NGC 6559 - The Snake River Canyon using MARCO's Method. Updated 3 Hrs more data added

[Andy01]

First HaRGB image from me - RGB is not my comfort zone but when under dark skies it seems to be necessary to try something new. :)

UPDATE: Tried it again Marco's method http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=138473 - Amazing - ALL HAIL KING MARCO! Thanks again Marco :)

Update 2 - 3 hrs more data added - High Res here http://www.astrobin.com/full/210775/G/

Ultimately curious about doing full tricolour NB on this one but this is what I have for now.

6x5min R
6x5min G
7x5min B
14x20min Ha
HaRGB

Thanks for looking, comments, critique etc welcome :thumbsup:

[Placidus]

Hi, Andy,

Coming along very nicely.

You've got some lovely rich warm tones toward top left which are often out of field in other versions.

What does HaRRGB mean, and what is the goal? Does it mean that Ha and R got combined to make a luminance channel, or does it mean that Ha got mapped to red, or (as Ellery Queen might have said) something else entirely?

Looking forward to seeing a longer exposure.

(We had even worse than trees in the way last night: a cable for the dome roof opening mechanism came unfastened and fell down into the path of the dome shutter as it opened, causing a very scary BANG in the pitch dark. So our observing session was zero minutes and zero seconds.)

Best,
Mike

[Andy01]

Thanks Mike, Crikey that cable incident must have been a wakeup call for you! Blending Ha and RGB is always interesting.
I have previously used the Starizona method described here to avoid the dreaded salmon pink -

http://starizona.com/acb/ccd/software/ps_hargb.aspx

But it seems that Marco Lorenzi's method http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=138473 gives a more natural, better looking result, it did in this case anyway :)

Cheers
Andy

[Slawomir]

Very nice Andy, just a few hot pixels are still present but otherwise a pleasant composition :thumbsup:

[Bassnut]

Andy, what are you doing?. noisy and too red. hopelessly short exposure time. Every time I try RGB it looks like shiet. Thats what happens when you leave your comfort zone.

[Andy01]

Er, thanks for the positive reinforcement there Fred! Ate you ok? Having a bad day? Didn't I say all of the above already? Did I not say it was a wip?

The point of the post was to endorse Marco's techniques for blending Ha & RGB, not to get slam-dunked on an image that was posted as a a wip.

Thankyou for your input Fred, you know I value and respect your opinion but its much more beneficial to others who dont have access to 60+ hrs of remote State of the art facilities on call to build them up with criticism that is at least encouraging. The classic "**** sandwich" approach works well. Ie: say something nice, then say what what you reaally want to say, then end with something encouraging.

Again however, thanks for taking the time to comment.

[Bassnut]

Sorry,I wasnt being that serious Andy, messin with your brain. Yes, a wip, Im sure you will build on it :thumbsup:.

[marc4darkskies]

Coming along nicely Andy. Apart from gathering more blue, don't forget to put some Ha into the blue channel too (~20% max).

[Andy01]

Thanks Fred, had me worried - for a moment there I thought you forgot to take your happy pills! Yes definitely adding LOTS more data when I can :)



Cheers Marc, Ha in Blue eh? Interesting, havn't tried that before - can you post an example pls? Cheers :thumbsup:

[marc4darkskies]

All my emission neb shots, where I've gathered Ha data, use this technique - http://www.pbase.com/gailmarc/nebulae

I do it because it very roughly simulates H-beta. You get more pinkish hues in the neb that more closely approximate the colours in a straight RGB image. You also avoid the "it's too red" critique. :)

[Andy01]

Beautiful work, will have to try that out, thanks for sharing :)

Big congrats on your Highly Commended image in the "Astronomy Photographer of the Year" too - http://www.rmg.co.uk/whats-on/exhibitions/astronomy-photographer-of-the-year/2015-winners/galaxies

[Rex]

Thanks for the laugh Fred and Andy, that was really quite funny.

Great image Andy, I'm loving those golden stars. Can't wait to see the finished version.

[Andy01]

Cheers Rex, I wasn't sure what to make of Fred's comment originally, but it's all good - glad you found the thread amusing, all good :)

Working on adding data tonight...

Andy

[Andy01]

Updated with another 3 hrs data using Marcus' method incorporating some Ha into the blue channel. High res here - http://www.astrobin.com/full/210775/G/

[strongmanmike]

While perhaps not quiiite up to his standards overall at this stage, that's uncanny Andy, this does have a look similar to a neb shot by Marcus, huh, who would'a thunk it :thumbsup:...you can be either a Marco or a Marcus now, depending on your fancy :D...would you like to be a Mike too sometimes? It'll cost ya though ;) :lol:

Mike

[rustigsmed]

nice one Andy, this target is really quite faint.
i reckon you should nab some more blue if time allows.

cheers

russ

[Andy01]

Thanks for chiming in Mike, appreciate the comment.
I'm certainly not comparing my skills to Marcus' or Marco's - just learning new techniques and giving credit where it's due.
As to being a Mike - well - as they say in Highlander, "there can be only One". :lol:



Cheers Russ, agree it would benefit from more data.
Think I'm done with this target now for the season though - it's too low for my backyard with houses next door etc. and it'll be a while before I can get out to a dark sky again.
But I learned a lot from tackling this one and that's always a good thing :)

[marc4darkskies]

Nice improvement Andy. :thumbsup: Emission colours are more nuanced and pleasing. You need more blue data though to bring out reflection components. In fact I'd suggest you at least double your RGB data. My version (with a 150mm scope) has 90 mins each of RGB.

[Andy01]

Thanks again for your input here Marcus, I always enjoy learning new ways to improve my images. Thanks again for sharing :thumbsup: