IC 434 - Take 1

[PKay (Peter)]

Still in Orion.

I may have bitten off a bit more than I can chew (for a newbie).

With an aperture of only 85mm, I had to expose for 30 sec before I could even see it!

90 * 1 minute.

It was a great thrill to see the horse jump up after processing!

Might add to it tomorrow.

[blink138 (Pat)]

that's great!
try and make the sky background a bit blacker?
pat

[rcheshire (Rowland)]

Lovely detail in the flame neb. Try dithering your shots a little more to avoid the pattern in the right lower corner of the image. Longer exposures will help reveal the faint and extensive dust in this area.

[PKay (Peter)]

Thanks Row

If I have say...a 2 hour window for the target (before it gets too light) am I better doing 120 of 1 minute subs or
60 of 2 minute subs or or...

I have a well behaved guiding system operating (PHD), that tells me to keep exposures under 4 seconds. Go figure.

The proof is in the pudding :-)

[ChrisV (Chris)]

Really nice Peter.
And your orion was excellent !!

[rcheshire (Rowland)]

Largely, it's a learning experience. What works for one system may not for another. The Orion region is quite dynamic and getting detail is pretty much about managing the dynamic range.

I use 3 minute exposures with a DSLR at a dark site and add a few shorter exposures to manage the bright areas.

You are doing well at 1 minute. You could try 60 minutes of two minute exposures and see how it looks. Add that to your existing data and the scene should pop out of the frame, so to speak.