Vela Supernova Remnant mosaic

[gregbradley]

This is a 6 panel mosaic of the Vela Supernova Remnant.
I may add more panels to this over time but I've caught the vast bulk of it here. It includes a couple of the Gum nebulas in this field:

http://www.pbase.com/gregbradley/image/156116203/large

Greg.

[RickS]

That's an image on a grand scale! Just lovely, Greg.

[Rod771]

I really like that one Greg! Very nice. :thumbsup:

[strongmanmike]

Kinda a bit green and red maybe :question: but a lovely result non the less Greg, with plenty of work going in to it I am sure, quite similar to your 2013 DM OM ;)

Mike

[gregbradley]

Cheers Rick.



Thanks very much Rod.



Perhaps. I'll look at that again. Certainly other versions I have done show more blue although the correct colour for the O111 shockwave is really teal green.

Yes it is the 2013 Malin OM which was a 4 panel mosaic. This is 6 panels, I imaged and added another 2 after that award.

Processing is definitely quite conservative which is not normally my style but I kind of liked it. Perhaps 2 versions are needed.

Greg.

[atalas]

Fine work Greg.

[gregbradley]

Thanks Louie.

Greg.

[gregbradley]

I've done some more work on this image and am happier with this redo. A bit contrast and punch and better colour.

Same link:

http://www.pbase.com/gregbradley/image/156116203/large

Greg.

[Stevec35]

Looks great to me Greg!

Cheers

Steve

[gregbradley]

Thanks Steve.

Greg.

[Paul Haese]

That is a nice field of view. Great colour through the field but it looks a little flat. Tiny stars really help to make the image look quite nice. Not a single hint that this is a mosaic either. Nice.

[gregbradley]

Thanks Paul.

I had another look at it with a fresh view. You're right it is a bit flat. I livened it up and it has more pop and is more vibrant now. Same link.

http://www.pbase.com/gregbradley/image/156116203/large

Greg.

[gvanhau]

Nice view of this impresive part of our sky.

Geert

[gregbradley]

Thanks Geert. I plan to add to it over time.

Greg.

[strongmanmike]

More vibrant now :thumbsup:...might look ok with a little more blue in it..but then maybe not also :)

Mike

[rustigsmed]

awesome, love the newer version Greg :thumbsup:

Rusty

[Paul Haese]

V for vibrant now Greg. I agree more blue now.

[gregbradley]

Good call. I accentuated the blue more and it does look better.



Cheers Rusty.



Thanks Paul. I enhanced the blue and it does look better. I am happy with it now.

Greg.

[Peter Ward]

The first thing I noticed was the levels are compressed...nothing seems to be at 255:255:255

That said, a beautiful field and well stitched mosaic. :thumbsup:

[gregbradley]

I am not sure what you mean by that. When you open in PS and check levels the histogram doesn't reach 255 in any channel RGB?

I just checked and mine does. So does the TIFFs it came from. But perhaps by the time it gets posted on PBase some compression occurs there. I checked the Pbaase image in PS and it also shows 255 in the levels dialogue box.

Greg.

[Peter Ward]

Hello Greg.... suppose I needed to be more specific...

Global levels have some 255 data..which I suspect are hot pixels.

But the brightest stars are not, well, the brightest.

As you can see from the attached sample, their core brightness is well down
which shouldn't be the case.

Just my 2 cents worth...:thumbsup:

[gregbradley]

Ah yes that is the case. The stars were toned down in brightness to emphasise the neb. Perhaps I took it too far!

Greg.

[Peter Ward]

OK then. :) ...Whatever floats 'yer boat is fair enough

[gregbradley]

Yes no free lunches with PS tools.

I restored the star brightnesses.

Greg.

[Octane]

Awesome, Greg. What a psychedelic part of the sky! :)

H

[gregbradley]

Thanks H, I do like this part of the sky. I am looking forward to seeing your Rho mosaic finished. That should be very good. The luminance is superb.

Greg.

[marc4darkskies]

That is a sweet mosaic Greg!! Very nicely done! :thumbsup:

[gregbradley]

Thanks Marcus. Mosaics are a great view but a lot of work and requires a good run of weather and extra processing.

Greg.

[Octane]

Got a few hours last night. :)

Will be installing CCD Commander tonight to ease the focusing-every-30 minutes pain!

H

[gregbradley]

Good idea. I need to do that as well. Let me know how easy/hard it was.

I'm a little reluctant at times to add too much software/hardware as even simple stuff seems to require careful handling to continue being reliable. FSQ though is quite focus sensitive. Have you seen the Sharplock feature of ONAG guiders? It would be ideal for an FSQ.

Greg.

[Octane]

Tell me more about this Sharplock?

At the moment, I'm programming 30 minutes worth of exposures into MaxIm DL and popping into the lounge room to check when that's done (I have a guider settle delay of 60 seconds between exposures) so it often ends up being closer to 45 minutes after 15 x 2 minute exposures. Once the sequence is complete, I just hit AquireStar in FocusMax and it does the rest. It truly is awesome watching the whole system work unattended (as unattended as I have it at the moment!). Once the pier goes in this weekend, I'll be able to set better east/west limits on the G-11 and make more use of time prior meridian flipping.

Astrophotography (despite the current camera woes) has become a lot of fun, again! And, thankfully, I have a very forgiving and understanding wife who doesn't make me feel guilty!

Next, is to employ an all-sky camera so I can remotely check when to pull the plug. The final destination, of course, is to build an observatory with a cloud/weather system integrated into the whole lot to shut/open the roof.

H

[gregbradley]

http://www.innovationsforesight.com/SharpLock.htm

Greg.

[Octane]

That, in theory, sounds excellent.

I can't justify buying another bit of equipment, though. Not at the moment, anyway! :)

H