Three weeks of cloudy and rainy days are good for image processing….. I worked on NGC 1365 again and the result is attached.
Scope: RCX400 14” with Lumicon Giant Off Axis Guider. Focal ratio = 5.
Camera: QHY8. Guiding with QHY5 and GuideMaster.
22 x 6 min frames with light pollution filter.
29 x 6 min frames without light pollution filter.
10 x 10 min frames without light pollution filter.
Each set was stacked independently with DSS (DeepSkyStacker). Then the three stacked pictures were imported to Photoshop using HDR (High Dynamic Range). The pictures were assigned EV values of -1, 0, 1. Sharpening was done using Smart Sharp and only on the luminance layer that Photoshop creates when using Lab Colour mode.
After going back to your previous post there is a improvement in your repo with more detail in the arms. I have not used HDR although I sat through a lengthy talk on the subject, I use mask blend on images like M42 and shadow highlight in p/s for objects with less extreme levels of brightness. I don't know anyone converting a rgb one shot colour to lab mode then sharpening the L channel, done this with mono lrgb to keep noise low in the rgb channels and detail high in the Lum. Seems to work well for you though.
Clear skies Ken.
