M104 - M16 - Pillars

[JD2439975]

Thursday evening & the sky remained clear of clouds for a change, as the sun went down still clear, quick check of the radar showed those pesky patchy showers that can drench you in seconds were kindly staying away. :prey:
I started setting up a bit late really, just didn't want to have to break it all down again quickly if the weather turned bad, as it turned out got a full night of 70odd% transparency & if SkippySky can be believed the usual vgood-excellent seeing.
Too long setting up...Where does this cable go again?...5 months is a long time for a novice like me...10PM!! :eyepop:
Forget the polar alignment just use the marks & setup from last year...she'll be right mate, besides you're relying on last years collimation so this could be rough anyway.

Mars was laughable, Saturn wasn't much better so I moved to M104 for an exposure tester.
Doubled the focal length with a 2x barlow, not smart with dodgy tracking but that's the scale I want, 18x5min lights, 6 darks, ISO800, cropped.
1.5 hours is no where near enough exposure, perhaps 6 hours minimum to do it justice.

Next came M16 at a more sensible native FL, 22x5mins lights, 7 darks, ISO1000, uncropped.

And lastly is a close up of the Pillars of Creation, just under 4 hours from 2 data sets neither of which are all that spectacular but it makes for my longest exposure yet. :D

I'm determined to learn that this year...patients, long exposures for a good image (alignment & collimation help too :rolleyes: ).
All the images that make me drool are like 8+ hours exposure & I feel this is one of the most valuable lessons to learn...must learn.
Thanks for looking & listening, really was good to drag the scope out & get under the stars for a change.

Justin.

[RobF]

I love the wide shot of the Eagle Justin. You've got some nice shots there! Its a shame the barlow showing tracking problems etc. Probably doesn't help to have the camera that much further out on the OTA either. Good on you for having a go though.

I'm always stuggling to remember where to plug things in after a few weeks, let alone five months! You did well to have a go at so many objects. :)

[JD2439975]

Thanks Rob, I've taken to rotating the tube so that the focuser is pointing downward in the park position.
Adding the barlow only shifts the camera weight closer to the center of rotation rather than the usual way off to the side, I'd recommend it to anyone.

[RobF]

Plus it makes it easier to navigate around your FOV if the camera is also aligned with the OTA, which can be handy if you're trying to adjust framing and can't see the faint object in the viewfinder (or using CCD).....

[multiweb]

You M16 close-up is superb. There is a PS plugin called stars rounder that allows you to round the stars a little bit and I think the shot is really worth salvaging. I have attached a quick repro to show you what can be done. If you spend a bit of time on it it's well worth it. Nice work. :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

[JD2439975]

Thanks Marc, great advice.
Wow flipping those images you can see the difference alright & not just in the stars, the image in general benefits.

Just downloaded a copy of that plugin...and a couple of others. :D
Time to play...

[multiweb]

The star rounder shifts the whole picture in X or Y to get round stars so be careful as it will smear/blur the nebulosity. I did a quick star mask for the final and applied a highpass filter layer at 5.5px and blended it back in with softlight at 30% with a basic star mask. That maybe why it looks a tad sharper. Anyway have a play with it. :thumbsup: