The Extended Corona (now with added new image)

[Paul Haese]

I put together a rough extended corona this morning. I like the way the corona looks but not happy with the ringing that is present in the middle corona.

I will play with this data for some time yet.

Feel free to tell me how to sort the problems. We don't get many chances to see totals and image them.

Edit. sorted some of the problems but the high cloud is evident in later images and I suspect Phil is correct about this affecting the outer corona.

I have left the original for comparison.

[Poita]

What are you using for processing Paul?

Great to see the extended Corona. Managing gradients is going to be tricky.

[ChrisM]

Well done Paul. You've captured far more than I saw.
Chris

[Paul Haese]

Thanks guys for the comments.




This was done in photoshop 6 with HDR compiling. The gradients are a pain.

[Poita]

Gradient Xterminator might be worth a shot. Not precisely what it was designed for, but worth a go.
http://www.rc-astro.com/resources/GradientXTerminator/

[RickS]

Interesting image, Paul. Will be good to see what you can do with it with some more processing. My first attempt at the corona with Photomatix didn't work very well. I'll spend some more time on it when I get back home.

Cheers,
Rick.

[Paul Haese]

Thanks guys.

Rick it took sometime to get this looking like this but I want to sort it a bit more yet and restack the lot using a manual technique.

Thanks for the link Peter. Not having to deal with gradients for my DSO images means I have never used that program.

[DavidTrap]

I think Joe uses a manual stacking method.

I had no luck processing with PS4 HDR yesterday while waiting for my flight.

Unfortunately, even these HDR shots don't do justice to what was visible with the naked eye. I was blown away by the sight when I took the eclipse glasses off just before totality. I'd left them on for a while watching the last slither of sun, so I think my eyes were partly dark adapted. When I took them off, the overall scene of the corona above the tree was awe-inspiring. I'm kicking myself for not taking a widefield camera, although I keep trying to remind myself it was only my first eclipse and photography was meant to be a secondary priority.

DT

[Paul Haese]

David I remember my first eclipse and your description here was just as I remember it. Looking at the eclipsed sun I thought I was seeing something quite weird and then I knew instantly what people were on about.

You are right about any shot not being able to translate the view you get of seeing the corona. It is an exceptional experience and the ethereal aspect of it leaves you wanting for more.

[Phil Hart]

great work Paul.. and glad you got the luck you needed to get it. when you figure out how to fix the banding i'll be keen to hear how you did it.. my images are showing the same issue at the moment, but also only with very rough processing so far. i wonder how much the high cloud is contributing to this?

was a great experience!

Phil

[gregbradley]

Great shot Paul.

That banding is most likely lack of bit depth in the image and requires more signal or less pushing.

Perhaps you can mask the outer areas where the banding is present so it doesn't get pushed as much as the inner areas where the signal is more solid.

You can try gradient handlings but its likely the above.

Greg.

[Dennis]

Lovely shot Paul, the delicate coronal streamers are quite special, thanks for the view.

Cheers

Dennis

[Paul Haese]

Thanks guys,

Phil, you could be right; there was a fair bit of high cloud about, but not enough to be evident in the images. Perhaps this is contributing to the loss of signal.

Greg, now that you raise it, this makes sense. It is like onion rings in planetary imaging and that is most often caused from under exposure which reduces the dynamic range.

Dennis, capturing the coronal streamers was my main objective for this trip. China was such a bust with high cloud that capture of the streamers was near impossible. So this time it was a significant improvement.

[StephenM]

Lovely corona detail Paul! Looks great.

Cheers,
Stephen

[Matt Wastell]

That is an awesome corona - congratulations!

[Virgs]

Paul, you should be happy with what you were able to get given the conditions. Alas this eclipse is not going to produce the results of a cloud free one. You have done well with what you had to work with, next one will get you the results you are looking for! Well as long as you dont go anywhere that starts with C.

[ourkind]

Hi Paul, I like the 2nd image, the lunar disc looks clean and the detail in the corona has been enhanced. :thumbsup:

[Shiraz]

Exceptional image Paul. must have been a wonderful sight.

[Paul Haese]

Thanks guys, I think there is still some room for improvement, but I will address this once I get home Adelaide.

Tony, the next place will not be somewhere with cloud for sure. Or should I say without a high chance of cloud.:) Still; it was another spectacular site, but the next one I will just do a movie and do the corona with a small mount and my DSLR. Not going to carry as much crap next time. I am very happy with these results. I reckon 4th time will be a charm.

Ray, it was quite different from previous ones I have seen. The ocean added an ethereal look to the scene with the reflection of the coronal light from it to my position.

[Kal]

I'm loving the reprocessed shot, alot of coronal detail there making it an interesting image

[spacezebra]

Stunning Paul! Great to meet you finally.

Cheers Petra d.

[Paul Haese]

Thanks Petra it was nice to meet you too.

[jjjnettie]

Fantastic capture Paul. And it was wonderful to finally catch up with you after all this time. :)

[RickS]

Nice improvement in the second image, Paul!

[Paul Haese]

Thanks guys.

JJJ it was really cool finally meeting you too. I wish we had more time to talk, but the day was full of excitement. Maybe next time.

[geoffsims]

Hi Paul,

This is looking great! It looks to me like the original image has more detail in the inner corona, and the updated image has more detail in the outer corona. Even without comparing with the original, the updated image looks too bright & saturated for the inner corona.

I reckon you need a blend of the two :-)

Geoff