M16

[peter_4059 (Peter)]

Had the gear set up last night for the first time since returning from Astrofest. I had mainly planned to re-establish my polar alignment and check out the autoguiding but when all that was done I decided to give M16 a shot (despite the full moon). This image is a total of 2 hrs using the DSI II and ED80 (60x1min R and 60x1min B).

Comments and tips welcomed!

[Matty P (Matt)]

A nice result Peter, the pillars have come out great. Another thing that really stands out is the lovely star colours.

One thing that I suggest is maybe try a curves adjustment to try and extract a little bit more data. Apart from that it is a great image.

Well done.

[AlexN]

I agree with Matt on this, I think a quick play with curves could bring out a bit more

Some of the stars seem a touch bloated? After seeing your setup I know your focusing is under control.. so maybe collimation?

Regardless of that, ripper image! colors are fantastic.

[jase (Jason)]

Not bad Peter. A little deconvolution will tighten up the stars, though they appear ok to me. If anything, they look like they could be stretched a little more but its hard to tell at this resolution. Perhaps get yourself a Ha filter so you can image when the moon is around. Look forward to seeing more.

[allan gould]

That really is a nice image Peter. You havn't pushed the processing hard and it really looks nice and natural. The colours are really goo-you nailed it there.
Two hours guiding? Must have left you with some time on your hands to do other things.

[dcalleja]

Nice image Peter. I think you've done the right thing not processing it too hard

[Jeffkop (Jeff)]

Another entirely unique picture of a nebula I have seen .. oh probably 25-30 images of so far ... Thats whats so great about this forum.
And your effort Peter is great to look at. I wouldn't question the advise given buy those in the know already in this thread ... but I like that brownish appearance.

[peter_4059 (Peter)]

Thanks for the comments. I was finding additional stretching was bringing out the skyglow more and not really enhancing the nebula. Jase - I gave (astraimage) deconvolution a try tonight and it did seem to tighten up the stars however I have no idea what settings to choose. Do you know of any references that describe what to do?

Peter

ps - Allan- you're right - in two hours I convinced myself I needed a motofocus for the Meade!

[AlexN]

Peter, Don't you love it when you convince yourself you need more toys

Im ticking away in my head at the moment... Wondering if a JMI motorized crayford is needed for my Newt.

It probably is...

The deconvolution has worked well on your image, As far as settings for deconvolution are concerned, I've found there are no "normal" settings.. Each image needs different settings on both radius and width.. its sort of trial and error... However, for similar images I find that similar settings apply. Ie. Jupiter images usually require very similar settings for me.

[peter_4059 (Peter)]

Cheers Alex. I suspected that would be the case with the deconvolution settings - I'm finding I need to spend more time processing than imaging.

As for the Crayford - you know you need it - I put a motor drive on my Newt and have never looked back - that's after I then got the FCUSB unit for it

Peter.

[AlexN]

yeah... if i get the JMI it will be getting FCUSB treatment... after seeing your setup at work its been like a nagging voice in my ear... mmoootooor fooocuuus... MMMMMOOOOOTOOOORRRR FOOOOCCCUUUUSS!!!
QUIT YO JIBBA JABBA AND GET A MOTORFOCUS FOOL!!

It is the best way to go without a doubt.

[Bassnut (Fred)]

Well, seems to me the focus aint that bad, good detail on the fingers. Do you use flats Peter?.

[peter_4059 (Peter)]

Thanks Fred - I spent a lot of time back and forward between the laptop screen and the focuser - especially on the red channel. I like the idea of being able to watch the image update as the focus is being adjusted and the Focuspal software allows you to make smaller and more even steps than I can using the manual focus.

I haven't used flats yet mainly because I don't own a light box but also because it adds more time and complexity to acquiring and processing the image and I thought the DSI chip was small enough for the images to not suffer from vignetting. For darks I use the DSI's auto dark subtract function.

Peter

[Ric]

Lovely image Peter, the Eagle is soaring nicely in this one.

Very sharp and detailed.

Top shot.