Milky Way Antares Area

[gregbradley]

This is panel 1 of a mosaic I am imaging. I got 2 panels last night but one was mostly a writeoff due to dewing of the lens.

This is the first panel of probably a 6 panel mosaic.

http://upload.pbase.com/gregbradley/image/156747941/large regular size

http://upload.pbase.com/gregbradley/image/156747941/original large size

Greg.

[RickS]

That should be quite a project, Greg. The first panel is very nice.

[gregbradley]

Thanks Rick. I started doing one last year but it was a 165mm lens. Its a great lens for this but a bit too narrow and would take too many panels.

Here is the Ha from the first 2 panels (before the dew started).

http://upload.pbase.com/gregbradley/image/156748509/large regular size

http://upload.pbase.com/gregbradley/image/156748509/original large size

Its Milky Way season and its high enough at first dark now to image without waiting for it to rise. I also found a great spot for a DSLR nightscape yesterday by accident. Looking forward to doing that at first 1/4 moon.

I am also going to do a mirrorless camera version to see how it compares. First shot maybe tonight.

Greg.

[tilbrook@rbe.ne]

Love the first panel Greg!:thumbsup::thumbsup:

Rich colours and sharp stars well defined nebulae it has the lot.
Can't wait to see the finished mosaic.

Cheers,

Justin.

[gregbradley]

Thanks Justin. In some ways a DSLR is a lot easier as there is no registration of the images to fuss over. The main advantage of the mono CCD is the better Ha response so those regions get highlight much more even without adding Ha to it. I plan to do both so it should be an interesitng comparison.

Greg.

[strongmanmike]

Looks awesome Greg :thumbsup: and a DM favourite area too, he awards one every year ;)

Oh and look :scared: NGC 6334 The Cats Paw isn't totally red is it, NO! :eyepop: :lol:

Look forward to the final mozaic should be a cracker :thumbsup:

Mike

[gregbradley]

Thanks Mike. All ready to image tonight and we have a good forecast for the rest of the week.

As usual there is always a problem. The FLI adapter AD22 screws in a bit too far into the filter wheel inhibiting the filters from changing so I have to unscrew it a bit. This means the lens has a bit of play. I put some blue masking tape around the thread and screwed it back in so now no play and not screwed all the way in which should reduce some tilt at some angles.

Its always something eh?

Greg.

[Paul Haese]

After the first image I am very keen to see how this project progresses. I really like the star field and golden stars. The gas cloud colours is well contrasted against the rest of the Milkyway. Should be a cracker of a project.

[gregbradley]

Thanks Paul. This image may change as I start to assemble the mosaic as I would not normally take a single panel all the way through before assembly. I wanted to do this last year but the 165mm lens would take too many panels.

Greg.

[troypiggo]

Nice field. So many objects in there.

Minor nitpick - is the red a little off? Too saturated or something?

[gregbradley]

Thanks Troy. The red areas are the Ha blend. Its toned down quite a bit believe it or not. It may not be the final image as this is only 1 panel out of 6 or more planned so an overall colour tweaking is coming later on. Also keep in mind its a high quality 5nm Ha filter on a mono CCD that is sensitive to Ha so it will be more accentuated than in an equivalent DSLR shot.

Greg.

[Rod771]

That's looking really good Greg! I cant wait to see the final image.

[Eden]

Nice work, Greg.. would love to capture the Antares region myself at some stage, lots of fascinating things to see around that area.

Looking forward to seeing the resulting mosaic, first frame looks great.

[NOMH]

That is a very colorful image and a great FOV. What a great stand alone image and the final mosaic will be stunning!

JB

[multiweb]

Well done. Great colour saturation. :thumbsup:

[gregbradley]

Thanks Rod. I got most of 2 more panels last night.



It is a pretty area. Easily captured with a DSLR and a Vixen Polarie.



Thanks very much for that.



Cheers Marc. M8 is in the next panel!

Greg.