I’ve never considered myself to be a real Galaxy guy, but sometimes it’s cool to get out of one’s comfort zone. Seeing M&T's & Greg's lovely recent renditions, I only just remembered I took this last year, but never finished processing it!
The Antennae Galaxies, also known as NGC 4038/NGC 4039, are a pair of interacting galaxies in the constellation Corvus.
They are currently going through a starburst phase, in which the collision of clouds of gas and dust, with entangled magnetic fields, causes rapid star formation.
Nah, to heck with that description - they're Colliding galaxies!
Oh, and they’re 45 million light years distant!
Taken in April last year in one night at a dark site with my former & well loved astrophotography rig!
I’ve never considered myself to be a real Galaxy guy, but sometimes it’s cool to get out of one’s comfort zone. Seeing M&T's & Greg's lovely recent renditions, I only just remembered I took this last year, but never finished processing it!
The Antennae Galaxies, also known as NGC 4038/NGC 4039, are a pair of interacting galaxies in the constellation Corvus.
They are currently going through a starburst phase, in which the collision of clouds of gas and dust, with entangled magnetic fields, causes rapid star formation.
Nah, to heck with that description - they're Colliding galaxies!
Oh, and they’re 45 million light years distant!
Taken in April last year in one night at a dark site with my former & well loved astrophotography rig!
Hi Andy,
Another eye popping shot of the heavens. You certainly know how to bring out the details.
Cheers
Peter
Thanks Peter, I found that the latest version of APP is pretty awesome at registering one's subs and creating a master LUM layer which when imported to PS really helps!
Mind you, Nik filters detail extractor is a handy tool as well when used sparingly!
No substitute for large aperture or more data like M&T's image, but when we have to use what we have, honing one's processing skills can really make a difference.
I suspect we've been late replying because we were really hoping to do some 2x2 binning to get more detail in the hook-back part of the top right antenna. But wind, clouds, and a full moon intervened.
You've shown that really faint curve-back very nicely. Nailed it, in fact.
I suspect we've been late replying because we were really hoping to do some 2x2 binning to get more detail in the hook-back part of the top right antenna. But wind, clouds, and a full moon intervened.
You've shown that really faint curve-back very nicely. Nailed it, in fact.
Not that we're even slightly competitive. No.
Best,
MnT
Ha ha! Lol- I originally didn’t publish this after showing a preview to a good friend who suggested there was no detail & my scope must have been out of collimation - so I kind of moved on in disappointment & forgot about it after that!
Seeing your fine recent image encouraged me to revisit my data & see what Details I could drag out. No competition with yours though, but thanks for the compliment!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Slawomir
Awesome image Andy, your Newtonian is a really powerful tool
Cheers Suavi- it’s gone to a good loving home elsewhere now, hopefully my Tak will soon be as potent!
Quote:
Originally Posted by h0ughy
cool looks like a love heart with sweeping arms
Thanks Houghy, seems that there’s apparent beauty in destruction when worlds collide!
Very good galaxy shot Andy, Uber cool galaxies these ones Interesting framing , the galaxy is kind'a at the bottom of the frame..what was your rational around this aspect in this instance?
Very nice work Andy. I’ve got some RGB data on this one as well, just waiting for the moon to go away to grab some luminance.
Hey Rodney, thanks for the nice feedback - looking forward to your rendition soon!
Quote:
Originally Posted by strongmanmike
Very good galaxy shot Andy, Uber cool galaxies these ones Interesting framing , the galaxy is kind'a at the bottom of the frame..what was your rational around this aspect in this instance?
Mike
Cheers Mike, welcome back!
I really don't understand the unwritten but widely accepted "Place the target in the middle of the frame" rule!
So in this case, I chose to place the Galaxy in context with the vastness of space and the surrounding large stars to make a more interesting and dynamic composition.
So in this case, I chose to place the Galaxy in context with the vastness of space and the surrounding large stars to make a more interesting and dynamic composition.
Ah, ok, what you said to MnT gave me the impression that perhaps something had gone a little awry with the framing out in the field , that was out of your control but ok, I understand now.
I'm certainly a proponent of considering composition when taking astroimages, but compared to most nebulae/nebulous regions, that usually have lots going on in them and because of the often smaller field in play, the small circular size of most galaxies means if there is nothing much else of interest in the field, there can be less options for a meaningful composition, at least for a shot of a single galaxy. If desired, for presentation or entering in a competition say, the field can of course always be cropped after processing too, to create a different composition, change galaxy orientation, or include field stars, intriguing background galaxies or even IFN etc to balance the view
, the galaxy is kind'a at the bottom of the frame..what was your rational around this aspect in this instance?
, that was out of your control but ok, I understand now. 
