Progress...

[thegableguy]

It's rare that I feel like I'm getting anywhere in this hobby so it's nice to compare photos 10 months apart and realise I'm actually making progress.

First image was taken tonight using a Nikon D3300 through an 8" f/5 reflector. 20 second unguided exposures; 30 x ISO 400, 30 x ISO 800, 13 x ISO 1600. Each group stacked separately then the three TIFs stacked (all in DSS). Final TIF edited in Lightroom.

Unguided so the framing drifted during the shoot, so positioning isn't great. The core is also a little blown out, somehow. I'll try restacking everything tomorrow night to see if I can avoid that - I think I know what I did wrong.

The second shot was from last April shortly after I got my NEQ6 and ED80. Same camera but no idea what settings I used.

[Atmos]

Making some really nice progress there Chris! It really helps to see how far you've come, it is a big moral boost when you can look back and see that the effort hasn't been for naught :)

[RickS]

That's a big improvement. Congrats!

[Somnium]

great work Chris, big improvement! are you imaging with a coma corrector ?

[cometcatcher]

Awesome Orion Nebula and running man!

[thegableguy]

Thanks folks! Currently trying another version to see if I can do anything about the blown-out Trapezium. Just mashing random buttons in DSS hoping to find a winning combo.

Yes Aidan - using your old Baader. Think I've got the spacing about right...? Hard to tell from this image as the collimation is likely miles off - the OTA has been sitting on an outdoor lounge under a cloth for three months so has been subject to all the crazy Sydney heatwaves lately. Amazed it's this sharp to be honest!

[Cimitar]

Great improvement Chris :thumbsup: Always good to compare as it's hard sometimes due to the monthly frustrations.
My wife often jokes that she looks forward to the day that I finally get my telescope aligned. Then she can see a proper image for all my hard work! ;)

Cheers, Evan

[thegableguy]

I had another go at the editing. Not a massive change, but I'm definitely happier with this one. My processing / editing technique has improved to the point I'm actually making images I'd consider printing and hanging in my studio...

Open to opinions. Have I gone a little overboard with the saturation?

[thegableguy]

Whoops - ignore that last one - defringing somehow snuck in there and messed it up horribly. Here's the final version.

[Atmos]

Your new one shows the dust a lot better :)

[Cimitar]

2nd one looks good as well. Certainly showing more dust :thumbsup:
Only comment I'd make is that a slight green tinge has appeared, mainly around the faint stuff at 11 o'clock. HLVG with a mask or a green curve reduction would probably fix that if it was an issue.
Cheers, Evan

[FlashDrive]

That looks nice ... great colour .

Col...

[bigjoe]

You should be proud of what your achieving ! Some here are spending 10s of thousands more on equipment in this hobby, for not much better ! So well done . HANG EM UP!
bigjoe