. :)



The colour is pretty much what the sensor picked up (my camera isn't modified). It has been slightly enhanced in post-processing.

Overall, I'm quite pleased as this is the longest and deepest I've ever shot.

Thanks for the kind words.

Regards,
Humayun

[Octane]

Hi John,

Thank you for the compliment.

It was very cloudy up until 11 PM, or so, and then it just cleared up like magic. It was beautiful.

Zane has a magnificent property there, and is blessed with incredible skies.

I can see myself heading that way often.

Regards,
Humayun

[Octane]

Mike,

Thanks, mate. :)

It's been a long time since the last image.

Regards,
Humayun

[Octane]

Scott,

Thanks, mate.

When I saw the LCD display after the first two-minute image, I was a little disappointed that I was just picking up green. But, I'm fine with that; I prefer the natural look. I was thinking about getting a Hutech-modified camera, but, I think I'll stick with the standard EOS-350D.

In the final IRIS stacked image, when I go to 1x view, I can see wisps of magenta in the middle.

Regards,
Humayun

[Octane]

Hi Tony,

Thanks for the heads up, mate. I wasn't even using my own gear, as my telescope decided to die at around midnight. There is something wrong with my Autostar cable. Without the Autostar, the telescope doesn't function.

Louie was kind enough to let me use his equipment for the remainder of the night.

I'm desperate to purchase a G-11, and an apochromat now. :)

Regards,
Humayun

[Octane]

Hi Mike,

I think the problem lies in the camera. Mine isn't modified for the Hα wavelength.

I'm sure the colours can be enhanced in post-processing. I, however, like the natural look. The turquoise nebulosity in the final image is very close to the colour in the stacked image that IRIS presented me.

Thanks for the compliment and criticism, I appreciate it. :)

Regards,
Humayun

[Octane]

Hi Paul,

I wasn't using my own equipment, as I just mentioned in my reply to Tony.

Louie was having some problems with his own guidescope, so we just went for two-minute unguided sub-images. They turned out pretty well, I think. I could have gone a little longer, but decided not to push it, as the wind was starting to pick up slightly, as well.

It's the longest and deepest I've gone. Very happy. :)

[Octane]

Ron,

Thank you for the kind words. :)

Some people prefer the Hα-heavy images, I prefer the natural look. Although, having said that, a Canon EOS-20Da wouldn't go astray. :)

Regards,
Humayun

[GTB_an_Owl]

Hi H
was about to gig you about your setup time when i saw the time you took the first pic - then i read down a bit further.
BUT - i still want to know how you find these people willing to stay up to the wee hours with you ? HE! HE!

great shot by the way

geoff

[davidpretorius]

you have absolutely floored me.

congratulations on a brilliant image.

[Astroman]

nice shot Hummy, getting more proficient with your equipment I see, cant wait to start imaging with mine.

[Octane]

Hi Geoff,

I was actually pretty good this time, I shot some other stuff before NGC2070, but, that's for a little later. :)

Louie used to come up to Kulnura. He was one of the few who would stay til the sun came up, along with myself and Andrew.

Thanks for the compliment!

Regards,
Humayun

[Octane]

David,

You are far too kind.

What should I attempt next?

Regards,
Humayun

[Octane]

Andrew,

Thanks, mate. :)

Funny thing is, this wasn't my equipiment! It was Louie (atalas)'s!

Cheers.

Regards,
Humayun

[ballaratdragons]

whatever colour it is or meant to be, I like it!

Top Shot Humayun, wide enough to take in the whole area too. :thumbsup:

[RB]

Beautiful shot H,

It's a nice change to see it like this.
You've been bitten by the APO bug I see? :D
That's awesome equipment you got to use and I don't blame you for wanting a setup like that.

Well done.

[TidaLpHasE]

:eyepop:Awsome Humayun, i like the natural colors and what a widefield this is, fantastic.

It would be great to add more exposures of the surrounding LMC into a photostitch image, maybe even the SMC, now that would be wide.

I am envious of your imaging skills and dark sites:(

[Octane]

Ken,

I'm glad you like the image!

I have never even looked through a refractor before, let alone image through one, and I was pleasantly surprised.

I can see an ED80 for me, around the corner. :)

Regards,
Humayun

[Octane]

Andrew,

Thanks for the kind words, mate. :)

I've definitely been bitten by a bug; whether it is for an apochromatic, a refractor, or the Losmandy mount, I don't know. But, I've been bitten. :)

Cheers.

Regards,
Humayun

[Octane]

Trevor,

I'm enjoying the natural colours, too. I just had a look at the image from my monitor at work, which only runs at 1280x1024, and the image looks quite nice! I'm so used to staring at my 1920x1200 (native) monitors on both the laptop and desktop panel. I guess that's a good thing, though; nothing looks right, and you keep working at it until it does. Then, when viewed on a lower resolution monitor, it just pops!

I like the idea of having a go at the entire surrounding area and building a mosaic. I'll see what I can do!

It's a pity that it isn't my dark sky; I drove about a hundred kilometres to chase them down. :)

Thanks again.

Regards,
Humayun

[Itchy]

Hi Humayun

Very nice image.

The strange thing about the tarantula and unmodified cameras is that you get no red response at all. Other objects always display some red in them (eg lagoon) but the tarantula shows none. I haven't figured that out yet.
Interestingly you can get some red out of it by using a filter. Here is my tarantula with an unmodified camera and a Baader UHCs Nebula filter:

http://www.itchysastro.net/Tarantula20x3iso200Web.jpg

The same shot after considerable colour processing:

http://www.itchysastro.net/Tarantula20x3iso200ColCorlx.jpg

And my first attempt at it without a filter. No red at all.

http://www.itchysastro.net/tarantulaweb1.jpg

[rogerg]

I've found this thread quite interesting. I gave 2070 a quick shot with my 350D (unmodified) one time, realised it was going to come out blue and gave up (lots of other things to image with the ST7). I wasn't sure if it was just my short exposures or what, so it's interesting to see other's attempts and the same blue result.

All the examples posted here are great - nice sharp images with good detail. I didn't quite get there with mine.

:thumbsup:

Roger.

[EzyStyles]

thats a beautiful tarantula! keep it up :)

[Octane]

Tony,

Thanks for your compliment.

I was wondering to myself, why, even after a 2-minute sub-exposure there was no red, but just an overwhelming blue. I will have to try again some time with a UHC-S filter.

Thanks for posting your image; they've lovely as usual.

Regards,
Humayun

[Octane]

Hi Roger,

Thanks for the heads up. :)

Regards,
Humayun

[Octane]

Hi Eric (The Imaging Machine),

Thanks for the kind words.

Regards,
Humayun