NGC 2359, first real light of the new camera

[spearo (Frank)]

Hi All,

I think the last time i posted an image might have been last March...
I've been so unlucky with clouds etc its not even funny.

And if you're wondering why the weather has been so bad ...i must have contributed to it when I finally took the step into the world of cooled CCDs by getting an STL11000M.

What a STEEP learning curve!
I'm just getting around the basics of it now.

I managed to test the camera with a couple of quick exposures to see that it worked when i first received it but it wasnt a proper "first light" as far as I'm concerned.

Here is what I'll call the real first light.

Thor's Helmet, NGC 2359
Shot with a C14 at F11 on a G11 (yes I like a challenge).
I'm waiting on an H alpha filter to come in as well as an autofocuser (which will assist as my focusing routine suffered a bit on this image)

I could only manage 2 frames of 20 min on each RGB (lost my only Luminance to a tracking error due to high clouds) (clouds hate me I have decided).

Only one dark frame used, no flat frame.

I wasnt happy with the overall framing but having acquired a few frames one night decided to stick with the same framing in the hope of securing enough frames all up for an image (good thing i did too cuz the clouds came back in with a vengeance after the second night of imaging).

It needs a flat frame master as well as a dark frame master i know.
a Lum of H alpha will probably also help define it better (as will better focusing...).

Color balancing was also a bit of an issue as the original combine seemed a bit biased towards green which i corrected for in PS before adjusting the color balance as best I could. Mono CCD processesing is a whole new ball game... now i understand why people say it takes a week to process images!

Anyways,
Desperate to get back in here with you guys with the imaging so here it is my Thor's Helmet in unnecessary extreme close up.

Thanks for looking
any comments/suggestions welcome of course (some will want to throw a few books at me I think!)

cheers
Frank

[telemarker (Keith)]

That's some serious FL your imaging at. As you say, the application of calibration frames and more data will really smooth this image. Look forward to the end result (clouds permitting).

Regards
Keith

[Bassnut (Fred)]

Originally Posted by spearo

Shot with a C14 at F11 on a G11 (yes I like a challenge).
Frank

Yes, that certainly is a challenge , very nice work Frank.

[Omaroo (Chris Malikoff)]

Jeepers.... nothing like getting in on the top floor eh Frank? LOL!

Nice shot of Thor too. I'm kind of keen to see what you image in luminance when you get your Ha and focus sorted. Combined, it'll make a great contribution to the 2010 Compendium, in direct comparison to your Thor in the '09 edition. The purpose behind the Compendium is now revealed!

[Hagar (Doug)]

Very nice first light Frank. You definitely are a thrill seeker imaging with this big camera and C14 on a G11. Certainly says something for the G11.

The image seems to have a blue cast to it but as first lights go it's pretty good.
Well done. Look forward to seeing some more.

[strongmanmike (Michael)]

Bravo Frank, not bad, good to see the old war horse SCT C14 is still the scope of choice with some . I am sure we will see better from you in due course with that nice big chip camera but as you suggest imaging is imaging and it feels good no matter what (well almost)

Mike
clouds...? I have a new big chip FLI camera and FW on their way from the US.....so don't expect anything to improve in a hurry

[spearo (Frank)]

Thanks Everyone
much appreciated
cheers
frank

[Octane (Humayun)]

Frank,

Maaate, you're a brave man imaging with that combination.

This shows a great start -- can you imagine the potential of multi-night imaging runs? Spend four nights per object. One night each for each of the channels, and you're going to churn out absolute corkers.

I guess, the only thing is, that neither John, nor myself, will be allowed to be present as we bring the cloud and rain. :tonguepoke:

Cheers, mate. Looking forward to more. Keen for cloud and rain next weekend? I might be free...

H

[AlexN]

Glad to see you finally got your STL11k up and running mate! Do you find your guiding is much tighter with self guiding rather than the guidescope setup?

The image is fantastic, definitely showing some nice detail.. Looking forward to more from your new camera!

Tell me, do you get much vignetting or field curvature across the big sensor? Whats in the image looks really nice, and well corrected..

great stuff..

[spearo (Frank)]

Thanks Alex and H,
H yep bring a movie to compensate for the clouds you drag along
Alex,
Thanks
There is pretty significant vignetting if I put the focal reducer on thus imaging at F7 or so. I haven't quite finessed the creation of a proper flat for this scope/camera combination yet though.

Not much (though some) vignetting at F11. I kinda prefer F11 as the stars remain crisper to closer to the edge (again, its not the perfect scope but i end up cropping most of my shots a bit anyways usually)

As for the self-guiding, I will need to image some more to have a definitive answer. One of the appeals of the STL was the self-guiding as I do like to try to image at F11 (those faint little fuzzies). Intuitively I would say it has to be better than what I was doing better but the only way I could be really sure would be to use a separate guide scope and the same imager. I havent done that yet. I was using a 100mm with FL of one meter recently so i think that should be fine for guiding but there's something very appealing about self guiding exactly on the image.
Also I have been able to remove a significant amount of weight by removing the piggybacked guide scope (which I'd also recently installed in a side/side setup). Hopefully that will see the G11 thank me with good tracking and low PE....


The other thing i need to ensure better star crispness will be processes sing skills (very poor at present) and a new better mount (there are rumours of a mini ME coming out sometime though I cant find any info on it....and again...very poor at present)

thanks for the feedback
now clear skies PLEASE !

frank

[Lester]

Very nice image Frank. The resolving ability of the 14" does a good job on the structure in this nebula.

All the best.

[spearo (Frank)]

Thanks Lester,
The challenge for me now will be to get finer details out of it.
Someone get these clouds to go away for a few weeks!
frank