[marc4darkskies (Marcus)]

Originally Posted by gregbradley

That's a wonderful image Marcus.

Adding some Ha would show up the neb areas
in the galaxy much like M33 shots do.

Greg.

Thanks Greg. Yeah, I thought about doing some Ha but the weather hasn't cooperated ... plus ... I'm naturally lazy

Originally Posted by strongmanmike

Excellent Marcus, not sure what a Sidonio could do to this actually ...be interesting to see what you could improve. I see what Greg is getting at but adding contrasty Ha does not imedeately seem necessary. Currently the subtlety of the image is its appeal and I agree not going hard on the noise reduction is deffinitely a positive step in my opinion.
I also agree (of course) a good 6" APO is incredibly versitile and can punch above its weight (and thus march in a VB ad ).

Very nice work Marcus

Mike

Thanks Mike - appreciate that! Everything I tried to reduce noise impacted the detail or made the transition from the galaxy to the background sky too obvious / pronouced. So I finally surrendered

Originally Posted by AlexN

Very nice work Marcus. This is one thats eluded me in the past.. You've really done it some justice in your rendition..

Well done.

Thanks Alex. I think I could improve it though if I get some nights with better seeing. Some of my Lum subs were less than optimal.

Originally Posted by Octane

Marcus,

This is an exquisite rendition. It's almost like what you'd see in a dream. Excellent work -- very impressive.

Regards,
Humayun

Cheers Humayun!

Originally Posted by desler

I have to agree with everyone else Marcus, Sensational image.

Darren

Thanks Darren!

Originally Posted by jase

Most excellent work Marcus. A very natural appearance, almost too perfect for my tastes. Even when you equalise the image the galaxy turns white indicating a neutral balance, no shifts. Stayed away from the heavy colour saturation I'm accustomed to with your images? Sign of the times?

EDIT: is there a reason why you kept the nucleus so warm? Magenta appears to be strong in the area.

Thanks Jase!! But ... too perfect??!! I'll take that as a compliment! I usually image well known, in-your-face subjects that scream out to have the colours shown off to the max. The delicate colours and structure of this object demanded a gentler, more subtle aproach to processing.

And the nucleus? Well, I usually look for attributes in the subject that I can use / exaggerate to make the image more striking. Many of the other renditions on the web (incl Rob Gendlers) give the nucleus a similar treatment.