IC 405 Flaming Star nebula

[Paramount]

Hi
I seem to have a tendency of picking my subjects when they are low in the sky or just before the clouds come in. I was imaging the Flaming star last week and it was already a bit low in the sky and I set the software to do 10 x 10 minutes unguided subframes unfortunately I only managed to use 6 of the subframes as our neighbours fence appeared in the 7th subframe. Originally I wasn't going to process this but I am glad I did as there is still a fair amount of detail coming through despite the short exposure time, as you can see there is a bit of noise which would have been smoothed out if I had more frames. In the end I was quite pleased with the overall result.
Kind regards
Gordon
:)

http://www.imagingtheheavens.co.uk/USERIMAGES/IC405.jpg

[iceman]

Another nice result, Gordon. Lovely image. Satellite trail too :)

What sort of processing do you do on your images?

[Paramount]

Hi Mike


Thanks for the comments, the processing I do for the Ha images is actually very basic but I will go through it in stages
1 I combine raw fits files using autocombine using the sum value in Maxim DL
2 I then save to tiff 16 bit using the default settings in the stretch dialogue box
3 I open the tiff file in Photoshop CS2 and do about 2 or 3 itterations of curves using slight adjustment of the central part of the curve
4 In between each itteration of curves I may make a very slight alteration in levels but I find this is not always necessary
5 I then use one itteration of enhance local area contrast using Noel's tools (plugin available for photoshop
6 This is sometimes followed by lighten DSO again in Noel's tools
7 I then zoom into the image to check for any nasties like cosmic flares or "satellite trails" and remove them using the clone stamp tool, I forgot to do it for this image as it was already faint, it takes a bit of time and patience using this technique to get rid of a satellite trail but with practice it easier than you think
8 Finally if necessary I crop the image to reduce any vignetting or effects from stacking
9The last thing I do before posting to my site or the forums is to save as a jpeg
This routine takes me about an hour or two maximum and it is something that I find seems to suit the Ha images, I also find that the longer your subframes the less need there is to use curves and levels to bring the detail out as you will see when I post another image which is of part of the California nebula made up of 4 x 15 minutes unguided where I didn't use levels or curves at all. My current processing skills are very basic to say the least at the moment and I tend to look at all the forums and pick up tips from other people.
Kind Regards
Gordon
:hi:

[Ric]

A lovely image of a fascinating target, the Ha really seems to add depth to the centre of the nebulosity.

Another great image Gordon.

Cheers